The residents of Sants-Montjuïc have taken to the streets in a protest walk through the Barcelona district, raising the alarm over housing pressures and the decline of local commerce. Their aim was to highlight how rising costs and urban planning decisions are pushing long-standing neighbours out, while eroding the area’s traditional fabric.
The initiative sought to link the different neighbourhoods within the district, giving visibility to shared concerns and presenting the conclusions of collective work carried out by civic groups. These were brought together in the manifesto ‘Sants-Montjuïc, connectem-nos’, which denounces the loss of community spaces, the impact of major roads that split neighbourhoods apart, and insufficient public transport frequency and accessibility. Residents also point to high levels of pollution, blamed on heavy traffic.
The future of Montjuïc mountain featured prominently in the complaints, with locals warning that further promotion of the area for tourism risks accelerating environmental degradation and heightening tensions in surrounding neighbourhoods.
The protest was convened by six organisations: the neighbourhood associations of Badal-Brasil and La Bordeta, the Sants Social Centre, the La Bordeta neighbours’ committee, Hostafrancs, La Satalia and Sant Cristòfol. The mobilisation was supported by the Federation of Neighbourhood Associations of Barcelona.
Residents stress that accessing housing has become increasingly difficult, with many feeling forced out by soaring prices and dwindling supply. The walk served as both a symbolic act of unity and a call for political leaders to prioritise the needs of local communities.
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