Póvoa de Varzim City Park

Parque da Cidade
View from a station in the park
Type	Municipal
Location	Póvoa de Varzim
Area	30 hectares (74 acres) when complete: 90 hectares (220 acres)
Created	2009

The Póvoa de Varzim City Park (Parque da Cidade da Póvoa de Varzim) is an urban park of Póvoa de Varzim in Portugal.

The park is located in a former plain, where a small stream, farms and farmhouses existed. It includes landscaped hills, a lake, an island, and ways. The stream was recovered and wildlife started inhabiting the area. Small bridges, squares, and rustic buildings were built. The park includes the Póvoa de Varzim Municipal Stadium.

The project for a city park in Póvoa de Varzim started early in the 20th century, and was planned for the area around Lagoa Beach in the location of a dried lagoon, but local real estate companies pressured for the urban development of the beachfront and a small underdeveloped area for the park remained. In 1997, a new project further inland started being planned. The new site was a much larger area and located between the A28 freeway (motorway) and Lake Pedreira.

The new project was part of the urbanization policy of mayor Macedo Vieira and was designed by landscape architect Sidónio Pardal, the most notable Portuguese landscape architect, who designed Porto City Park (1993-2002). When complete, Póvoa de Varzim City Park will be one of the largest urban parks in Portugal with 90 hectares (220 acres), similar in size to Porto City Park, with 83 hectares (210 acres) and considered the largest urban park in Portugal. The landscape architect referred to Póvoa's development area as being "dull, inhospitable, flat and exposed to the motorway", and due to this several slopes had to be erected.

The Sports City project, the first phase, started in 2003 with the construction of the City Stadium. In 2005, the football fields with artificial lawn, behind the stadium, opened. The 19 hectare Leisure Park area started being built in 2007 and was completed for the 2009 festivities of Póvoa de Varzim Holiday. The construction was slow and phased, mostly due to existence of 150 privately owned lands. The funding for the project was from the Póvoa de Varzim City Hall's own funds and the remaining 25% was from the Tourism Fund, which manages the taxes collected from Póvoa Casino.