The Barcelona City Council, through the Municipal Institute for Housing and Renovation (IMHAB), held, last Wednesday, March 1, the ceremony of handing over the keys of 54 social housing units for social rent in a newly constructed building located at 23-25 Lluís Borrassà street. This is one of the numerous affordable rental housing developments that have been launched in Sant Martí and that contribute to making this district one of the most prolific, both in terms of the number of homes and the diversity of typologies promoted.
The awardees present received the keys from the hands of the mayor of Barcelona, Ada Colau, who led the ceremony, accompanied by the councilor for housing and renovation of the City Council, Lucía Martín, and the president of the Association of Neighbors and Neighbors of Besòs, Francisco Abad. The remaining keys will be delivered in the coming days to the successful bidders.
“When we came to government we saw that it was a priority to provide more housing and, despite the pandemic, we are currently building thousands of apartments. Behind a day like today there is a lot of work, but being able to see your happiness makes up for it. You deserve it and we want you to feel at home in Barcelona,” said Colau to the successful bidders.
Sant Martí, booming
The building consists of 54 apartments distributed over 10 floors and a single core scale, which simplifies the management of the apartments and reduces maintenance. It has two elevators, two facades open to the exterior and a roof, on the fifth floor, where solar panels have been installed. In addition, there is also a sports facility on the first floor, which previously existed on the site, and a basement parking level.
All the homes have been awarded through the corresponding open call to the Barcelona Social Housing Applicants Register, a fact that guarantees that the future residents will enjoy an affordable rent. In the case of the development on c. Lluís Borrassà, the price ranges from 375 to 738 euros per month.
“I am proud to be the Administration that is doing more social renting of all the State. In fact, it is scandalous that Barcelona City Council is doing more social renting than the Generalitat of Catalonia and the Community of Madrid combined, which have more competences and money. But we have shown that it can be done,” says Colau.
There are several areas of the city that suffer from a clear lack of municipal land, but Sant Martí is an exception. “Having land available allows us to invest in different types of housing and to offer social housing on a recurring basis. Every promotion we carry out is a joy and to be able to celebrate it with the neighbors the day we hand over the keys is fantastic,” explains Martín.
A speech that ratifies the figures recorded in the district in recent years. Since 2015, Sant Martí has been growing with approximately 2,000 apartments, thanks to an investment by the consistory of 244 million euros. Of these apartments, 1,479 are under construction, either finished, under construction, in project or in land reserve. Of the remainder, 139 are for purchase and 292 for acquisition.
“Housing is a priority for people and a basic need. Without housing, there is no right to health, no right to a family, and no right to a decent life. That is why from the City Council we promote multiple mechanisms to guarantee this fundamental right,” says the mayoress.
A starting point for the illusion
The act of handing over the keys is, for the awardees, the first step of a new vital stage, in which some of them leave behind moments of great difficulty and suffering. This is the case of Gemma Ferrer, who, together with her mother, has been through numerous evictions: “My mother had been registered in the Registry for 16 years. We have suffered evictions and have had to live in a hotel. And now we have been waiting for this apartment for two and a half years when we suffered the last eviction”.