In a significant move to tackle its housing shortage, Barcelona City Council has launched a public tender for the construction and management of 625 affordable rental homes on five municipally-owned plots across the city. The initiative, managed by the Municipal Institute of Housing and Rehabilitation (IMHAB), invites both private and non-profit developers to bid for the long-term rights to develop the land.

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This marks the second major public-private partnership of its kind, designed to accelerate the expansion of the city’s public housing stock. The tender grants successful bidders long-term leases on the land, which remains public property. Specifically, three plots will be ceded under a surface right for 75 years, extendable to 90, while two will be offered a public domain concession for 50 years, extendable to 75. After these periods, the buildings will revert to full municipal ownership.

A City-Wide Effort

The five plots are strategically located in neighbourhoods with high demand for housing, spanning three different districts. The developments include:

  • 198 flats on Paseo Torras i Bages in the Sant Andreu district, an area where the council has previously taken steps to guard public land from illegal settlements.
  • 170 flats on Avenida Diagonal in the Sant Martí district. This plot was originally earmarked for the new headquarters of the Barcelona Chamber of Commerce before being repurposed for housing.
  • 105 flats on Calle Veneçuela in the Provençals del Poblenou neighbourhood.
  • 122 flats split across two adjacent plots (61 each) on Calle Motors in La Marina del Prat Vermell, a rapidly transforming industrial area within the Sants-Montjuïc district. The area is located near the site of the major Montjuïc fairgrounds redevelopment project.

The projects in Sant Andreu and La Marina del Prat Vermell form part of a broader 2024 agreement between the City Council and the Consorci de la Zona Franca de Barcelona (CZFB), which aims to deliver nearly 2,000 new homes on land transferred from the consortium.

Accelerating Housing Development

The city’s Housing Commissioner, Joan Ramon Riera, emphasised that the tender is designed to broaden participation in solving Barcelona’s housing crisis. “The goal is to involve all possible actors and agents in the construction and management of housing and, at the same time, expand the public housing stock more quickly,” Riera stated in a press release.

“It is necessary to increase collaboration between administrations and to diversify as much as possible the companies and entities involved in housing construction,” he added, as El Periódico reported.

This latest initiative builds on the momentum of a similar tender launched in December 2024. The first round, already awarded, will deliver 350 new homes across three sites in Front Marítim del Poblenou (Calle Llull) and Sants-Montjuïc (Calle Acer and Calle Ascó). These projects are currently in the design phase, with construction expected to begin in 2027.

Quality and Sustainability as Core Criteria

This new tender will allocate all homes to residents registered on Barcelona’s official list of applicants for protected housing. According to the Catalan News Agency (ACN), the council will not only assess financial bids but will also prioritise proposals based on architectural quality, sustainability, and energy efficiency. The council will also value plans that include comprehensive social support for residents, such as maintenance services and conflict mediation.

The push for affordable housing through public-private partnerships reflects the intense pressure on Barcelona’s property market, where a scarcity of available land continues to drive prices upwards. By leveraging public land and private sector efficiency, the council aims to make a substantial and timely impact on the availability of affordable homes for its citizens.