Barcelona City Council and the Consorci de la Zona Franca have restarted the Ona de Glòries project in Glòries, with plans for 120 social rental flats, public offices and neighbourhood facilities.
The scheme comes with a €90 million investment from the CZFB and replaces an earlier idea for a 72-metre tower first proposed at the start of the century. The new plan is for several buildings instead of one high-rise.
Mayor Jaume Collboni said the agreement now secures the funding needed for the project. Pere Navarro, the State Delegate for the Consorci de la Zona Franca, also confirmed the organisation’s commitment. The City Council will set the planning, use rules and design principles for the buildings, and officials expect to finalise the financial structure soon.
The project covers 35,000 square metres in total. Of that, 10,000 square metres will go to the 120 social flats, 20,000 square metres to administrative uses, and 5,000 square metres to community services. Those services are expected to benefit residents in nearby Camp de l'Arpa del Clot.
Collboni said the area will include a new library, a sports centre and an auditorium. The council also wants to bring public offices into the new buildings, which would reduce spending on rented premises elsewhere in the city. For more on local housing coverage, see our Community and Sport pages.
The site sits at the foot of Torre Glòries, across from Diagonal avenue, in an area that has already seen major investment. Last October, reports said nearly €640 million had been invested there, in a district that urban planner Ildefons Cerdà had imagined as Barcelona’s metropolitan centre.
Collboni also announced an agreement with the Catalan Government to move ahead with a planned senior citizens’ residence at the corner of Glòries and Meridiana. Officials expect drafting on the project to begin in early 2027, with construction on the social housing part due to start between late 2028 and early 2029.
Originally published by La Vanguardia Catalonia. Read original article.
