Ciutat Vella residents accuse Collboni of allowing seven new nightclubs in the center

BarcelonaResidents of Ciutat Vella have spoken out this Tuesday against the project for a new usage plan for the district that Jaume Collboni's government wants to finally approve this month. The Federation of Residents' Associations of Barcelona (FAVB), the Confederation of Residents' Associations of Catalonia (Confavc), the Raval Residents' Network, the Gothic Quarter Residents' Association, the Old Town Residents' Association, and the Òstia Residents' Association have denounced that the project favors tourism over the neighborhood's residents. They have given as an example that the new project would allow the opening of up to seven new discotheques in Ciutat Vella.

In a joint press conference, the entities explained that the reduction of the minimum distance between nightlife venues, as foreseen by the City Council, will allow this type of establishment to proliferate. The residents have also warned that the new project allows for the multiplication of tourist businesses that were prohibited under the 2019 usage plan, such as scooter, bicycle, or motorcycle rental services, luggage storage facilities, or new ticket sales points for tourist activities. "We oppose any plan with these touristification dynamics that does not put residents at the center," stated Martí Cusó, from the Gothic Quarter Residents' Association.

According to the residents, the City Council prioritizes economic profitability by liberalizing commercial activities in strategic areas such as La Rambla or Via Laietana, which they believe will facilitate the entry of large brands and economic sectors with a high social impact. Therefore, the residents' associations have questioned whether the plan's objective is to "protect the daily life of the neighborhoods," as they state that it further directs the historic center of the Catalan capital towards tourism. For all these reasons, they have asked the groups to vote against the usage plan in this month's plenary session.

For now, Collboni's government does not have guaranteed support to move forward with the usage plan. This Tuesday, ERC also denounced in a statement that the usage plan promoted by the PSC "is incompatible with the will to protect the city's identity". For this reason, the Republicans have requested a hearing from the municipal government "so that it shows its face and explains to the citizens why it has decided to ignore the needs of the residents and opt for a model that continues to favor the touristification and commercial exploitation of Ciutat Vella". Barcelona en Comú has also shown in recent weeks its rejection of a usage plan that, they believe, deepens the touristification of the area.

With this scenario, the future of the usage plan is in the hands of Junts per Barcelona. The group led by Jordi Martí Galbis has not yet decided the direction of its vote, and plans to make it public once it knows the final content of Jaume Collboni's government's proposal. Councilor Damià Calvet has stressed, however, that there is consensus on the need to review the Ciutat Vella usage plan. Sources from the municipal government have emphasized that during the preparation of the process, an "extensive participatory process" was carried out with more than 29 meetings with neighborhood, commercial, business, political groups, and individuals.

A new division

The key to the new usage plan is that it creates a new higher division to categorize the nearly 180 types of activities in the district based on their impact on public space, noise, quality of life, waste, and coexistence. That is, in addition to the restrictions specific to their heading – depending on whether it is a hairdresser, a bar, a textile shop, or a telephone shop, to give some examples – each activity will have other limitations depending on which of the three higher categories it is grouped into: high impact, moderate impact, or activities to be promoted.

To give an example, if before to be able to grant a self-service store license it was necessary that there was no other within a radius of 50 meters, now to this limitation another is added: since it is considered a high-impact activity, the license can only be granted if, in addition to there being no other similar business within 50 meters, the maximum number of establishments grouped in the high-impact category – for example, restaurants and concert halls – allowed within a 100-meter radius has not yet been exceeded. A double cut that will make the opening of certain types of establishments even more difficult.