The future Campus Clinic is gaining cruising speed with two key steps

BarcelonaThe future health campus surrounding the new Hospital Clínic continues to move forward. This Monday, the project—one of the most important currently underway in the country—took two key steps. First, the Porta Diagonal – Campus Clínic Consortium was formally established, bringing together the nine institutions involved and serving as the governing and coordinating body for the work to be carried out. Second, the Catalan Government announced that the executive council will approve the purchase of the land from the University of Barcelona (UB) where the new campus will be located this Tuesday. During the presentation held this afternoon at the Palau de la Generalitat, President Salvador Illa emphasized that the consortium's formation sends a threefold message of confidence in the country, institutional collaboration, and a commitment to public healthcare. "We must have confidence in ourselves. These are not times for timidity, but for commitment and resolve," he said. Isla also emphasized the importance this project will have on "metropolitan cohesion." The new consortium must play a central role in managing all the actions that must accompany the transformation of this area at the southern end of Diagonal Avenue, which forms the border between Barcelona, ​​Hospitalet de Llobregat, and Esplugues. The body will be led by the President of the Generalitat and will include, in addition to other councilors, representatives from the other institutions involved in the project: the Hospital Clínic, the University of Barcelona (UB), the city councils of Barcelona, ​​Hospitalet de Llobregat, and Esplugues, the Barcelona Provincial Council, the Barcelona Metropolitan Area, and CatSalut (the Catalan Health Service). The body will be responsible for ensuring that the work is completed on time so that the new campus can open in 2035. The Government will take the first step in these pending tasks this Tuesday. The executive council will give the green light to the protocol signed by the Generalitat (Catalan government) and the University of Barcelona (UB) for the acquisition of the properties where the new health sciences campus will be located, currently housing the university's Sports Service. The agreement stipulates that the Generalitat will formalize the purchase of the land for €135.25 million before the end of the year. Furthermore, the Catalan government will grant a direct subsidy to the UB of up to €17.5 million to finance part of the construction of the new Faculty of Pharmacy. Although not formally part of the new campus—it will be built on adjacent UB land—it will operate very closely within the campus.

The architectural competition is being accelerated

Another step to be taken soon is the international architectural competition for the new campus. The government explained this Monday that it has accelerated the process and expects to launch the competition this July, six months ahead of schedule. The goal, similar to the renovation of the Montjuïc Trade Fair, is to attract architecture and urban planning firms from around the world. Launching the competition in 2026 will thus coincide with Barcelona's designation as World Capital of Architecture. The competition guidelines will take into account the ideas of students from the Master's program in Hospital Architecture, a joint initiative of the University of Barcelona and the Hospital Clínic, who presented their proposals in May. four models of reference they had prepared.

Once the competition is underway, the schedule is divided into three phases, which could become four if necessary. In the first phase, between September and November of this year, the teams will be presented and the corresponding technical accreditation will be carried out. From there, there will be elimination rounds. First, ten selected teams will have until April 2027 to develop initial proposals. Of these, five will move on to a second phase and will have until the end of 2027 to present a detailed proposal. If necessary, a final round will be held between two teams so they can make the final corrections and proposals. The winner will be decided during the first quarter of 2028, and a contract worth approximately 109 million euros will be awarded.

The metro and the transformation of the environment

One of the keys to the transformation of the area is the arrival of the metro to the new campus. The timeline for this project has also become more concrete. The Catalan government's objective is to begin construction in the second half of 2028 on the extension of metro line L3, connecting it from Zona Universitaria to Esplugues Centre. An intermediate station will be built with an upper exit connecting to the Hospital de Sant Joan de Déu and a lower exit leading to the Campus Clínic. The government aims to have the project completed by the end of 2033 so that it can be operational before the new hospital opens. The relocation of part of the Hospital Clínic to this area of ​​the Diagonal should also serve to transform the urban landscape of this pivotal territory between Barcelona, ​​Esplugues, and Hospitalet de Llobregat. The proposed Urban Development Master Plan (PDU), currently being developed by Barcelona Regional in accordance with the criteria document already prepared by this body, is scheduled to be presented in June. the ARA advancedThis document aims to leverage the driving force of this new campus to propose a comprehensive transformation of approximately 70 hectares. The plan includes dismantling the overpass that currently greets visitors arriving from the B-23 and transforming the Diagonal and Ronda de Dalt in this section into more pedestrian-friendly metropolitan avenues, facilitating the development of a new neighborhood on the land reclaimed through infrastructure improvements. What will not disappear is the existing Hospital Clínic in the heart of the Eixample district. The objective of the project has always been to expand a hospital that has long been stretched to its limits, but relocating some of its activity to the Diagonal will not leave the city center without healthcare facilities, where it will continue to provide medical care. According to the hospital's general director, Josep Maria Campistol, there will be a primary care center (CAP) with specialists and "likely" outpatient surgery and a diagnostic area. Furthermore, part of the current hospital building will "very likely" be converted into a social and healthcare center. Campistrol and the rector of the University of Barcelona, Joan Guardia, have given a very positive assessment of the steps being taken. Guardia indicated that it is a "historic" day and emphasized "the definitive commitment" to creating a biomedicine hub on the Diagonal. The mayor of Esplugues also saw the operation as a great "opportunity," and he also celebrated the forecast that the metro will reach the municipality in 2023, a long-standing demand.