Tarragona unlocks key projects that seemed to be stalled

TarragonaLarge cities, in addition to managing day-to-day affairs, always have major projects on the table that are difficult to get off the ground, whether due to budget constraints or the need to involve other levels of government, such as the Catalan or Spanish national governments. Tarragona is no exception. Over the last ten years, the mayors who have managed the city have had to think and rethink solutions for the old tobacco factory, the Savinosa neighborhood, the lack of funding for the maintenance of the Roman ruins, the city's urban growth, and the new train station. Some projects still need to be unblocked, but the reality is that, after ten years, the most important ones at least have a clear path forward.

Uses for the Tobacco Factory

The former Tabacalera (tobacco factory) is a 68,000-square-meter industrial complex that has been closed and virtually unused since 2007. The large plot of land borders the Francolí River and the Roman necropolis, and is located in one of the areas undergoing transformation in the city of Tarragona. The problem throughout these years has been that finding uses for such a large space requires the involvement of other government bodies and also the private sector, which is always less likely to commit if it doesn't see conviction among the other parties. One of the key pieces in this puzzle is the Provincial Library, which is under state jurisdiction. The City Council's long-standing proposal was to relocate the current library, which has become too small, to one of the former Tabacalera's buildings. The relocation, as is logical, must be undertaken by the Ministry of Culture.

After years of back and forth, this past September, Junts announced that, thanks to an agreement with the Spanish government, it had secured a commitment from the Ministry to relocate the library to the Tabacalera building and allocate 10,000 square meters to this facility. The Ministry's commitment, for the moment, does not include any budget allocation, but it does give a boost to this future project. "The Tabacalera is a great heritage site that needed to be revitalized. With the new library, this space is moving forward again and consolidating itself as a leading cultural center," said Tarragona Mayor Rubén Viñuales, offering his assessment.

In addition to the library, the Tarragona City Council has also secured a commitment from the Tarragona Provincial Council—which, unlike the central government, has already committed the funds—to occupy a building to relocate the School and Conservatory of Music, currently located in the upper part of the city. The new school will be located in a building occupying 6,000 square meters. The Provincial Council has already completed the preliminary studies, and now an agreement needs to be signed with the City Council so that the Provincial Council's technical team can begin drafting the preliminary studies to initiate the project's bidding process. The University School of Health and Sport (EUSES), a private training center affiliated with the Rovira i Virgili University (URV), is also considering the Tabacalera site. The center reached an agreement with the City Council and will occupy a building to offer a degree in physical activity and sports sciences. Regarding the start of construction to adapt the space, the archaeological surveys have already been carried out, and the geotechnical study is currently being drafted. Once the final project plans are ready, a favorable report from the municipal technicians will be required, which must then be approved by the full council.

Finally, Tarragona's public television station, TAC12, and RTVE will also move to the Tabacalera complex, helping to further revitalize this space that has been abandoned for so many years. The work to adapt the buildings to which the two television stations will relocate should begin next year.

Consortium to manage Roman heritage

Over the past few years, another problem in Tarragona that seemed to have stalled was the maintenance of Roman ruins. The Tarragona City Council lacks the financial resources to cover this expense and needs assistance from other levels of government. Year after year, it had to apply for grants with the uncertainty of whether they would ultimately be awarded, creating difficulties in planning any necessary actions. Finally, this September, the Tarraco Heritage Management Consortium was established, with representation from the Catalan Government, the City Council, and the Catalan Cultural Heritage Agency. The Ministry, the Tarragona Provincial Council, and the Archdiocese will be able to join, initially through agreements. "This consortium is a good example of how collaboration between administrations is the only way forward," declared President Salvador Illa on the day the consortium was formed. Regarding financial contributions, the Ministry of Culture will invest 19.3 million euros, the Generalitat (Catalan government) 10.8 million, and the City Council 10.1 million. "The Tarraco Heritage Consortium is a tool we have needed for decades to manage and promote our Roman heritage with the international importance it deserves," said Viñuales.

The Justice Forum

Another long-standing issue for the city, one that seemed to have become chronic, is the Tarragona Justice Forum, which must finally put an end to the precarious state of the city's judicial infrastructure. Since 2023, in fact, the Territorial Justice Services have been temporarily housed in the old Tarragona prison. All the staff are located in these facilities, which have been minimally adapted for this new use, and it is where citizens must go to carry out procedures related to registering associations, registering civil partnerships, or applying for legal aid. If all goes according to plan, construction of the new Justice Forum will begin in February of next year and will last 15 months, according to the Catalan Government. The new building will be located next to the Open Penitentiary Center, on Arzobispo Josep Pont i Gol Street. The total construction of the Fòrum has a budget of 94 million euros and will be the second largest judicial infrastructure in Catalonia, after the City of Justice in Barcelona.

La Savinosa, waiting

Another unresolved issue in Tarragona is the Savinosa building, a former sanatorium located on the seafront that closed its doors in 1976 and for which the authorities have yet to find a replacement. The building is owned by the Tarragona Provincial Council, which intends to use it to create a [unspecified facility/center/etc.]. hub cultural, but there is no project or budget.

On the contrary, the Ministry for Ecological Transition is scheduled to begin work early next year to repair the coastal path that connects Savinosa and Arrabassada beaches.