The 17th century fort is badly rundown
The Municipal Assembly of Lagos has unanimously approved the launch of a public petition calling for an “urgent revamp” of Meia Praia’s historic fort.
As the petition point out, the fort is abandoned and badly rundown. While the local council has shown a strong willingness over the years to restore it to its former glory by turning into an environmental activity centre or museum, the building is the responsibility of the Portuguese government.
This new petition aims to force the government to act, having been launched on Friday, April 18 – International Day for Monuments and Sites. Citizens can sign it until the last day of the European Heritage Days (September 22) on the municipal assembly’s website, on the Petição Pública portal, or in person at the municipal assembly’s headquarters at the former town hall at Praça Gil Eanes.
The petition has also been sent to the municipal council and parish councils to promote it as much as possible. The assembly adds that citizens will soon be able to sign the petition at several public spaces in the borough.
The Meia Praia fort was built in the second half of the 17th century before being partially destroyed by Portugal’s major 1755 earthquake, having been recovered in 1766 but decommissioned in the early 1800s. It was eventually turned into a base for Portugal’s Guarda Fiscal until the 1950s.
