Collboni revives his project to recover the Teatre Capitol with Junts

BarcelonaBarcelona Mayor Jaume Collboni recovered on Tuesday from one of the most unexpected defeats of his term. After seeing how the Urban Planning Commission's December meeting... vetoed Their project to restore the Capitol Theatre has managed to reverse that decision this afternoon. After abstaining last month, Junts reached an agreement with the municipal government and voted in favor of the project this time. This facilitated the initial approval.

This puts an end to a headache that had caught the Socialist executive off guard, as they did not expect to lose the vote in the first instance. A month ago, the votes against from Barcelona en Comú, ERC, and Vox—who considered the operation a big shot The urban planning issue—and the abstention of Junts—caused the project to lapse, but the municipal government is now reviving it. This is thanks to Junts' votes, which in return have allowed them to introduce minor adjustments to the plan and, above all, guarantee that new spaces will be found in the Ciutat Vella district for the city's popular culture. In statements to journalists, Junts councilors Joan Rodríguez and Damià Calvet explained that their group has reached an agreement with the municipal government to expand the spaces dedicated to hosting and showcasing the Giants of Barcelona and popular culture in the district. "It's an agreement that goes beyond the Capitol and puts culture at the heart of Ciutat Vella," said Rodríguez. For now, however, the locations of these new spaces have not yet been finalized, but the two councilors explained that they are already working with the district on some options.

Rodríguez emphasized that Junts was not against the restoration of the Capitol, but abstained in the previous committee meeting because they believed the proposal could be improved. In this regard, Junts points out that they have introduced some adjustments to the project, in aspects such as defining the theater's rehabilitation process and its subsequent management. They also maintain that in recent weeks they have met with both the project's promoters and with entities such as Amics de la Rambla and the Association of Theater Companies of Catalonia, all of which support the project.

Accusations of real estate speculation

During the committee debate, some of the criticisms voiced in December were repeated, with Barcelona en Comú, Esquerra, and Vox expressing doubts about the urban development project following the reopening of the Capitol Theater. The key to the move is an agreement between the City Council and the real estate company Torcalena, which owns the theater and also the Telefónica building on Portal de l'Àngel. In exchange for transferring the theater to the council, the Telefónica building's zoning was changed from public facilities to commercial use, meaning offices and retail space. According to the City Council's calculations, this generates a capital gain of approximately €37 million, which materialized in the transfer of the Capitol building and also included the theater's renovation and the adaptation of the offices, to be carried out by Torcalena. The City Council's plan is to relocate the offices of the Library Consortium above the theater—in the space formerly occupied by a now-closed guesthouse. The Intercontinental Hotel, located above the Capitol building, will remain open.

Councilors Lucía Martín and Eva Baró, from the Comuns and Esquerra parties, respectively, have once again questioned the figures for the transaction. Both have criticized the calculations made by the city council, arguing that the private profit from the Telefónica building is much higher than anticipated in the agreement. Martín has called the transaction the "first major one" big shot urban planning" by Jaume Collboni, and Baró lamented that the new proposal is the same as the one presented a month ago but with "a little cosmetic change".

The first deputy mayor, Laia Bonet, considered it "irresponsible" to talk about big shot He argued that the acquisition of the Capitol is a "clear opportunity" for the city. He also emphasized that the reopening of the theater aligns with the municipal government's desire to ensure that the transformation of La Rambla goes "far beyond a mere facelift."