More than five years after its fanfare announcement, Barcelona’s ambitious plan to transform the historic central Post Office (Correos) building into a major economic and business hub remains deadlocked. The project, which aimed to revitalise the lower end of Via Laietana, has shown no tangible progress, prompting sharp criticism from City Council opposition parties.
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Then-mayor Ada Colau, her first deputy mayor Jaume Collboni, and socialist minister José Luis Ábalos first unveiled the agreement in October 2020. The proposal detailed plans for a 30,000-square-metre innovation hub focussed on the digital economy, which would create up to 1,500 new jobs and inject new life into the Ciutat Vella district. However, years later, the landmark building remains largely underused.
This delay is particularly stark since the extensive and controversial renovation of Via Laietana itself has already been completed. Critics note this contrast, viewing the stalled building transfer as a failure to deliver the street’s final, crucial regeneration piece.
A Cession Becomes a Sale
Evidently, the core of the dispute appears to be a fundamental disagreement over the terms of the transfer. A report from La Vanguardia states that what began as discussions for a free cession of the state-owned building to the city has now morphed into a sales negotiation. The two sides are reportedly worlds apart on the price.
The Spanish postal service, Correos, is seeking to sell the property for €50 million, a figure in line with initial investment estimates for its transformation. However, the municipal valuation of the building is just over €8 million. This vast chasm has effectively frozen the entire project.
Jordi Martí Galbis, president of the main opposition group, Junts per Barcelona, has seized on the lack of progress to criticise the current administration. “We already have the Via Laietana reform finished… But the culmination of the new Via Laietana was above all the recovery of the central Post Office headquarters for the city,” he stated.
Opposition Criticises Mayor Collboni
Martí has squarely blamed Mayor Jaume Collboni, who was part of the original announcement, for an “inability” to hold the Spanish government, led by his own PSOE party, to its commitments.
“It has been more than five years since the announcement… and here, only time has passed. Nothing more. Correos continues to process letters and packages in a large, underutilised building,” Martí lamented, as reported by Europa Press.
The Junts leader further alleged that the situation reflects a pattern of discriminatory treatment towards Catalonia. “The Spanish state cedes properties and buildings to municipalities everywhere, except in Catalonia. Here, it sells them at market price,” he claimed, calling the treatment “unacceptable”.
Martí has urged Mayor Collboni to “raise his voice and dare to ask the PSOE government to comply with the agreements and cede the building to undertake the reform and launch the project.”
The Vision in Limbo
The original 2020 plan involved a three-way partnership among Correos, the Barcelona City Council, and the Consorci de la Zona Franca de Barcelona, with the latter providing the investment. The project aimed to emulate the success of Barcelona Tech City’s Pier01 hub in Port Vell, transforming a historic waterside building into a thriving centre for technology and innovation.
The plan stipulated meticulous rehabilitation for the heritage-protected Correos building, while retaining a functioning post office on its premises. With negotiations at a standstill, that vision for a bustling digital hub at one of the city’s key intersections remains, for now, just an unfulfilled promise.
