"Odia tu curro, ama tu barrio", says a very rustic graffiti on the stands of Barcelona's Espanya Industrial park. Here cell phones sing hip-hop rhymes. People chat, walk the dog, play basketball, swing the creatures, drink cans of beer sitting on ping-pong tables... And the Bolivian troupes rehearse the traditional dances that they will show in the streets of the carnivals, at the major party of the neighborhoods, here and there...
The highly sought-after 4.6 hectares of the Espanya Industrial park are the main meeting point for the residents of Hostafrancs, Badal and Sants. People of many conditions gather here. Some even sneak in at night, when it's closed. The use of this site is very intense.
That is why the reform of this paradigmatic example of the transformation into a park of an old industrial site of the 19th century, designed by the Basque architect Luis Peña Ganchegui and inaugurated in 1985, which was recognized with an FAD award, was the proposal most voted neighborhood in the whole city in the preparation of the participatory budgets for 2021. The first works will start in September and will last about seven months. But the way and the deadlines in which Mayor Ada Colau's Government has proposed this initiative are triggering neighborhood anxiety. Industrial Spain is not just any park.
"People had to fight a lot for the Espanya Industrial park - remembers Jordi Clausell, from the Hostafrancs neighborhood association - a long time ago, because there weren't many open public spaces around here, and when they to close those old textile factories what they wanted to build were homes. Everyone comes, even from other neighborhoods, and they all want it dignified and fixed. But some aspects of the project are already causing some concern. We don't want it to end up like Plaça dels Països Catalans! So hard... scorching in the summer and freezing in the winter."
And really, does the cargol – the tower located at one end, in front of the square, one of the main accesses –, that spiral coast that the City Council calls helicoid, always have to smell like urine? Always, day and night, in winter and summer, a pent-up disgust that triggers public distrust of institutions. No one cares about this stench and tents popping up everywhere?
The first works will involve an investment of 968,000 euros (1.1 million including the drafting of previous studies and projects) by the City Council. Municipal sources point out that the initial budget was 850,000 euros, but in the process of defining the action, which has had neighborhood participation, it rose to 250,000 euros. The improvements will mainly focus on children's play areas, sports courts and the dog area. The different uses will be separated by an easy-to-maintain Mediterranean bush vegetation. The problem is that this phase leaves many questions in the air. It doesn't take into account, for example, the damn screw. Maybe it will simply close and wait for some other proposal...
The pond of water, at the moment disturbingly green, and the very frequent and characteristic stands will also remain pending. They are a large part of the works, which will require an additional 4.2 million euros, according to the estimates that have been made. The same City Council sources clarify that from the beginning the two phases were separated because there was not enough money to undertake everything at once. In any case, this second part is still missing and will depend on the government resulting from the May 28 elections.
"We want the City Council to set a more specific calendar - continues Clausell - and to better detail the actions. What will the new dog area be like? If they expand it, will they come from many other neighborhoods? Will there be surveillance? The incivility of a few always affects many others. In the 1980s we had surveillance, and after its withdrawal the degradation accelerated. There was also a boat and duck service”. And the characteristic towers were viewpoints, he adds, "but they were closed because many people were getting inside. Also, what will happen to the lawn? We don't need another hard square, like that of Països Catalans. Apparently it will not be repopulated. And under the screw you could put a piece of equipment. Paper always holds everything, but then, when it comes to the truth..."
The executive project of these first works, drawn up by B2B Arquitectes, recognizes that "the configuration and design of the space does not respond to the needs and expectations of the users, of very heterogeneous age groups". This, he continues, means that many see the park as "unwelcoming and unsafe, often frequented by groups that generate uncivil dynamics and inappropriate use". To correct these deficits, it proposes to favor circulation, stay, the holding of activities... The idea is to configure quieter spaces on the one hand, and more dynamic spaces on the other, with new furniture that meets the needs of every type of user: more, young people, children...
One of the first actions will be the conversion of the pipican into a large calisthenics of 250 m2. The attached multifunctional track will also be improved. The four ping-pong tables will be moved next to the five petanque tables. Benches will be installed around the basketball. And the new area for dogs will be located at the opposite end, next to the stands, in a larger area than the current one, 600 m2. It will also be delimited with a barrier of bushes. When it goes into operation, this will be the only space in the park where dogs can go off-leash.
One of the most prominent changes will take place in the children's play area, next to Carrer Muntadas. It will also grow - it will occupy 1,100 m2 - and will be set up in rubber islands with swings and a trampoline, among other elements, and the rest, with a lounge. The area of the current pediment will become an 850 m2 relaxation space where a wide variety of activities can be carried out, such as rehearsing traditional Bolivian dances.
