The Gràcia Festivals are warming up amid complaints from some residents about noise

BarcelonaMore than 900 activities and 23 decorated spaces will adorn Gràcia between August 15 and 21 for the main festival. This year, the journalist and Gràcia historian Vicenç Sanclemente will kick off the festivitieswith an opening speech in Plaça de la Vila. The festivities also come with a certain mystery – the theme of the decorations will not be announced until July 25, at the Vigílies Supper, to preserve the magic of the festival.

This year's program highlights the collaboration and cohesion of the people of Gràcia: for the first time in ten years, five streets in the southern part of the town will share a decoration theme. “There is brotherhood among the commissions now that it seems everyone is thinking individually,” highlightedLina Patricia López Jaramillo, president of the Festa Major Foundation. An example of the cohesion effort will be the installation of a youth space in Plaça de Joanic, which will be transformed into an outdoor dining area in the evening. Although it is a pilot project, the organization hopes “that it will transcend over the years” and be repeated in future editions.

This year's program, however, will not be made public until August 1. Beyond the activities, the festival presentation addressed one of the concerns that has arisen in the neighborhood in recent months: Some residents are suffering from the noise that the festivities may generate at night. “We have been complaining to the City Council about the noise since September and we have not yet received any response,” explains a resident of Carrer Luís Atúnez, who assures that all of this does not let them rest. She is part of a group of residents from Placeta de Sant Miquel who are seeking for the night program to end at 10 p.m. and for the location of a stage to be changed for safety reasons.

Avoid an "invasion of outsiders"

The Gràcia Major Festival Foundation admits that it has received some complaints, but has assured that it will maintain the programming as originally planned. The City Council has stood in solidarity with the festival organizers. "We are all aligned in the defense of the major festival," explained the first deputy mayor and councilwoman for the district, Laia Bonet.

After several editions in which the streets of Gràcia have been filled with tourists and there have been episodes of overcrowding, especially to see the decorations, the councilwoman has defended the need to preserve the identity of the festival so that it is not "an invasion of outsiders" and that the residents of Gràcia can continue to enjoy it.

Regarding noise, other residents of the neighborhood explain that the festivals are not a great bother to them. In fact, they admit that the clubs and pubs that open all year round bother them more than the major festival events. "It's only five nights," explains Montse, owner of a shop near the Placeta de Sant Miquel. "Besides, it's a festival that brings the neighborhood together."

Gemma, an elderly woman and a lifelong resident of Gràcia, explains that, apart from the dirt and the smell of beer, the festivals don't bother her much, even though she no longer lives on a street affected by the festivals. "And when I lived there, it didn't bother me because I went out to dance," she explains, laughing.