In this context, Alberto Dalmau, economic manager of the Barcelona City Council, says that this event gives off positive expectations in Europe. «We breathe that there is a desire to return to fairs and investment. When we talk about Barcelona, people identify a city that has long-term projects and is capable of presenting new initiatives at each edition of Expo Real», he said.
Dalmau referred to the dichotomy that exists in city centers, conceived as an area for living and for visiting. However, the economy manager distinguishes a third element: a center for working. «Barcelona is reinventing its center. Therefore, we want to gain new spaces for talent and the digital economy in this area».
In addition, he indicated that not only is the debate on the balance in city centers open, but there is also the question of what is going to happen in industrial areas. «In this way, there is a strong commitment of the European Union to promote proximity production, there is a space to return to produce in Europe and we detect that there is interest in listening to these developments», he said.
The Economic Development Agency of the Metropolitan Area of Barcelona has also been present at Expo Real to support the 35 municipalities in this area. The aim of these is to present their projects, seek investors and generate contacts.
Its director, Anna Hernández, explained that «as an agency, we look for projects that are at an advanced stage of development and need to promote their transformation to make the territory of that municipality more competitive and generate an economy aligned with that of the future».
For her part, Mercé Conesa, director at Incasòl, also attending the real estate fair, stressed that this year is very focused on the connectivity area near the AP-7, linked to the ALBA synchrotron, with the R&D research parks of the Autonomous University. «We have presented this land that we have already launched to the market and we are eager to find investors», she said.