The Urban Land Institute (ULI) has announced the appointment of Francisco Rocha Antunes, chief development officer at +urbano, as chair of ULI Portugal. He succeeds Eduardo Abreu, partner, Neoturis – Consultoria Em Turismo, and officially began his voluntary two-year term on 1 September 2021.
Francisco Rocha Antunes has been a supporter of ULI Portugal since 2004 and, as a Full Member, sits on the European Living Concepts Product Council. In the position of chair, Rocha Antunes aims to position ULI Portugal as a leading real estate thinktank in the region, establish new alliances with public and private sector stakeholders and grow membership. The new chair will also support the expansion of ULI Portugal NEXT for members between 35-45 and initiate the council’s Young Leaders programme for members under 35.
Lisette van Doorn, CEO of ULI Europe, said: “As a longstanding senior actor in the Portuguese property market with an extensive network and active member of ULI for over 15 years, Francisco brings an abundance of experience and expertise to his position as chair of ULI Portugal. We look forward to working with him on raising the profile of the council and growing membership locally, keeping up the momentum and impressive work of the outgoing ULI Portugal chair Eduardo Abreu over the last two years.
“This is an exciting time for ULI Portugal,” said Marnix Galle, chair of ULI Europe and executive chairman of Belgian developer Immobel. “Francisco is a highly esteemed industry leader who will facilitate new connections and implement fresh ideas to further advance the network in Portugal and increase Portugal’s international exposure. The fact that the 2019 Leadership Retreat and Young Leaders Autumn Study Tour were both hosted in Lisbon, and one of the 2021 ULI Europe Awards for Excellence Awards having gone to LX factory, a successful regeneration project in Lisbon demonstrates the interest, opportunities and best practice in the region”.
Francisco Rocha Antunes, FRICS, has over 29 years of experience in the real estate industry and founded +urbano in 2002. Many of his notable developments during this time are examples of the successful urban renewal of downtown Porto and include mixed-use, residential, retail, parking, and social housing projects. Rocha Antunes holds a degree in Business Management from The Catholic University of Portugal and is a visiting professor of Real Estate Markets Analysis at the University of Porto Business School.
ULI is the world’s oldest and largest network of cross-disciplinary real estate experts, with more than 45,000 members globally. ULI Portugal involves over 40 leading real estate stakeholders from the private and public sectors representing all disciplines within the Portuguese commercial and residential property market. In 2020 the National Council launched its Residential Product Council which functions to share insights and best practice in ‘housing well’. ULI Portugal played a pivotal role in supporting both the regional Leadership Retreat and Young Leaders Autumn Study Tour, which took place in Lisbon in 2019.
