The Rosa Magalhães Samba Factory in São Cristóvão has entered a more advanced construction phase, but Rio de Janeiro City Hall's latest update still does not support treating the full complex as close to completion. On September 19, 2026, the city said that four of the 14 warehouses, numbers 5 through 8, were in the completion phase. At the same time, work was continuing on building systems, masonry, waterproofing, steel structures, fire protection, water and power networks, earthworks and canalization.
The main point for tracking the project is this: City Hall says it expects to hand over the first four warehouses soon, but it did not publish an overall completion percentage or an exact delivery date. Any current total progress figure therefore requires an additional source.
What is already in the final phase
| Work front | Status reported on Sept. 19, 2026 | Practical meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Warehouses 5 to 8 | In the completion phase | These are the first four facilities City Hall has identified for handover. |
| Structures and interiors | Building systems, masonry, waterproofing and steel structures under execution | The structural phase has advanced, but technical and finishing work remains. |
| Safety and exterior elements | Fire protection coating and installation of louvers | Protection and enclosure items are still being completed. |
| Utilities | Electrical, hydraulic and sanitary networks underway | Systems required for the warehouses to operate are still being installed. |
| Site works | Earthworks and canalization of the watercourse underway | External infrastructure and site development still have open stages. |
What remains before the Samba Factory is complete
The municipal update identifies pending work fronts but does not detail the stage of each of the other ten warehouses. It is therefore not possible to assign an individual timetable to the facilities that are not among the four cited as nearing completion.
- finish and hand over warehouses 5 to 8;
- complete electrical, hydraulic and sanitary networks;
- finish masonry, waterproofing, steel structures and fire protection where work remains active;
- complete earthworks and canalization across the site;
- continue construction until all 14 planned warehouses are completed;
- finish the external and shared areas, including the plaza, kiosks, seating areas and administrative building.
How each warehouse is designed
According to the official September 2026 update, each unit will have about 1,600 square meters and will support Carnival production for Série Ouro samba schools. The ground floor will provide garage space for up to four floats per school. The first floor will house a dining hall, while the second floor will be used to make costumes and decorative elements.
The program also includes painting and resin workshops, sewing studios, storage for costumes and sculptures, areas for modeling parade floats, a one-ton freight elevator, a passenger elevator, bathrooms, changing rooms and a fire protection system. City Hall also says the warehouses will use natural ventilation and daylight.
How large is the complex and how much does it cost
The latest note describes a 33,000-square-meter complex. The R$156 million investment announced at the start of the project was again cited by City Hall in 2026 in material about long-term Carnival infrastructure. Rio-Urbe is responsible for executing the works.
Figures published at different stages of the project do not fully match. The 2024 announcement referred to a 28,000-square-meter site and 720 square meters for each warehouse, while the 2026 update describes a 33,000-square-meter complex and about 1,600 square meters per warehouse. The official sources do not explain whether the difference reflects a design revision or different measurement criteria. For the current stage, the 2026 figures are the most recent.
The schedule has shifted since 2025
In October 2025, City Hall said five warehouses, numbers 5 through 9, were under construction and that 378 of 728 foundation piles had been completed. At that time, the stated expectation was to begin releasing the first warehouses around mid-2026.
By the September 19, 2026 update, the first four warehouses were still described as being in the completion phase, with delivery characterized only as coming soon. This indicates that the mid-2026 release expectation was not met on the timetable previously mentioned. The new publication does not provide a revised schedule for all 14 warehouses.
What to monitor next
The most useful milestones for verifying progress are the actual handover of warehouses 5 to 8, publication of a schedule for the remaining facilities, and completion of utility networks and external site works. It will also be important to see whether the city publishes an overall physical completion percentage, a consolidated completion date and any updated cost figures.
The main official references are the September 19, 2026 site visit update, the October 2025 progress report, the initial construction announcement and the 2026 reaffirmation of the R$156 million investment.
