Essai

The Social Value of Can Batlló

Urban Regeneration Through New Administrative Tools in Barcelona

Jorge Mosquera Suárez

The constant dialogue between social movements and local government has made the city of Barcelona a reference laboratory for urban regeneration and social innovation. However, in the past, the plurality of spaces managed by civil society did not correspond to clear co-management schemes and only recently a regulatory framework based on the concept of commons has been created: the Citizens Assets Programme. Within this new programme, the urban planning concession of the Can Batlló neighbours’ association–a self-managed community active since 2011 at the former industrial site–represents a further innovation....