What if Barcelona's parks opened earlier?
Several women and their trainer stretch on Pau Casals Avenue, in front of the closed gates of Turó Park, around half past nine in the morning. “If they opened earlier, we would get in earlier,” they say. “They open it very late, the park.” “Yes, usually around ten.” “And if you compare it with the schedules of other European cities…” “We are in Barcelona, in the Mediterranean!”
It is a common scene on this side of the city, that of people exercising in Pau Casals, and also running around Turó Park, waiting for its opening, as detailed by Bartolomé Criado, from the association of neighbors and merchants of area. “More European schedules would be better for us. That they open at least at eight. It's not normal for them to do it so late. We are not just talking about Turó Park, but about all the parks in Barcelona. “A lot of people would really benefit from being able to go for a run in the park first thing in the morning.”
Barcelona has 156 parks and block interiors whose 499 entrances open between nine in the morning, at the earliest, actually the least, and ten o'clock, at the latest, the majority. They don't all do it at the same time because a few gardeners are in charge of it who organize several routes, which open them one after another.
“After the pandemic, people go to the parks more,” says Luis Sanglas, from the Pedralbes neighborhood association, “and with climate change, athletes get up earlier. Many run along Diagonal, but between traffic lights, cars and bikes it is not the same. “We asked them to bring forward the opening of the gardens of the Pedralbes Palace and Cervantes Park, but they told us that there was no staff.”
The City Council usually dispatches these requests expeditiously. Unless the neighbors organize themselves, collect signatures, redouble their pressure... as happened three years ago in the Putxet i el Farró neighborhood, when people convinced those responsible for Parcs i Jardins to bring forward the opening a couple of hours. from El Turó del Putxet. “Since they open at eight, more people come to play sports,” says one of the promoters of that initiative. And many also like to walk with their dog first thing in the morning. "If we asked people now, they would say that eight seems late, that they would prefer the park to open earlier."
Cities like Milan, Vienna or Warsaw do it between half past six and eight, a schedule similar to that of closer towns, such as Madrid, Valencia, Zaragoza, Malaga, Seville... “And in Paris between seven and eight, in New York around six and in London some even at five. Furthermore, in many cities the schedules vary according to the characteristics of each venue. Here, however, everything seems more rigid. And we don't have many parks open 24 hours a day either.”
Dog owners are another group interested in parks opening earlier. “Dogs on leashes can walk in many parks, and for many citizens these spaces are very necessary,” says Ángela Coll, from the citizen platform Espai Gos. Many dog areas in the city are very problematic. Many dogs cannot use them. They feel better in parks. But with these schedules there is no way to get a decent walk before going to work. And on top of that, they close very early, especially in winter.”
Soon, and little by little, as the hours of sunshine reduce, Barcelona's parks will bring forward their closures. In principle, in the summer season, the parks close around nine at night, and in the winter season around seven. Although sometimes you can find one open at midnight. “The closure should also be reviewed,” says Criado, from Turó Park. Sometimes they forget to close a door and some take the opportunity to make a bottle. And other nights they leave someone inside without realizing it... A lovey-dovey couple, someone who gets lost...".
“We were chatting on the swings,” says a young woman in Turó Park, “and we thought the gardener had seen us, but he didn't. We called the Urban Police and told them that we had been locked in, and they told us that they would come, but that it would take a while, and that if we could, we could get out on our own. On the pipi-can side, the fence is lower. Then we met a man with two dogs, he had hidden from the gardener! In Turó Park, dogs are only allowed in the pipi-can, and the man couldn't jump the fence, so we had to help him, and also his dogs."
“Yes,” says Coll, from Espai Gos, “the closures depend on the outfielders' routes, and they are a bit irregular. One season we saw how some days the Aigües park closed later than usual. In the end we found that this happened every time Barça played in the Champions League! "Until the game was over, the gardener didn't come."
At this time, bringing forward the opening of the parks is not on the municipal agenda. In any case, the City Council is trying to improve the closing conditions. It recently put its tender out to tender. “The closing service is complex,” say Parcs i Jardins sources. You need specialized personnel who close many spaces in a short time and react quickly to any incident. For example, a detached branch, an act of vandalism, a water leak... The new contract still in process pays special attention to these issues.” Workers will be well equipped with tape to isolate spaces, scissors, chains and shears, and all the tools necessary to fix locks on the spot.
The closures will continue to be staggered, and each of the nine employees in charge will have three hours to complete their route, which may be extended until ten at night in winter and twelve in summer – for this some parks will have to close one hour before what was initially marked. But the new contract incorporates a geolocation system that will allow Parcs i Jardins to be aware of each one at all times. This way no one will be able to miss out on watching Barça games. The new contract also provides for a reduced response time when weather alerts force us to close the parks unexpectedly.”
The new contract also stresses that workers must ensure that no one is left on the premises. In no case, however, will they use horns or any other element that disturbs neighborhood peace. The treatment of citizens, can also be read in the specifications, “must follow correct behavioral guidelines of attention and respect.” If you find homeless people, the person in charge must keep the premises open and notify the emergency services.
