The Ministry of Culture delivers to 'Remontada Tabacalera' two warehouses adjacent to the main building, which will be ready by the end of the year. The Madrid City Council had requested part of the property for affordable housing without receiving a response.
The Ministry of Culture has granted 800 square metres in the complex of the old Tabacalera factory, located at Calle Embajadores 53, to the collective 'Remontada Tabacalera', which includes the Tenants' Union, the promoter of the Sol encampment. The allocation is divided between the Nave Trapecio, with 512 square metres, and the Nave Trastocados/Metrópolis, with 288, both adjacent to the main building.
This operation comes after the Madrid City Council requested in March 2025 that the Ministry of Culture, the owner of the property, grant part of the space for affordable housing, as reported by eldebate.com. The deputy mayor and municipal spokesperson, Inma Sanz, stated months ago that the City Council did not receive a response to that request.
The municipal proposal was debated in the Plenary of the Centro district with the support of the PP (14 votes in favour), the abstention of Vox (two) and the rejection of Más Madrid (six) and PSOE (five), allowing it to pass. The Ministry led by Ernest Urtasun did not respond to the request and chose to grant the space to the community collective.
The Ministry of Culture itself is comprehensively rehabilitating the two granted spaces "at the expense of its budget," as indicated by the Government in March. They will be available by the end of this year and will be dedicated to "cultural and community activities for the Lavapiés neighbourhood."
The Tabacalera complex occupies an area of over 21,000 square metres in the Lavapiés neighbourhood. According to the Ministry, the future Centro Tabacalera is a project aimed at revitalising the creative fabric, with a space for artistic research and experience exchange among artists, in collaboration with the autonomous communities.
Alongside the Tenants' Union, 'Remontada Tabacalera' includes the Self-Managed Social Centre (CSA) La Tabacalera, 8M Lavapiés, the Interlavapiés Network and the Social Urbanism Office. The spaces will be operational by the end of 2026.
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