103-Barcelona Municipal Market Institute

The project responds to a need to eliminate the original logistics of the Mercat de la Boqueria, located in Plaça de la Gardunya, in order to facilitate the creation of a new hub of activity in the Ciutat Vella District through the implementation of an ambitious urban transformation project.

To this end, a new underground area is being designed with a dual purpose: the first floor below ground contains the logistics activity of the market itself (loading/unloading of goods, warehouses and waste management), while the next two floors are used as a public car park with capacity for more than 400 vehicles.

Following the inauguration of the public car park (and the logistics area), the transformation of the recently created Plaça de la Gardunya is linked through its complete redevelopment, including an extension of the Mercat de la Boqueria shopping area, which gains a new and unique facade facing the square.

One of the unique features of the project was the presence of numerous archaeological remains, especially from the Iberian and Roman periods, which meant that teams of up to 30 archaeologists had to be coordinated simultaneously. The project also required the relocation of some of the market stalls affected (for which temporary buildings had to be constructed) and the coexistence, during construction of the car park, of the surface logistics area (which had to be continually adapted and reconfigured to enable work to progress).