Barcelona City Council

Dear Ivan,

Ciutat Vella is the heart of our city and the soul of Barcelona. It represents our collective heritage. It is the main meeting place with people who come from outside the city. It is therefore very important for us to feel proud of it and for the district to be an expression of what we are: diverse, dynamic, tolerant, safe and organised. 

It is time to promote a major pact for Ciutat Vella, with the involvement of local residents, organisations, entrepreneurs and retailers, along with its institutions, through agreement and consensus. It is time to launch a new phase in the life of this priority district, and therefore the city as a whole.

As Commissioner for the Ciutat Vella Agreement, you should focus on the following priorities:

• Promoting a six-year emergency plan for the integral improvement of the district. This plan will focus on cleaning, maintenance and the recovery of urban greenery. Raval Verd will be implemented.
• Promoting a new strategic plan for social, urban and economic transformation, in order to establish the district’s priorities for coming years, with the complicity of the stakeholders involved. Launching a new agency to promote Ciutat Vella, which will be a public-private consortium to revitalise the district and lead these transformations.
• Coordinating the discussion with all the stakeholders involved in the district and reinforcing public-private collaboration. Ciutat Vella is a complex district with a diversity of residents and visitors, uses and businesses that must be taken into account when tackling these transformations.
• Providing support for the major transformations and investments in the district that are still pending. This means accelerating the work on Les Rambles and finishing Via Laietana, so that it becomes a new economic hub for the city. Strengthening and revitalising the neighbourhoods of Ciutat Vella and ensuring that the necessary facilities materialise (especially in regard to healthcare).

I am counting on you to make Ciutat Vella a good place to live and work, with revitalised local commerce and the small economy.

Kind regards,