Activists and officials stall mass eviction of 18 flats in Barcelona

The Sant Andreu standoff

Between 300 and 400 activists, neighbours, and local teachers assembled from early morning on Wednesday outside Carrer Llenguadoc 74 in Barcelona's Sant Andreu district. The crowd mobilised to block the scheduled eviction of 18 out of 20 flats in the residential block. The court order was originally scheduled for execution at 08:00, but the large crowd and delayed judicial delegation prolonged the standoff for hours. By 13:00, alerts indicated riot police units were heading to the area, and Mossos d'Esquadra Brimo units alongside the judicial committee arrived shortly before 15:00. Local educators grouped under the Docents 080 platform joined the picket, noting that several school-age children living in the building attend nearby neighbourhood schools.

Administrative mediation and court dispute

In an uncommon move, senior representatives from both the Catalan regional government and the Barcelona City Council arrived at the property to negotiate directly with the building's legal representatives. Barcelona Housing Commissioner Joan Ramon Riera and Catalan Housing Agency Director Miquel Bagudanch requested an immediate postponement from the High Court of Justice of Catalonia (TSJC). Riera described the planned operation as unnecessary and urged the courts to stop it. Bagudanch explained that regional authorities stepped in on direct instructions from regional minister Sílvia Paneque.

Minister Paneque sent us directly because she told us that this has to be stopped.

The TSJC took a different stance, noting that three separate judicial procedures opened in 2019 after the apartments were occupied without legal titles. The court added that an earlier eviction took place in 2021 before the units were occupied again, stating that no official vulnerability reports existed on record to justify halting the proceedings.

Resident profile and long-term demands

Municipal records indicate that 32 people, including six children, reside across the 18 targeted flats. City officials reported that 13 of the 18 family units have interacted with municipal social services, with seven maintaining ongoing support files. Housing organisations estimate that about 50 individuals live in the building, comprising elderly residents, migrants, refugees, and families with children. Only one original resident remains under a formal lease. Maria Serra, spokesperson for the housing union confederation COSHAC, stressed that residents had occupied the building after previous corporate owner Reale Seguros allowed leases to expire roughly nine years ago.

It is important that we are many until we have signed the final document suspending the eviction and that we keep pushing and pressing so that these families have a definitive solution.

National decree and citywide eviction backlog

The standoff occurred on the same day the Spanish central government's new housing decree, known informally as the Maricarmen decree, appeared in the Official State Gazette (BOE) following its approval by the Council of Ministers. The legislation provides protections against evictions for vulnerable households, but its statutory text delayed entry into force until Thursday. This one-day gap left 41 evictions scheduled across Barcelona on Wednesday in legal limbo, with judges deciding whether to proceed under existing law. Lawyers representing the families noted that magistrates faced conflicting pressures from property owners demanding execution and incoming statutory protections.