Braga opens its doors

The “Braga de Porta Aberta” initiative aims to aid struggling businesses by expanding their areas of operation throughout 2020

Last week, the local government of the Portuguese city of Braga adopted a slate of measures packaged up under the “Braga de Porta Aberta” initiative. Local authorities believe that during these extraordinary times, extraordinary measures are precisely what is needed for the local economy to survive and prosper.

Opening up the doors of establishments

Over the past few weeks, countries across Europe have been allowing for the reopening of the outdoor areas of restaurants and cafes in their cities. Yet one of the main problems encountered by these establishments has been the fact that social distancing measures make it very hard to turn a profit – as they can fit only a small number of people within their terraces and gardens.

That is precisely what the “Braga de Porta Aberta” initiative aims to remedy. The exceptional and temporary regime introduced by its adoption last week allows for the expansion and installation of terraces and gardens in the city throughout 2020. These measures would allow restaurants and cafes to operate with more freedom and thus be able to generate more revenue by being able to accommodate more customers.

The regime encompasses the entirety of the municipality of Braga and business owners and managers have the opportunity to reach out to local authorities in order to request all the necessary documentation and permits. They should also prepare all the information that the local government needs in order to grant permission for expansion – namely the area which they would like to expand to, the number of tables that it will fit, the number of people, umbrellas, etc.

Other cities across Europe have also been taking similar actions – in Munich, local authorities are converting unused parking spaces into extra room for restaurants and cafes, while Helsinki is getting ready to transform the entirety of Senate Square for the same purpose.