The presence of the America's Cup is already more than evident in Port Vell. The flags of each team and the logo of the regatta shine on the bases. The construction of the buildings and hangars where, with the greatest of secrecy, the boats are improved and tuned up, head the list of actions with which the port of Barcelona faces the most ambitious transformation of Port Vell since the Olympic Games . With a year to go before the start of the regatta, some twenty works to improve spaces and redevelopment are advancing in parallel, which also includes the opening of almost two kilometers of promenade on the seafront that until now were inaccessible.
The new pedestrian spaces that will be enabled for the America's Cup will now be open to the public. Two kilometers of seafront that the city wins and that during the regattas will allow a privileged view of the departure and arrival of the AC40 and AC75. The front that is pedestrianized is distributed in several areas: on the Barcelona dock and around the World Trade Center; on the Drassanes quay and between Nova Bocana and Marina Vela. To this, we must add the works to extend the Sant Sebastià breakwater.
"For the port, the America's Cup has been a boost to speed up many projects," reiterated yesterday the president of the Port of Barcelona, Lluís Salvadó. The twenty actions that advance in parallel represent an investment between public and private of around 120 million. Its state of execution is different but all the works must be ready within a year, when the sporting event starts.
The Barcelona dock, where the base of the hosts, Emirates Team New Zealand, is located – which are already training with the AC75 winner of the previous edition – has already been released from ferry activity and the coastline and its connection will be redeveloped with the Drassanes quay. The planned investment package includes the remodeling of the World Trade Center. In a first phase, before the regattas, the entire environment and gardens will be adapted and the corridors of the building that give access to the outer perimeter will be opened, which will become a privileged viewpoint.
Another of the areas that are being set up for the public and where stands are already being built is in front of the new Mirador building (under construction) at the end of Rambla Nova Bocana, also under construction. Behind, next to the esplanades, which until now had no use and where the palm trees of the new square already shine, is the base of the Italian team, Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli.
Another of the projects in the bidding process is the nautical bus service to connect, on a regular basis, by sea "and with green energy if possible", Salvadó pointed out, the renovated Drassanes wharf with the Llevant wharf. In this area other actions are added, such as the rehabilitation of the historic sheds of the Eastern dock.
The transformation of Port Vell includes the reform of the fishing area and the construction of the new fish market to open it, starting next February, also to the public. "The new fish market will have a walkway five meters high from where you can see the classification of the catch, the auction will be held in the other block and there will be a restaurant in the third," explained the director of Port Vell, David Pino. Between this pier and the Western one, the base of the NYYC American Magic is already finished.
Work is also progressing on the Espanya wharf. The Imax building will reopen to the public next week as the America's Cup House, a museum and interactive space in which the history of the competition will be explained. On one side of this new facility is the Ineos Britannia base and, on the other, that of the Swiss, Alinghi Red Bull Racing, the largest of the bases and where the team (which has been training all winter from a provisional basis), will be moved to the end of the week.
The remodeling of the Maremàgnum, which will have a new gastronomic space, is another of the transformations added to the new Port Vell. On the other side of the World Trade Center, on the Ponent wharf, is the provisional base of the French team, the Orient Express Racing Team, which plans to erect its final building at the end of the year.
