The controversial real estate fair The District leaves Barcelona for Madrid
The fair has generated protests year after year from housing associations.
BarcelonaThe District real estate fair is leaving Barcelona. The controversial event has decided to abandon the Catalan capital, where it arrived in 2022, and move to Madrid. As has been reported The Vanguard And real estate sources have confirmed to the EFE news agency that the organizers of the fair, Next Business Exhibition, plan to announce the change of location shortly. The event, which this year attracted 14,000 executives, had become a meeting point for investors, developers, and advisors specializing in the real estate sector and, more specifically, in investment. However, the annual gathering has generated protests year after year from housing associations.
The decision to leave Barcelona also comes months after, in April, Jaume Collboni will withdraw the €250,000 aid planned for the entity organizing the eventThis was done in response to demands from Barcelona en Comú to salvage a subsidy package worth €26.8 million. This year, The District fair brought together representatives of major investors and real estate developers such as Blackstone, Brookfield, and Ardian. For this reason, since its inception, critics of the event have labeled the congress a "meeting of speculators." They also criticized the fact that such a fair is held in a city as severely affected by the housing crisis as the Catalan capital. Meanwhile, the president of The District, Juan Velayos, emphasized at the close of this year's event that international capital "sees" Spain as a market full of opportunities in an unstable international context. It is estimated that the fair had an economic impact of around €35 million on Barcelona.