Barcelona’s anti-eviction unit, recognized by the United Nations
The municipal service of the anti-eviction unit of Barcelona has been recognized with the bronze World Habitat award, organized jointly by the United Nations agency UN-Habitat and the NGO World Habitat. The award values good practices in housing, urban planning or nature in the world for 35 years. In this case, they wanted to highlight the work of this unit, created in 2016 by the City Council to mediate between the courts, property and vulnerable families.
According to municipal sources, the service has served 14,000 families since it was launched with an average of fifty cases a week, of which new out of ten evictions have been suspended as a result of the actions of this unit and the mobilization of social movements. The Consistory plans to reinforce this program with its own legal team and an investment of five million in two years.
in the silver category
The Sostre Cívic housing cooperative, also recognized with the World Habitat
It has not been the only award-winning Catalan initiative. Barcelona-based housing cooperative Sostre Cívic has also been awarded the silver World Habitat. In collaboration with the municipal government, the entity has built 57 homes in three developments on municipal land (in Princesa 49, La Balma in Poblenou and Pla del Cireres in Nou Barris) and two more developments with 106 homes are planned, in Can 70 in Sarrià and in the Sant Andreu barracks.
These recognitions come at a time when the new housing law is being negotiated in the Government and in the Congress of Deputies. A regulation to which the Barcelona City Council has submitted its proposals, such as mandatory mediation in cases of small owners and that large holders will have to assume the obligation to offer a social rental.