Barcelona City Council finds the key to unblocking the demolition of the Italian Pavilion

BarcelonaChange of plans in the transformation of the Montjuïc fairgrounds. Barcelona City Council has decided to transform the current pavilion 2 of the Barcelona Fair in Montjuïc into a new sports centre for the neighbourhood. In this way, it will unblock the problem caused by the demolition of another pavilion in the complex, that of Italy -located next to the Montjuïc fountains- which left at least five sports entities from Poble-sec that carried out their activity there without facilities.

Thus, from 2026, these entities will be able to continue their training in pavilion 2, located on Rius i Taulet avenue, very close to Lleida street. Initially, this building was also to be demolished during the second phase of the Fira's remodelling, but the decision to keep it achieves a double objective. On the one hand, it provides a solution to a historical demand from the neighbourhood to have a municipal sports area and on the other it solves and shortens in time the demolition of the Italian Pavilion, which is built on a green area to be recovered. The fact is that by preserving the structure of pavilion 2, and changing only its uses, the new sports centre will be available three years earlier than the date that was expected if a new one had been built, which was planned for 2029.

The Institut Barcelona Esports (IBE) and the Sants-Montjuïc District have already begun preliminary studies to refurbish part of this fairground as a permanent sports facility with two 44x23 metre multi-sport courts, multi-purpose rooms on an upper level, changing rooms, stands and services.

This change of script in the design of the fairground also definitively dethrones the Sónar festival at the Montjuïc fairgroundsUntil now, the festival was still holding some of its scheduled activities in Hall 2. The announcement of the change of use, however, does not come as a surprise to the festival organisers, who had already planned to group all their activities in the Gran Via fairgrounds in 2026.

More spaces for protected apartments

Beyond obtaining new facilities for the neighbourhood, the space that will be freed up will be used, according to the city council, to build more protected housing and even more municipal facilities in what is already being called "the new Poble Sec", which is planned between Avenida Reina Maria Cristina and Avenida del Paral·lel. In this area, it is planned to build half a thousand protected flats.

The first phase of the works on the new Poble-sec Municipal Sports Centre is expected to be completed by the end of 2026 and the total budget for the renovation will be approximately 5 million euros.