The director of the park, Nuno Gonçalves told Lusa that the construction represents an investment of seven million euros and is expected to begin this year or in early 2026.

"Portugal dos Pequenitos will expand by approximately one hectare, entirely dedicated to contemporary architecture, benefiting from the collaboration of five renowned architects who have worked together and whose creativity and vision have redefined the landscape of contemporary architecture in Portugal," he declared.

This park expansion project, created in 1940 on the left bank of the Mondego River, will feature contributions from Álvaro Siza Vieira, Eduardo Souto Moura, Rem Koolhaas (represented in the work by Ellen Van Loon and Nuno Rosado), Luís Pedro Silva, and João Pedro Falcão de Campos.

These are scaled-down reproductions of notable examples of contemporary Portuguese architecture from various cities: the Pavilion of Knowledge (Siza Vieira), the Paula Rego House of Stories (Souto de Moura), the House of Music (Rem Koolhaas), the Port of Leixões Cruise Terminal (Luís Pedro Silva), and the Bar à Margem (João Pedro Falcão de Campos).

The designers of each of the buildings, according to Nuno Gonçalves, "successively met until a balance was found between all the volumes and a compromise was established regarding scale and site layout," based on a preliminary plan by architects Frederico Vital Soares and Eduardo Costa Pinto, "supported by two overarching ideas: building a resilient and biodiverse garden, proposing a coherent and sustainable discourse on water."

"The project goes beyond the mere representation of iconic buildings on a reduced scale. It proposes a careful and detailed reinterpretation, an approach that considers not only each building individually, but also the relationships between them, the pathways that connect them, and their harmonious integration with the surrounding garden," he explained.

Founded by Fernando Bissaya Barreto during Salazar's Estado Novo dictatorial regime and in the context of the Portuguese World Exhibition, Portugal dos Pequenitos is celebrating 85 years of activity.