The Mirante 9 de Julho, once one of São Paulo’s hottest spots, may no longer be just a memory. After years of abandonment, the City Hall has taken over the site and is to open a public call for new projects to occupy the space, bringing it back to the São Paulo scene.
Located behind MASP, the belvedere has the potential to once again be a reference point for culture in the capital. So the news of a possible revitalization is a victory for São Paulo residents, who will be able to enjoy the city’s public spaces even more.
Mirante 9 de Julho has already had a restaurant, cinema and live games
The Mirante 9 de Julho, also known as the MASP Belvedere, has suffered from neglect and abandonment from the outset. Despite being inaugurated in 1910, it was only occupied in 2015, which means more than a century of neglect and abandonment.
At that time, the São Paulo City Hall ceded the use of the space to the private sector, which set up a café, cultural events and, finally, the Mira restaurant. With this, the Mirante 9 de Julho came to life , becoming a stage for tasty meals, concerts, exhibitions and even broadcasts of World Cup matches.
Despite the large audience, in 2021 the city council decided not to renew the contract with Mira’s managers. As a result, the restaurant closed and the site was abandoned. Until, in 2023, the Society of Veterans of 32 (MMDC) took over the site, promising to open a museum there about the Constitutionalist Revolution of 1932.
Great expectations: the future of the Mirante 9 de Julho?
The City Council’s contract with MMDC was expected to last until December 2026. In those three years, the company committed to investing R$72,000 in the lookout, which would include spending on revitalization, security, maintenance and the like. But, to date, nothing has happened.
The MASP lookout continues to be abandoned, with a climate of insecurity and lack of maintenance. So, this August, São Paulo City Hall terminated the contract and took over the site, with plans to open a new call for tenders.
The expectation now is to gather interested parties with proposals to bring Mirante 9 de Julho back to life – be it with a new restaurant, café, art gallery or space for cultural and leisure events. While the future of the belvedere has yet to be determined, we can only hope that its next chapter will bring creativity, investment and constant occupation to a place that has suffered from neglect for years.
