Barcelona has inaugurated the renovated gardens of Sant Pau del Camp with a festive day open to the neighborhood Around this historic enclave, the organizations of the Camp de Sant Pau Community Association have organized a day full of activities to celebrate the recovery of a long-awaited public space.
The intervention, completed this summer, has meant 1,15 millones de euros investment and transformation 813m². Framed in the Pla de Barris of Ciutat Vella, the action seeks to reinforce the spaces for staying and walking in an area with few green areas, in addition to improving accessibility and community use of the environment.
What's changing in the gardens: more play, culture and movement
The project incorporates a new children's play area, with creative elements, including the letters 'PAU', transformed into playful pieces for climbing, hiding, and exploring at their leisure.
A has also been enabled platform as a stage for small performances and neighborhood events, located next to the protected chimney of the old Nicolau Tous i Soler factory, which serves as a nod to the neighborhood's industrial memory.
For those who move on wheels, the venue adds a recreational circuit with undulations and bumps, designed for bicycles and balance games, which energizes the space without losing sight of safety and coexistence.
A neighborhood reference in Raval Sud
From the district they emphasize that it is a “coveted space” in the southern Raval, where spacious spaces for strolling and meeting are scarce. The expectation is that the space will become a meeting point and a driving force of community life at street level.
The district councillor, Albert Batlle, and the commissioner of the Pact for Ciutat Vella, Ivan Pera, supporting organizations and residents and encouraging them to schedule regular activities in the new civic setting.
In addition to recovering an open space, the intervention improves connection with facilities from the surrounding area such as El Molino, the Teatre Arnau, the Conservatori del Liceu, Paral·lel 62 or the CEM Can Ricart, creating a more comfortable network for local travel.
An environment with a thousand-year history
The garden embraces the church and monastery of Sant Pau del Camp, considered the oldest preserved Romanesque temple in BarcelonaIts origins probably date back to the 9th century and it is documented as early as 977.
Founded by Wifredo II BorrellThe Benedictine complex was built outside the walls, literally "in the countryside," hence its name. Over the centuries, the complex has withstood sackings like that of 985, periods of confiscation of church property, and uses as diverse as military use in the 19th century.
After damage during the Tragic Week and the Civil War, Sant Pau del Camp was protected and declared National Monument in 1879Today, this corner of calm connects with a Raval that's as diverse as it is dynamic, once again gaining quality public space around it.
Opening day programming
The celebration has been prolonged from 11:00 a.m. to 21:00 p.m., with sports classes, family activities, and live music for all audiences, focusing on accessible and local activities.
Among the appointments were: yoga and zumba, a popular vermouth, concerts, shows for the kids and a hot chocolate party; the closing ceremony was in charge of the Xamfrà company with a dance show at 20:30 p.m., after the institutional parliaments.
With the work completed, the neighborhood wins a civic and functional lung: children's games, a scene for grassroots culture and a circuit that invites you to move, all within the framework of the Neighborhood Plan and with better links to nearby landmarks such as the Conservatori del Liceu or Paral·lel 62; a step forward for the Raval Sud which combines coexistence, memory and daily activity.
