Loures

Loures is a 168 km2 municipality located in Lisbon Metropolitan Area and a land of contrasts. It is a polycentric territory ranging between the city of Lisbon, the Tejo river estuary and diverse rural landscapes, all connected by a thin river network. There has been a very strong urban pressure along the main axes to Lisbon, which concentrate most of the 200 000 Loures’ inhabitants. The other part of the population lives in the central and northern areas, in smaller picturesque villages

Loures is shaped with hills at the far north that turn softer towards south, up to the “Várzea de Loures”, the large, central and interior floodplain, separated by a line of peaks from the southern and eastern areas, next to Lisbon and the Tejo River. It enjoys a privileged position, with easy road accessibilities both at regional and national levels and major transport infrastructures (airport, railroad and harbour). For the past decades, an accelerated population growth has caused a rapid enlargement of the existing urban centers and the emergence of several new ones. This led to the development of towns and cities not always well fitted for urban life. It also caused a disconnection between urban and rural areas, well shown by the disqualification of the interface areas.

Therefore with its participation in the URBACT implementation network ReGeneration, Loures expects to gather knowledge and best practices to provide adequate urban spaces to be lived and enjoyed by targeted communities; to connect urban centers through rural systems, rich and balanced, as a higher urban quality factor for citizens; to learn how to better interact and involve citizens in projects related to their cities.