Girona and the municipalities of the urban area agree to promote joint policies in mobility, housing and industrial land

2023-10-20 15:59:52

Girona and the municipalities of the urban area they will go to the one when promoting joint policies in mobility, housing and mobilizing land for reindustrialization (especially, with the horizon of the future Salvation Campus). The mayors and mayoresses met this Friday and agreed to meet at least twice a year to move forward together. Unlike other meetings, this is the first one that has been promoted by the councils themselves, with Girona as architect and host. Its mayor, Lluc Salellas, affirms that the will is “stay together” both when sharing information and seeking consensus as well as when requesting funding from other administrations.

The objective of the joint line of work that the councils are now starting is clear: take advantage of synergies when facing common challenges and problems, and moving forward because lurban area of ​​Girona be more cohesive. a “need” that all the mayors and mayoresses share, and in front of which they bet to stand up and be stronger when knocking on the door of the different administrations.

In fact, proof of this is that when Girona proposed holding the meeting, the other municipalities immediately joined. “We started it, though has been driven by all“, said Lluc Salellas.

In addition to him, the mayors and mayoresses of eleven other towns have also sat at the table. they are Aiguaviva, Fornells de la Selva, BescanoCelrà, Sant Gregori, Quart, Sant Julià de Ramis, Sarrià de TerSalt, Vilablareix and Riudellots de la Selva. Of different political colors, but with a joint idea.

Today’s meeting, unlike other meetings that had taken place previously – and that was convened, for example, by the Generalitat – is the first that has arisen from the councils themselves. And although it was a first contact, a commitment and a work strategy have already emerged from the meeting. The first is the willingness to meet periodically, at least twice a year. And the second is to have agreed which are the axes around which joint policies are to be promoted: mobility, housing and industrial land.

With reference to mobility, Salellas specified that all the municipalities agree that it is necessary to move towards more sustainable models. Among others, this includes projects such as improving connections with public transport, extending the Gyrocleta in the neighboring towns or enable dissuasive parking lots. “The intention is to have these projects well worked out, to have the work done when it comes to requesting subsidies from supra-municipal administrations, such as the Generalitat or the Provincial Council,” explained Salellas.

Regarding housing, the mayor of Girona has said that among the objectives are promoting policies to activate more “affordable housing” and discuss how both the city and its urban area should grow. Here, taking into account the different typologies so that “the whole population” has access, Salellas points out, also referring to the desire to make pineapples in the ‘time to look for financing.

Finally, the mayor explained that the third commitment involves mobilizing land for reindustrialization. Especially, considering the opportunity that the future will bring Salvation Campus around the new Truta. “It must be a strategic bet for biosanitary companies; and here, the municipalities must also accompany them,” he specified.

“It was essential”

The mayor of Salt, Jordi Viñas, said that promoting a meeting like today’s was “essential”, because all the municipalities that are part of the urban area, and that touch each other, share “needs and challenges”. “It was a profitable first meeting, which allowed us to lay the foundations for the lines of work that we have to face in the coming months”, he specified.

With reference to Salt, the mayor also said that the future Health Campus is a “strategic” pillar that all the municipalities in the urban area must work on. “It is important, for example, that we are able to attract companies linked to biomedicine; and this is achieved through joint work,” he stressed.

For her part, the president of the Gironès County Council and mayoress of Fornells, Sonia Gracia, has highlighted the desire to “join all together”. Gràcia also wanted to emphasize that this happens so that different municipalities show solidarity when solving the problems they face. “For example, faced with the parking difficulties that Girona has, the surrounding towns can get involved to solve them; and also the other way around, because there will be others where we will be the ones who can ask for help in Girona”, he concluded.