Full council has approved plans to organise public areas in the Gràcia and Poble-sec neighbourhoods and halt the proliferation of bars and restaurants in areas of the two neighbourhoods which are considered to have reached saturation point. The aim is to guarantee respectful coexistence, safety and security. The session also gave the green light to the plan for La Rambla and the regulation of cannabis clubs.

The plan for Gràcia is the result of a participatory process and identifies four different zones. The Vila de Gràcia neighbourhood is deemed a “saturated” area and so no new establishments will be allowed to open. In the “buffer zone”, consisting of part of the neighbourhoods of Vila de Gràcia and El Camp d’en Grassot i Gràcia Nova, new bars can only be opened if another closes down. “Perimeter” zones will be regulated according to the plan for the Sarrià-Sant Gervasi and finally “generic” zones to the north, with much fewer establishments, will allow new establishments to open.

The plan includes other measures, such as increased inspections and the prohibition of new shops selling ready-made dishes.

In Poble-sec, special conditions are set out for Av. Paral·lel which differ from those outlined in the plan, while Pl. Margarida Xirgu is identified as a zone for social and cultural facilities and restrictions apply to the opening of hotels and restaurants in C/ Blai, C/ Blesa, C/ Nou de la Rambla, C/ Vilà i Vilà and adjacent areas.

The plan for Gràcia was approved with votes from the municipal government, C’s and ERC, with CiU abstaining, while the plan for Poble-sec prospered with support from the municipal government, CiU and C’s, with ERC, PP and CUP abstaining.

Plan for La Rambla

The plan for La Rambla was approved with votes from BComú and the PSC, CiU, ERC and C’s groups, while the PP and the CUP voted against it. The Councillor for Ciutat Vella, Gala Pin, explained “there is broad consensus on the need to take action in La Rambla and recuperate it for local residents”, adding that it is “an emblematic avenue in the city, a meeting place for locals but with overcrowding and the high density of people in its public spaces the city’s residents have abandoned it”.

The plan sets out criteria for existing users in the avenue, such as newsstands and bar terraces, mobility, infrastructures, urban development and adjacent buildings for the future transformation of the area.

Some of the new features in the document, originally approved by the previous mandate, state that news stalls must be smaller and be positioned between tree bases and plant troughs and that flower stalls can only be located on the Sant Josep section. The avenue’s two Bicing stations will remain in their current locations.

Cannabis clubs

Full council also gave the green light to the document setting out a series of requisites on distances, surface areas, locations and technical aspects of cannabis clubs. The plan was approved with votes from the municipal government, the ERC and the CUP, with C’s abstaining and the CiU and PP groups voting against it. The plan aims to make cannabis users’ right to belong to associations compatible with other basic rights such as the protection of health, coexistence and the environment.

The new points in the plan include a minimum distance of 100 metres which must be respected by cannabis clubs, respecting health and education centres at all times, and 150 metres in historical quarters. The premises should be located on the ground floor, with direct access to the street and must include two separate doors between the interior of the premises and the foyer of the building.