Getting all members of a neighborhood community to agree does not seem like an easy task. "Have you seen Aquí no hay quien viva?" asks Celia Galera, general director of Habitat Futura, a private developer that has managed to get some 700 neighbors to decide to completely renovate the buildings they live in to reduce their energy consumption and environmental impact. In the heart of the Eixample, the block between Gran Via and Calàbria, Diputació, and Viladomat streets has begun these works to get up to date, with a cost of around half a million euros on average for each apartment block.
Getting here has not been easy. Beyond community meetings and the irruption of the pandemic, Habitat Futura has had to overcome all the paperwork to make the Illa Eficient project a reality. For example, deciding to resort to the figure of cooperatives to make it more affordable for communities to cover the works. The company has also had to add the support of the administrations, which has allowed to reduce the expense that owners have to undertake. The Government, the Generalitat, and the Barcelona City Council participate.
Hand in hand with Galera, the project started in 2015, with an initial investment from Habitat Futura of 500,000 euros. The first phase of the transformation of this block, which includes eight buildings, will have a cost of 3.8 million euros. The subsidy will be 50% of the bill, to which a credit line of 1.5 million will be added, intended to cover the treasury peaks of the cooperatives. This public support must help individuals to cope with a not insignificant investment, but which in time will translate into cheaper bills.
The first phase of the transformation of this block, which includes eight buildings, will have a cost of 3.8 million euros, which can be subsidized by 50%The works that will be carried out in about twenty buildings and the 390 apartments that make up this block vary greatly according to the needs of each of the neighborhood communities, which range from very old blocks to more modern ones. "They are not pharaonic works, but problems have to be solved and each building needs different actions," remarks Galera.
In this way, they focus both on correcting everything that may be wrong with the structure, from leaks to fixing beams, and on making them energetically sustainable. That is, insulating the building, with new windows or false ceilings, and improving the electrical installation. Photovoltaic panels are also added to generate the energy the block needs and reduce consumption by a minimum of 30%, turning neighborhood communities into energy communities.
The first building that has started with the works has been Gran Via 469, a centenary property, and it is expected to finish them this summer. In that case, the renovation, with a budget of one million euros, has also included installing an elevator. Joan Anton is one of the three owners of this block and saw in the Habitat Futura initiative a way to tackle a pending issue of the property with facilities and support, especially considering that his block required a comprehensive renovation. "We trust them," remarks Joan Anton, who recalls that when the developer approached them, there was not as much talk about energy efficiency as there is now, and even so, they decided to go ahead.
Gran Via 469 is one of the eight blocks in this first phase of the block's transformation, and all are expected to be renovated by 2023. In addition to Gran Via, work has also begun on Calàbria 112, where fewer actions are required, lowering the budget to 350,000 euros and with the forecast of finishing the works shortly.
This will not be the only Illa Eficient in Barcelona. Habitat Futura is already working to promote the second. In this case, it will be located between Paseo de Sant Joan, Rosselló, Bailén, and Còrcega, with 18 buildings. The developer has decided to focus its scope of action on the Eixample, with one of the oldest housing stocks in the city and, in turn, one of the most polluting and with the greatest maintenance needs.