An office complex created entirely from disused shipping containers and bus carriages will be inaugurated in Lisbon in April.
Mariana Duarte Silva, one of the promoters of the unusual real estate project, confirmed the “soft” opening date of April 9 to the Lusa news agency.
Called the Village Underground Lisboa, the building is based at the Carris Museum in Alcântara and consists of two double-decker buses and 14 sea containers placed in four blocks on three floors.
The recuperated premises will serve as workspace for young professionals and creative types and enjoys views over the River Tagus.
“The first containers will be ready within three weeks,” said Duarte Silva. “After being stacked, the buildings will just require interior decoration, air conditioning, electrical work and internet facilities.”
The two buses, whose recovery process has yet to begin, will complete the office complex with a cafeteria and meeting room.
For the time being, the containers will remain in their original colours. However, urban street artist AkaCorleone has been commissioned to paint over the containers and his new designs will be revealed in March.
Applications from potential residents and businesses interested in occupying the unorthodox office space range from an independent music manager and a “low cost” lawyer to an online design store, a social networks management agency, a children’s bedroom showroom and a gallery for new swimsuit collections.
There is enough room to accommodate 60 people, and 10 business projects have already been invited to make the containers their new home.
The official opening party will be sometime in June, “when the weather is better”, elaborated Duarte Silva.
The Lisbon idea is borrowed from a similar urban regeneration project in the UK – Village Underground London.
“I lived and worked in London and when I came back to Lisbon, I proposed the same idea to my partner, a mentor of the London project,” explained Duarte Silva. “He was in the process of expanding the project to other cities, so we set about making a ‘village’ here.”
Village Underground Lisboa has public transport company Carris and Lisbon City Council as its partners.
Photo: The unorthodox office complex comprises two double-decker buses and 14 sea containers
