Azores government completes housing project on terceira island

The Regional Government of Azores delivered the final houses of a housing project in the Nossa Senhora de Fátima neighborhood on the island of Terceira.

The project, which began roughly two decades ago to rehabilitate the former Joaquim Alves neighborhood, aimed to improve living conditions for families who had lived in prefabricated houses for up to 40 years. The government spent approximately 20 million euros on the neighborhood across three phases.

This latest stage included the construction of 63 new homes and the rehabilitation of 73 existing ones using funds from the Recovery and Resilience Plan. While the government delivered 26 of the 39 houses built in the final phase this week, workers still need to demolish the old prefabricated structures to create green spaces and parking lots. Beyond Terceira, the regional government is managing several other housing initiatives.

In the Nascer do Sol neighborhood, which was ceded by the United States Air Force, the government finished rehabilitating 92 houses by August 31. Although infrastructure work delayed the move in October, the government plans to hand over the keys to these 92 families in November. In Angra do Heroísmo, the government decided to reprogram funds for 48 houses in the Terra Chã neighborhood after a previous competition failed to attract any bidders.

They plan to relaunch that competition next year. The regional government plans to continue expanding housing availability through a mix of public funds, self-construction support, and cooperatives. In Ribeira Grande on the island of São Miguel, the government already supported a cooperative project to build 16 and 46 houses with an investment of 2.2 million euros.

Maria João Carreiro, the regional secretary for Youth, Employment, and Housing, stated that the government cannot do everything alone and encourages citizens to organize into cooperatives to access available support.