Residents in favour of and against the name change of the Navas neighbourhood (Sant Andreu) met on 9 July with the Barcelona City Council, which detailed the participatory process that will begin in autumn and could end in a consultation or agreement.
The Barcelona neighbourhood of Navas, in the Sant Andreu district, is facing a participatory process this autumn that will decide whether it will be renamed Torrent de la Guineu or maintain its current name. The Barcelona City Council brought together the two opposing community groups on 9 July, along with district and Participation technicians, as well as representatives from the Ombudsman and the FAVB. The goal was to lay the groundwork for a dialogue that, according to the municipal roadmap, should conclude by the end of the year.
A community struggle that began in 2023
The fight over the neighbourhood's name is not new. In 2023, a group of residents, now part of the Torrent de la Guineu-Navas association, began pushing for the change. They gathered signatures throughout 2024 and, in 2025, managed to get the Sant Andreu district to approve the modification. However, for the change to be definitive, it needed the approval of the plenary session of the Barcelona City Council, which was never voted on.
Opposing them, another group of residents, supporters of the current name, gathered the necessary signatures to force a citizen consultation, which the council also did not activate. The balance of power led the Comissió d’Empara de la Participació Ciutadana to recommend, last December, a participatory process that would bring both sides together. The Barcelona City Council accepted the recommendation and is now finalising the details.
Timeline: debates in October and closure in November
The council has already outlined a timeline. In September, before La Mercè, the details of the process will be refined. The dissemination will begin that same month, and during October, debates and sessions with residents will be held. The expectation is that the process will close in November.
According to municipal sources, the participatory process is a mandatory preliminary step to any citizen consultation. However, it does not have to end in a vote: the two groups can reach a consensus agreement on the name. If there is no agreement, a consultation will be held with the proposed options.
If a consultation occurs, it won't be until 2027
Even if the process leads to a consultation, the vote cannot take place until after the municipal elections in May 2027. The law prohibits conducting citizen consultations in the six months leading up to elections, and the next municipal elections are scheduled for 23 May 2027. Therefore, any final decision regarding the neighbourhood's name will be known, at the earliest, in the summer of that year.
In the meantime, the residents of Navas will have the opportunity to debate and perhaps find common ground. The process, which will take place in the neighbourhood itself, aims to involve all residents, not just the two organised groups. The sessions will be open and announced in advance through the channels of the Sant Andreu district.
“It is an exercise in participatory democracy that we hope will help strengthen coexistence,” said sources from the Participation department of the Barcelona City Council.
The Navas neighbourhood, known for its associative fabric and industrial history, thus faces an identity debate that, beyond the name, reflects the different sensitivities of its inhabitants. The participatory process this autumn will be the first time both positions sit down to formally dialogue, with the council's mediation.
