A cidade entre o projecto e a realidade

Abstract

In this publication we propose a series of journeys in space and time, which are established between what exists and remains, and what was just an intention or plan. The publication is divided in two large parts that are preceded by an opening text. The two parts correspond to distinct approach scales, from urban to building scale.In the first part, called THE CENTRALITY OF PORTO: THE SQUARE AND THE AVENUE, we analyze and present, in a first moment, the historical process of formation of Liberdade Square, as an initial effort of defining a new urban centrality, founded on assumptions of 'modernity' and, in a second moment, the Urban Re-foundation determined by the definition of a new Civic Centre, that was made according to Barry Parker's Plan- the opening of Aliados Avenue and a set of additional streets and public spaces, that give place to a series of new buildings. It was its implementation, even if partial, that shaped the character of this central zone of Porto.This first part is divided into various 'Times' that match periods with distinct characteristics, giving particular attention to more recent times, that had the greatest contribution to the shaping of the city as we know it today.In the second part, which we called THE CITY BETWEEN PROJECT AND REALITY, we made an analysis more centred on specific processes of building licensing and construction, in a perspective which attempts to understand the distance degrees that go between plan - either urban plan or architectural project - and real concretization.This part is divided into chapters that correspond, in some way, to the phasing of the construction of the new civic Centre, in a process that crosslink a chronological reading with localization. Although it is not an exhaustive analysis, we identify and analyze almost all the buildings that, over almost a century already, shaped the one that is the large living room of the city of Porto, Aliados Avenue.