Barcelona buys two properties in 24 hours to stop evictions

Barcelona City Council and the Generalitat acquire the block on Llenguadoc Street, in Sant Andreu, to prevent the eviction of over 50 people, and offer to buy the land of the Àgora Juan Andrés Benítez from Sareb, in Raval. The PP criticises the move, calling it a "real estate agency for squatters".

Two operations in just 24 hours. The Barcelona City Council has agreed with the Generalitat to purchase the block on Llenguadoc Street, in the Sant Andreu district, to prevent the eviction of its residents. The following day, the council offered to Sareb to acquire the land of the Àgora Juan Andrés Benítez, in Raval, as reported by eldebate.com.

The agreement regarding number 74 on Llenguadoc Street was reached on Wednesday 7 October, after twelve hours of community mobilisation and with over 300 activists gathered outside the building. The operation prevented the eviction of more than 50 people. The property has 20 flats, 18 of which have been occupied for years, and the intervention will be financed through the Emergency Housing Fund of the Generalitat.

The second operation concerns the Àgora Juan Andrés Benítez, a plot on l’Aurora Street that serves as a self-managed community space. The City Council has made a purchase offer to Sareb, the owner of the land, and negotiations have allowed for the suspension of the eviction scheduled for 15 October. However, there is currently no finalised purchase. Barcelona en Comú has supported the initiative and demands that the community use of the space and its self-management model be maintained.

The leader of the PP in Barcelona, Daniel Sirera, has questioned the decision and warned that administrations cannot "solve every conflict by buying buildings with taxpayers' money". The popular leader accuses the governments of Jaume Collboni and Salvador Illa of becoming a "real estate agency for squatters" and demands explanations regarding the cost of the acquisition and the criteria justifying the intervention.

The most well-known precedent regarding property purchases is Casa Orsola. In February last year, the City Council and the Hàbitat3 foundation announced the joint purchase of the building, located in the heart of Eixample in Barcelona, for €9.2 million. The council contributed €4.8 million and the foundation took over the management of the flats, intended for affordable rental. The operation was formalised in May and allowed for the halting of eviction processes for the affected tenants, some of whom did not meet the vulnerability criteria at all.

As a result, the purchase then provoked criticism from the PP, which announced it would take the case to the Prosecutor's Office as it considered the decision discretionary and questioned both the procedure and the price. Vox also attacked the operation, understanding that the municipal government had yielded to pressure from groups opposed to evictions. Junts questioned the cost and the lack of planning in the municipal response.

Barcelona en Comú and ERC defended the acquisition, albeit from different perspectives. The commons supported it as a solution for the affected tenants, while ERC claimed to have pushed for the City Council to consider the purchase. The operation also fuelled the debate on the structural measures needed to expand affordable housing in the city.

Now, with two new interventions on the table, the debate once again focuses on the scope of this policy. The PP questions whether the Administration should buy properties to respond to conflicts that gain notoriety due to community mobilisation. Properties that are also illegally occupied. The Barcelona City Council, for its part, has defended the actions as a way to prevent evictions and provide a solution to complex housing situations.