Barcelona City Council says it will submit a regeneration project for Ciutat Meridiana, in Nou Barris, to the second call of the Generalitat de Catalunya's Pla de Barris, the regional neighbourhood improvement programme. Mayor Jaume Collboni said the scheme is expected to mobilise €25 million, with half of the funding to come from the Generalitat and the rest from the council, and would be delivered over roughly five years if the bid is accepted.

For residents in Ciutat Meridiana, the proposal matters because it is designed to combine physical works with social measures in a neighbourhood that has long lacked large public facilities and green spaces. The council has already identified projects in the area including sports facilities, a new social facility and better links to Parc de l'Aqüeducte and Parc de Collserola, according to the Ajuntament de Barcelona's Nou Barris district announcement.

"These are measures that shorten the social and economic distances between neighbourhoods, that help Barcelona advance at the same pace, and ensure that no neighbourhoods are left behind or miss out on the city's general prosperity."Jaume Collboni, Mayor of Barcelona

Collboni made those remarks while announcing the city's bid for the second regional call, according to the source material provided for this article.

What the Ciutat Meridiana project already includes

The clearest official detail so far comes from the urban planning changes approved for Ciutat Meridiana in 2024. The council said on 2 September 2024 that a provisional approval of the Modificació del Pla General Metropolità, or modification of the metropolitan master plan, would allow improvements to two sports facilities, construction of a new social facility, and better connectivity with the Aqüeducte park area and access to Collserola.

According to the district announcement, the planning change covers 33,642 square metres and focuses on the Centre Esportiu Municipal, or municipal sports centre, Can Cuiàs, the Ciutat Meridiana football ground, Parc de l'Aqüeducte and the open spaces linking those sites with Parc de Collserola.

  • full renewal of the CEM Can Cuiàs sports centre
  • protection and possible improvement or expansion of the Ciutat Meridiana football ground
  • space reserved near Parc de l'Aqüeducte for a future social facility for neighbourhood services
  • improved links between local facilities, the park and Collserola access points

The same official text says the football ground had previously been treated as provisional land, and that the planning change now secures its continuity. It also states that the aim is to help reverse Ciutat Meridiana's historic shortage of major public facilities and green areas.

"With this urban planning change we resolve the preliminary step needed to continue expanding the neighbourhood's network of facilities."Xavier Marcé, Nou Barris district councillor, quoted by the Ajuntament de Barcelona

How this fits into wider neighbourhood spending

The Ciutat Meridiana bid sits alongside the city council's wider Pla de Barris 2025–2028 programme, which the council announced on 26 June 2024 with total municipal investment of €300 million across 27 neighbourhoods. That is a separate city programme, but it shows the broader framework Barcelona is using for neighbourhood-level intervention.

Another source listed in the material, reported in ARA, said Barcelona had allocated €11.3 million until 2028 to the neighbourhood plan covering Vallbona, Ciutat Meridiana and Torre Baró. The council's current announcement about the Generalitat bid points to a larger, separate package that would depend on approval under the regional scheme.

The funding structure is a key point for residents. Based on the source material, the planned €25 million package would be split equally, with €12.5 million expected from the Generalitat and €12.5 million from Barcelona City Council. No formal grant award has yet been cited in the official material provided, so the project should be understood as a bid rather than confirmed funding at this stage.

What residents can do now

Residents who want to track the project can follow updates from the Nou Barris district page and the Ajuntament de Barcelona press office, where the council has been publishing the planning and investment announcements tied to Ciutat Meridiana and the wider Pla de Barris.

The official information published so far does not give a submission deadline for the second Generalitat call or a start date for works under this proposed €25 million package. What is confirmed is that the council has already advanced the planning framework for CEM Can Cuiàs, the football ground, the future social facility and the connection to Collserola through the 2024 metropolitan plan modification.

Primary sources: ajuntament.barcelona.cat, Ramon, Ramon. Reported by Didac Quesada, metropoliabierta.elespanol.com, S. Pérez, CRISTINA CALDERER, sophie-project.eu, barcelonaaldia.com, Toni Sust, cronicaglobal.elespanol.com, Meritxell M. Pauné, beteve.cat, El Periódico Barcelona.