The winning design for the new Metropolitan building in the Pere Garau district has been selected. The proposed nine-storey structure features a timber facade and internal courtyards, created by architects Joan Fortuny and Martí Sans. The project budget stands at €14.3 million with an estimated construction timeframe of 18 months. The building will cover 7,286 square metres in total, of which approximately 4,200 square metres are above ground. The remainder is distributed among three underground levels dedicated primarily to public parking.
Significantly, the design retains a strong connection to the former Metropolitan cinema, which will be demolished to make way for this new public facility. The Mayor of Palma, Jaime Martínez, introduced the winning proposal from a shortlist of 14 submissions. He noted that "this is one of the most important neighbourhood facilities in the last 25 years for one of the city’s most populated areas. Pere Garau deserves it".
Last year, the council acquired the cinema and adjacent plots for €3.6 million following "14 years of neglect. It was an urban dead zone", as Martínez described it. The building will incorporate concrete and timber, described as "a comprehensive project with differentiated uses" by the mayor.
A public square will be created on the ground floor thanks to an open space concept. Martínez added, "there are internal spaces forming a small lung within the building, an atrium that faces the street". While three underground levels will largely serve as parking, one will include storage facilities.
The upper floors will serve multiple functions. The ground, second and third floors will host public services including a new police station, a basic health unit, a nursery for children aged 0-3, a citizen services office, a day centre and a conference room. The top three floors offer flexible uses such as a social centre, a senior citizen centre, and a library occupying the fourth and fifth floors, altogether amounting to over 8,000 square metres of constructed space.
The full project design will be finalised this year. Construction is set to begin in 2027 and last 18 months. Demolition of the old cinema is part of the development plan.