Nearly a hundred projects have received 3.5 million from the Sagrada Família social fund.
The construction board insists on building the Mallorca Street staircase "sooner or later," which will involve demolishing several buildings.
BarcelonaThe Sagrada Família Construction Board Foundation has awarded €3.5 million in co-financing grants to 94 projects from various non-profit social organizations. This is the second call for proposals from the Social Action Fund (FAS), an initiative that allocates a portion of the funds raised by the church to help vulnerable groups. The funding has grown compared to the first edition (2023), but so has interest, as €2.3 million was raised and 56 projects were funded.
Looking ahead to next year, the general director of the construction board, Xavier Martínez, has announced that the funding will increase to €5 million. Speaking to the media from the Sagrada Família Basilica, he specified that this will mean a 40% increase in resources. Interested organizations can begin submitting initiatives starting next May.
The meeting was attended by representatives of all the beneficiary entities, members of the FAS commission and the board of trustees of the Sagrada Família construction committee, as well as the ex officio president, Cardinal Joan Josep Omella, who closed the event with a speech in which he highlighted the role of the church in the event. "The construction committee is not only working to finish the construction of the Sagrada Família, but also to help those most in need," he concluded.
Of this year's winning projects, 27.66% correspond to the fight against poverty and social exclusion; 26.6% to the areas of health and personal autonomy; 24.47% to children, adolescents, and youth; 10.64% to migration and refugees; and 10.64% focus on the elderly. These are projects that "not only provide solutions to specific problems, but also hope and dignity to those who need it most," Martínez insisted. Of the nearly 100 selected entities, 27 are repeating or working on two-year projects, and 67 are new entities.
The funding for this second call has been distributed across 26 municipalities in the Archdiocese of Barcelona, five more than the previous call. And the territorial scope will grow, because for the 2025 edition, Terrassa and Sant Feliu are expected to be included. In addition, nine of the projects will carry out social action in the Sagrada Família neighborhood, representing 10% of the total.
On the steps on Mallorca Street
Martínez has insisted that the staircase on the Gloria façade will be completed "sooner or later" and that "Antoni Gaudí's wishes will be carried out to the end." In this regard, he said that an agreement will be reached with the affected residents and affirmed that until this happens, they will continue working on the verticality of the Gloria façade, work that began this week.
Thus, the general director of the construction board has warned that the staircase is an "independent" project and has emphasized that the current license allows them to build the four planned towers and part of the narthex: "We are very clear that we will follow Antoni Gaudí's wishes to the end, just as the street of streets are going."
Regarding the conversion of the space on Marina Street between Mallorca and Provença streets, Gaudí Square, and the Nativity façade in a large square of more than 6,000 square metersMartínez stated: "We are very happy because it will greatly improve mobility in the area." He indicated that this initiative is part of the agreement the church and the council signed in 2018.
