The Iron Bridge, the Museum of Holy Week, the promotion of two new civic centers… The mayor of Zaragoza, Natalia Chueca, announced on the first day of the State of the City Debate an ambitious battery of measures aimed at transforming and promoting the facilities and infrastructures of Zaragoza’s neighbourhoods. The government team has outlined a roadmap that ranges from the preservation of cultural and industrial heritage to the strengthening of social services and the network of civic and senior centers.
MUSEUM OF HOLY WEEK
As the first major announcement in the field of heritage, the mayor has confirmed the decisive progress in one of the most heartfelt aspirations of Zaragoza society: the creation of the Museum of Holy Week.
The municipal government already has a detailed preliminary project and, in the coming weeks, it will formally advance the drafting of the final project. This process will be carried out working hand in hand and in close collaboration with the Coordinating Board of Brotherhoods, ensuring that the space faithfully reflects the richness, fervour and undoubted artistic and tourist value of one of the most important traditions of Zaragoza.
DIGNIFICATION OF THE IRON BRIDGE
In her commitment to the maintenance and enhancement of the city’s iconic infrastructures, the mayor has set a new objective for the coming months: the comprehensive dignification of the Iron Bridge.
Given the degree of degradation of the layers of paint that this emblematic infrastructure currently suffers on the Ebro River, the City Council has already commissioned a specific project aimed at returning it to the splendour and incalculable industrial heritage value that it represented at the time of its construction, in 1895.
The actions will go far beyond mere structural maintenance. The bridge will be repainted, new urban furniture will be installed with the incorporation of benches, and it will be equipped with plant elements. All this with a clear objective: to transform the Iron Bridge so that it ceases to be exclusively a place of passage and becomes a real space for walking, meeting and enjoyment for all Zaragozans.
TWO NEW CIVIC CENTERS IN GOYA PARK AND VENICE PARK
In terms of neighborhood structuring, the mayor has underlined the determination of the current municipal government to make infrastructures that had been paralyzed for years a reality. In this sense, he announced that the details of the construction projects of two new civic centers in Parque Goya and Parque Venecia are already being defined.
These are two neighbourhood spaces historically demanded by the residents of the south and north of the city. The City Council plans to undertake an investment of around 5 million euros for each of the facilities, thus fulfilling a promise that, although shared at the time by different political formations, will finally be executed by the current government team.
FACILITIES FOR THE ELDERLY
The block of social facilities of the State of the City Debate has had the elderly as the undisputed protagonists. To respond to an increasingly active and numerous elderly population – the city already has 32 coexistence centres and nearly 78,000 members, which represents an increase of 8,600 in the last year and covers more than 42% of those over 65 years of age – the City Council has designed a plan to expand and improve these facilities:
- La Almozara: The expansion of its coexistence center has just been inaugurated, the result of an ambitious work that the neighbors are already enjoying and will have services for the elderly.
- Delicias: The project for the expansion of its center, through the reform and incorporation of the old Fish Market Restaurant, has already been put out to tender, which will allow in the short term to provide more and better spaces to one of the most populated districts.
- Las Fuentes (former Matadero): The City Council is currently preparing the project to respond to a repeated request from the residents, expanding the spaces for the elderly in the Matadero enclosure.
- Torrero: The mayor has stressed that the neighborhood will have its own center for the elderly located in the old prison, a firm project of the City Council despite the threats derived from the situation of illegal occupation of the space.
This boost to infrastructures is complemented by the economic effort in direct care. The mayor recalled the recent launch of the new contract for the Home Help Service, endowed with more than 30 million euros (27% more than the previous year), which translates into a substantial improvement both in the care of users and in the working conditions of the workers who provide the service.
With these announcements, the municipal government reaffirms its commitment to be «the Government of all Zaragozans», prioritizing real investment in neighborhoods, culture, heritage and the well-being of its citizens.
