As the lyrics of the tango say, “30 years is nothing”… In three decades the Association of Merchants of the Historic Center has done important things for and for Valencia. A city that has experienced changes in its appearance, most of the time attributed to the municipal administration in power. This is not always the case, there are times when the seeds of projects or everyday elements that we enjoy at certain times of the year, such as Christmas, are the work of associations and the business community. Lighting, little train, Christmas tree, skating rink, carousel... Elements suspended at a specific time of the year, as happens with the Fallas in March, which are paid for by someone.
Look, if the shop windows go out, the city becomes dark, insecure, sad and unattractive. The first pedestrianization of València, contrary to what some naive soul may think, was at the initiative of some merchants from the center, specifically those who at that time were part of one of the seeds of the association, the group of Músico merchants. Peydró, known as the street of baskets. I know this firsthand from Carlos Fernández, owner of the El Globo basket shop. He told me that they presented themselves to Miguel Ramón Izquierdo, who was mayor of Valencia between 1973-1979. He was the first mayor after the civil war who did not simultaneously serve as mayor with the local leadership of the Movement. Miguel Ramón Izquierdo agreed to pedestrianize Peydró Musician Street with cobblestones. The merchants did not like that because it made it difficult for women to walk in heels, in the end he paved it. Living history of the city. Today there are only two businesses dedicated to that task. Good baskets were made with those wickers.
Anyway, the fact that people like to drive to the door of the store has always been a tall tale, at least for honest businessmen. There were times when merchants' commitment to urban improvement reached compromises that are unimaginable today, such as agreeing to pay a special contribution for being a pedestrian zone. That happened on Ribera and Convento Santa Clara streets.
The Association of Merchants of the Center of València has always tried to improve the shopping experience for its customers, creating parking, promoting public transport, facilitating connection and pedestrian access to the city center. They were also pioneers in sustainability, distributing the first corporate paper bags, later reusable, among their associates, 456 currently. In 2014 they got the City Council to recognize emblematic businesses, something that had already been done normally in Madrid and Barcelona; In the special protection plan of Ciutat Vella, in 2020, they managed to protect and rebate 95% of the IBI. Promoters of solidarity milestones such as “A la lona de València” with the Cris Velluters social center, recycling tarps from the marathon to turn them into bags; agreements with dual training centers... The interactions and projects they have maintained with Valencian society do not fit in this article.
The value of this association lies in keeping its members active and alive, thanks to a skillful exercise of balance between tradition and modernity despite the current bad times. Fighting online sales, you fight as best you can, with technology, bonuses and ingenuity. What we cannot fight against is the chaos generated by the global economy, whether it is called CPI/rent increases, real estate speculation, mass tourism or the bogeyman (for bitches).
We have had a dark month, we recently said goodbye to the San Nicolás oven with 300 years of history and this week we said goodbye to Guantes Piqueras, an emblematic business of the city in the Plaza de la Reina, founded in 1886. What a blow!
