Introduction

Carcavelos is situated on the outskirts of Lisbon, some 18 miles from the capital.
The first reference to Carcavelos appears in the marriage contract between King John I and Donna Beatrice in the XIV century. In the XVIII century it became a part of the council of Oeiras where it remained for a hundred years and then it was changed to the council of Cascais.
It is situated near the sea, has a pleasant climate and is appropriated for the cultivation of wine and cereals. The wine of Carcavelos became famous in Portugal and soon spread to other countries as well, in the XVIII century. Of the 12 farms that produced this wine only one, the most famous, Quinta do Barão, survived up till now.
The beach at Carcavelos is one of its main attractions especially after the building of the railroad, which made it more accessible to the people of other localities.
The railroad, the marginal road, the saturation of the capital and recently opened Lisbon-Cascais highway are the main reasons for the population and economic growth became incompatible to the existing structures that were those adapted to an agricultural community.
Over the last ten years, the population of Carcavelos increased 40% and is today calculated to have 18.000 inhabitants. Lodgings increased 91% over the same period of time. So Carcavelos was transformed into an area not “lived in” but only occupied. A place where people are obliged to live in but where they have no roots. It is only useful because it is near the capital, where they work. In the first half of the century, life in Carcavelos was sociably very intense. Today, one feels a growing sense of anonymity, bringing about the subsequent problems of loneliness and insecurity.
To try to combat this growing tendency towards complete decharacterization, the Parish launched the basis for a community Centre. Its main aim was to try to transform a “dormitory” into a “community”.
Being a community is a refuse of individualism and an embarking on the “the adventure of the others”.
The community Centre is the fulcrum point. It is a complex of interests, styles and ages.
People are the most important part of the Centre. The Centre, as a building, is a space opens to people. Each person can come, stay and offer service to others using the talents he/she may posses so that everyone can realise themselves fully as individuals.
The services here at the Centre arise as a result of the necessities felt within the community, as well as the offers of services received from its more skilled members.
There are no permanent activities. They come and go as the community feels their necessity. So there is a constantly awareness of the world around us.