The institutional presentation of the Madrid Nuevo Norte project took place on Friday, 27 July. The project, which will be developed on 235 hectares in the north of Madrid, will be a milestone in urban regeneration, sustainable mobility and job creation for the capital.

The event took place at Palacio de Cibeles, which houses Madrid’s City Hall, and was attended by the mayoress, Manuela Carmena, the Minister of Public Works, José Luis Ábalos, and the president of DCN, Antonio Béjar. Also on hand were the authorities from three public administrations and representatives of all political parties.

The Madrid City Council Delegate for Sustainable Urban Development, José Manuel Calvo, hosted the event, which he opened with a detailed, technical description of the project. Calvo stated that “the City Council of Madrid is firmly committed to this project, to innovation and sustainability, to creating a fairer, more balanced and more sustainable city,” emphasising the quality of this new public space. “We have achieved a cutting-edge project, a state-of-the-art project, a benchmark for the 21st century Madrid that we all want,” said the Head of the Urban Development Area.

Antonio Béjar, president of Distrito Castellana Norte (DCN), highlighted the relevance of the consensus reached that has translated into a concrete and well-defined project, and recalled that we have managed to come this far “thanks to a collaborative process led by the Madrid City Council in which not only a vast number of dedicated professionals have participated, but also society as a whole, represented by neighbourhood associations, political parties and different public and private institutions”.

“A project”, recalled Béjar, “that has not been addressed from a real estate perspective, but rather, with the focus on the general interest, driven by the public”.

The Minister of Public Works, José Luis Ábalos, took the floor to highlight the Ministry’s support for a project that will transform Madrid, underling that this is a wonderful example of public-private partnership, which, due to its relevance, should transcend “partisan divisions”. “I inherited this project from a People’s Party government and I don’t mind being here today because I think it’s a good project for Madrid, an ambitious project, and major capital cities must have ambition and exercise leadership,” he said.

Furthermore, Ábalos pledged “all the goodwill that Adif will obtain from the sale of the land will be reinvested in this project”. The Minister also announced the launch of an international call for ideas so that the best architects and mobility experts can proposals for the new Chamartín train station.

The mayoress of Madrid, Manuela Carmena, closed the event thanking Ábalos “for his commitment to the project” and recalling that the City Council “took on the responsibility of the consensus by taking the lead in this project”.

“We have to value innovation, the development of city life,” said the mayoress. “A city without an extraordinary station, without a service-oriented heart, an office-oriented heart, a work-oriented heart like the one in this project, will live with its back to the future, and Madrid cannot live with its back to the future”, said Carmena.

A year of intense work

Since July 2017 when the stakeholders signed the first framework agreement that laid the groundwork for Madrid Nuevo Norte, the joint work achieved in the past year has further strengthened this consensus and served to delve deeper into the details of the project, moving from a simple drawing to a comprehensive, well-defined urban plan.

A project that has reached the level of development required to warrant its initial approval. José Manuel Calvo added that it could happen in “the first meeting of the Regional Government in September”.

This historic agreement, which was hailed in this joint presentation, is the outcome of the coordinated commitment of Public Administrations and Distrito Castellana Norte with the citizens of Madrid to provide the best possible project for the capital. All this guided by a citizen participation process, in which the views and proposals of local residents and citizens of Madrid were consulted.