"They're forcing us to close": One of the oldest businesses near the Sagrada Família is at risk.

BarcelonaOn the lower stretch of Barcelona's Avinguda Gaudí, next to the Sagrada Família, there are a dozen bars and restaurants, three souvenir shops, a couple of ice cream shops, two travel agencies, a cannabis product store, and a newsstand where it's hard to find newspapers and magazines. There's also the Soriano florist, practically the only business on this stretch of street that isn't geared toward tourism. Opened almost eighty years ago, this iconic establishment is now at risk. Paradoxically, this is due to Barcelona City Council's commitment to preserving local commerce in one of the city's most crowded areas.

The florist's problems began in early 2024 when, in an attempt to address the often disastrous landscape of businesses geared toward tourism—with signs sticking out of the facade, unauthorized lighting, and banners of dubious aesthetics—2, the one on Avinguda Gaudí and some of the surrounding streets. That raid resulted in 156 complaints against businesses for a total of 336 violations of the ordinance, the vast majority of which were minor and easy to resolve. Others, such as that of the Soriano flower shop, were not.

The key to this conflict, which threatens the viability of this historic business, lies in the small glass window that has been part of the store since 1973 and protrudes about 30 centimeters from the façade. This element was legal when it was built, but ceased to be so in the late 1990s following changes to the city's urban landscaping regulations. However, no one ever informed the flower shop until now, when the City Council is demanding that it remove the window and restore the building's original appearance to what it was more than fifty years ago. An operation that could entail a minimum investment of 60,000 euros.

"They're forcing us to close," laments Xavi Soriano in an interview with ARA. He represents the third generation of his family to run a business that could now be on its last legs. "I don't know if we'll be able to make it to January," he adds, adding that the City Council has already warned him that if he doesn't comply with the ordinance, he'll face coercive fines that could be imposed every two weeks. City council sources emphasize that the case remains open and that they are working to "find solutions." "In no case have they received any coercive fines, nor will they receive sanctions every two weeks," they emphasize.

Up to €20,000 in subsidies

Among the solutions proposed by the City Council is, for example, the possibility of the council covering part of the cost of demolishing the window through a subsidy. Since this is a business located in one of the fifteen areas designated by the municipal government as High Traffic Areas—the most crowded areas of the city—the aid can be a maximum of 50% of the renovation cost, with a ceiling of €20,000. Soriano considers this an insufficient amount, given that the budget for the renovation being requested is €60,000, which could be more if it affects a ceiling that divides the store into two floors.

While waiting for the resolution of the conflict between the Soriano florist and the City Council, the city is seeing how it could lose another establishment that has been open for decades. In this case, the blow would be double because it would mean the closure of one of the few local shops that survive the tourist pressure around the Sagrada Família, a space that receives between 18 and 22 million visitors each year.