The Bolhão market reopened in 2022 after four years of construction works. The renovation has achieved its goal: the structure is functional and modern, all the while fully respecting the original architecture.
We are in the centre of Porto, at the Bolhão market. The shoppers here know they’ll find fresh regional produce from friendly and cheerful stall holders.
The structure has been renovated from the ground up: today the market is modern and functional, yet retains the architectural beauty that draws tourists in from far and wide.
Every day it is visited by about 20,000 people, indeed it is called the heart of the city.
Rui Moreira is the mayor of Porto. He has always known the market, which he used to visit as a child with his grandmother:
"If you imagine Porto as a tree, I would say that the Bolhão market is one of the main roots. It is located in the centre of the city, characterised by its monumentality and the monumentality of the people who work there.
It is the mayor who demanded that the market be renovated in these terms: that is, it is Rui Moreira who sought to preserve the Art Nouveau monument while opening it up to modifications that would make it functional for those who work there.
After four years of renovation work, the Bolhão reopens in September 2022; renovated from the ground up, it is now at the forefront of health and hygiene standards.
Rumours running through Bolhão market
Francisca Carneiro Fernandes, board member of Go Porto, the public company that manages the market, and head of Market management, explains that “The renovation of Bolhão was a process supported by the city. It was a complex and difficult task, but the citizens wanted it to happen”.
The project was conceived by young architect Nuno Valentim. He faced two major challenges: to design the product counter area in compliance with health and hygiene regulations and to imagine the loading and unloading of goods in an underground space so as to make the operation easy.
"Designing the whole logistical part", he emphasises, "everything that cannot be seen, that makes the market functional, lets it ‘breathe’... That was the great transformation”.
The goods are delivered to the underground car park, the traders pick them up themselves. There are cold rooms, refrigerators and lifts. Everything is new and modern.**
Sara Araújo works in the fish market that used to be her mother's. The market is a mission for her: “Thousands and thousands of people come every day. After the renovation, those who no longer came, came back and from all around, from Boavista, Maia, Porto; absolutely everyone came back”.
Maria Teixeira is a florist who has worked in the market her whole life and cannot imagine herself anywhere else:
"The market is my life; I have been working for 54 years: I started as a young girl and this is what I love to do”.
The cost of the construction site and its cultural value
The renovation cost 28 million euros, of which 22 million euros was financed by the European Union and 6 million euros came from public funding, partly national and partly regional.
“The relationship between customer and seller is much more direct, much closer”, Francisca Carneiro Fernandes concludes. “We often see these women teaching customers how to cook their products, which helps to understand the history of the city and the Portuguese way of life. Social and cultural value is incredibly important for this market”.
Many sacrifices have been made but it was well worth it; the market remains a crucial node for the city's economy and it is also the cradle of the city's cultural identity.