Rua Fernão Ornelas (Fernão Ornelas Street), Funchal

Doctor Fernão de Ornelas became mayor of Funchal in 1929. At just 27 years old, he was the youngest person ever to hold the office. He took over a city that had stagnated and set out to modernize its urban structure. During his tenure, he improved streets, reorganized commercial districts, and introduced significant reforms in education, sanitation, and overall civic planning, helping transform Funchal into a more functional and accessible city.

One of his most lasting contributions was the creation of new thoroughfares and the paving of older, uneven streets. Fernão Ornelas Street, named in his honor, was laid out under his administration as a key access route to the Workers’ Market—another major project he initiated. The street opened in the 1940s and quickly became one of the city’s busiest commercial corridors.

Today, Fernão Ornelas Street is known for its colorful shopfronts, traditional Madeiran tiles, and pedestrian-friendly layout. Next time you walk down the street towards the market, remember you’re literally walking through the mayor’s big urban experiment from the 1940s – and his statue is still here so check it out.