The new Ciutadella innovation and scientific research center will be built in the former Mercat del Peix, which will occupy some 45,000 m² and come into operation in 2026.
It will have three buildings, an underground parking lot and will house more than 1,200 researchers.
The new complex will occupy the site of the former central fish market of Barcelona, near the Citadel Campus of the Pompeu Fabra University, UPF.
It will be one of Europe’s major nodes of scientific knowledge, innovation and higher education, focusing on biomedical research, biodiversity and planetary well-being.
The new buildings of the Mercat del Peix
The first building
It will be the headquarters of the Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology, BIST. It will have a surface area of 24,700 square meters and will house some 800 researchers and around sixty research groups.
The second building
It will house the Centre de Recerca i Innovació per al Benestar Planetari of the Universitat Pompeu Fabra and will have 7,300 square meters. It will be the meeting point for researchers. It will advance a series of interdisciplinary projects on planetary health, economics, data science, artificial intelligence, biodiversity loss, climate change governance, law and global governance.
The third building at Mercat del Peix
It will be the headquarters of the Institut de Biologia Evolutiva, which will have a surface area of 6,500 meters. A joint research center created in 2008 by the Pompeu Fabra University and the Consell Superior d’Investigacions Científiques will operate there.
Just below the three buildings, a 7,000 square meter parking lot will be built as part of the public parking network. It will have electric charging points, secure spaces for bicycles and personal mobility vehicles, car-sharing rental services and easily accessible parcel collection points for citizens.
The subway parking lot will be managed by the public company Barcelona Serveis Municipals, B:SM.
The research complex is part of the Special Urban Development and Urban Improvement Plan, PEUMU, of the area promoted by the Pompeu Fabra University.
The vision of the City Council
In this regard, the Barcelona City Council explained that the Mercat del Peix is part of the Ciutadella del Coneixement and that a scientific, cultural and urban development initiative will be implemented on its grounds.
This new construction will transform the park and its surroundings into a knowledge node of reference in southern Europe.
The goal is to make Ciutadella breathe science again. To become once again the best reference for the world and the scientific community both in Barcelona and throughout Europe, said Janet Sanz, deputy mayor of Ecology, Urbanism, Infrastructure and Mobility.
It is a challenging project that will bring great benefits to the city.
