Arouca’s city council announced on Thursday that it intends to suspend in June 2023 the contract that will allow Futebol Clube de Arouca, currently playing in the I Liga, to enjoy that municipality’s stadium in the Aveiro district.
The proposal to terminate the contract has already been approved in a meeting of the House, with the favorable votes of the PS majority and the abstention of the PSD councilors, and follows the disagreements that arose between the two parties at the end of September, on the time of the Feira das Colheitas, when the municipality announced concerts in front of the stadium parking lot and the club closed that space with padlocks.
The GNR was called to the venue to cut the chains at the request of the Socialist Directorate, which supported its decision to own the venue, but the concerts were nevertheless moved to another venue, as, as the tenants club defended at the time that the agreement between the two entities does not allow the municipality an “authoritarian imposition” without “agreement with the tenant”, nor that the cultural interests of the municipality overlap “the planning of training and professional games” of the club.
Now the document approved by the College of Mayor and Aldermen states that the club’s “non-fulfilment of contractual and signed obligations” had “serious and harmful consequences” for the municipality when it organized “its main event”, i.e. as far as the Contract award of use of sports infrastructure granted on May 21, 2014 with FC Arouca, the Chamber proposes to give on June 13, 2023 “the same with effect from the current extension in progress” — meaning that, until that date “the club release the premises of persons and property”.
According to the executive headed by Margarida Belém: “only in this way will it be possible to pursue the full satisfaction of the public interest that the municipality is legally obliged to” and it will be possible “the repetition of similar restrictions in the future”.
The proposal, approved at the council meeting, adds that “it is desirable that the management of FC Arouca, which has already given so many sporting pleasures to the Arouquenses, reconsider its behavior and relationship with local institutions, namely with the municipality, which works for everyone. arouquenses” and was “disrespected” according to the socialist majority by being “deprived of the use of what belongs to them”.
The club’s management, contacted by Lusa, declined to comment on the matter, but confirmed the payment to the municipality of an annual rent of EUR 7,460 for the stadium.
The three PSD councilors, who abstained from voting on the document, justified their position by not being in possession of documents proving the chronological order “of the communication between the municipality and FC Arouca” for negotiating access to the parking lot where the municipality wanted to hold the concerts.
Yet Vítor Carvalho, Célia Alves and Helena Rodrigues criticize the socialist executive for the “deplorable way in which he has led this process, by taking it to the public square in the middle of Feira das Colheitas and to restore its good name and reputation inside and out.” from outside to encroach upon the province”.
The Social Democrats argue that “Madam President” [da câmara] want to involve the opposition at this stage of the process, when it should have done so earlier, to inform the developments of this case” rather than choosing “to assume the leading role of a public office as having supreme responsibility for the municipality, without taking care of the possible consequences of this function”.
Source: DN
