31 July 2026 · Residents’ manifesto
Residents’ manifesto on the approval of Specific Amendment No. 25
Residents’ manifesto after MP25 approval.
On 31 July 2026, Specific Amendment No. 25 was approved. For many, it may look like just another planning amendment. For us, it is not.
It did not arrive with major headlines or solemn speeches. It arrived as another item on an agenda, as a file, as initials that almost nobody understands.
Behind those cold words lies our town: our streets, the memory of those who lived here before us, and the question of what kind of Sant Joan we want to leave to our children.
An exceptional planning solution has been allowed for a specific plot next to the historic centre, including a penthouse floor that was not previously provided for, justified by saving trees and enlarging a green area.
When a town starts treating its history as an obstacle, something breaks.
If a rule says no penthouses, the normal result should be no penthouses. If planning is changed to allow them, it should be explained clearly. If this is done in the public interest, all documentation should be made accessible.
We were told to participate, organise, create an association, file objections and use legal channels. We did. We read documents, asked for information, submitted objections and tried to understand what was being approved and why.
And we discovered something sad: citizen participation is welcome when it does not disturb. It is welcome in a photo, in a polite meeting or in a campaign sentence. It is less welcome when residents ask real questions and request documents.
We do not have offices, developers behind us or economic interests in a plot. We have a street, old houses, memory, concern and the right to say that something does not seem right.
This is not only about two pine trees. It is about how Sant Joan’s future is decided, whether the historic centre really matters, whether planning rules apply to everyone and whether the general interest has been sufficiently protected.
This is not only about two pine trees. It is about how Sant Joan’s future is decided.
We are concerned that there is no long-term vision for the town and that the Sant Joan of twenty years from now is not being properly considered.
We warned, asked, requested documents and filed objections. We said there were serious doubts and insufficient explanations.
We do not want to exaggerate or accuse without evidence. But we do want to say clearly that, in our view, the result of this amendment appears to particularly favour the viability of a specific development, and we are concerned that the public interest has not been sufficiently protected.
Sant Joan is not only land, buildability or square metres. It is Calle San José, Calle Mayor, the old town, low houses, simple façades and the memory of our elders.
On 14 August, Noche en Vela will fill the historic centre with light, music and speeches about heritage, culture and participation. Those same streets will already have seen the approval of an amendment many residents consider deeply unfair.
A town is not destroyed all at once. It is eroded little by little.
This concerns everyone. Tomorrow it may be another street, another plot, another file, another small amendment and another piece of the town disappearing almost unnoticed.
A town is not destroyed all at once. It is eroded little by little: file by file, silence by silence, while people look the other way.