Interview with Jordi Baijet, Mayor of Sitges
“The business can attract talent”
• Sitges is one of the pioneers in the Spanish city of business tourism through the construction of the Auditorium in the 90
The municipality is currently preparing an ambitious plan for tourism, the “City Project”
Sitges facing new challenges in order to remain a tourist destination of excellence and quality. Within the “City Project” provides activities such as rehabilitation and conservation of the old town, the underground train line, the redevelopment of certain hotels emblematic or the construction of twelve Ferrats Caus. Unique architectural sites that have attracting, according to Mayor Jordi Baijet, creativity, art, culture and values ​​training … all in that Sitges has been based on historically and will continue to develop the future of the municipality.

-Tell us about the “City Project” in Sitges. How and why did the idea?
The “City Project” arises from the need to have a clear idea of ​​the city we want the short, medium and long term. We know that every objective is to generate a city economy, create jobs and promote quality of life they want all citizens. In the XXI century Sitges you need is to generate economic prosperity for its people, maintain the image that Sitges has traditionally broadcast around the world and a city with human qualities and quality of life.

– What are the objectives to be achieved?
The “City Project” is an idea of ​​our town long term the main objectives of economy, quality and society. Following this project we generated a series of more specific short and medium term will allow us to meet these challenges we have set.

– What does it matter lace and congress tourism in these performances?
In Sitges we were lucky that between 90 and 95 play to be a tourism business, because the first audience of Catalonia was made here, and we remain in the s. xxi a tourist destination of excellence and quality. But since the 90’s competition has changed a lot.

Sitges has very good infrastructure and leading hotels, but we think we can complement this offer with smaller hotels, with more charm, which promotes culture, art and creativity and that this may also attract business. We want the congressman to come here find a more sensitive and human, with good weather, good food, sensitive to culture and art that has found synergy of talented people in the township. Because we believe that talent can also attract business.

-The initiative to build these cultural centers, “Caus Ferrats XXI century” will have a fundamental importance in order to attract that talent. Tell us about them.
Yes We thought of open spaces which are not only cultural center but can sleep in them and where they encourage new economic activity that is creativity. So we thought the model Cau Ferrat. The Cau Ferrat in Sitges and only there was a space in the last century was of great importance for the municipality. It was a dynamic element of modernism and the change of our people who until then was a town of sailors, fishermen and vineyards.

We want to create a Ferrats century Caus xxi where we can tackle the art and culture of life and must be poles of attraction training, economic activity, creation and small hotels can be such an environment where everything has a life. Sitges is a very good living space to create, think, ponder and have ideas. So believe in what we might call tourism ideas. And ideas are in a good environment.

– What common characteristics have these spaces?
The Caus Ferrats all build on public land. We have projected a total of twelve with the idea that each month to take ownership of them. All share three key concepts: are facilities where people can live, that is, small hotels will but with the peculiarity that the doors will open to participation, creation and reflection. Second, be architecturally unique buildings and therefore should be created by architects with personality. And third will be financially autonomous. The project began with the acquisition of Audi Design Center, a landmark and we thought of making it the Cau Ferrat Cities. Why the city? Because we believe that cities are the most important element of this century of social, economic and human development. And so we thought this building as a place to think about the city and creativity.

-The recovery of the historic center is one of the milestones that have been proposed. Sitges is an important cultural context … How will you promote it?
For the old town we have a project called “L’Espai of the Mediterranean.” It is content to fill a number of buildings in what was the center of town 30 years ago. It is a privileged environment where aesthetically and generated the Cau Ferrat. But over time some of these buildings have lost content. Therefore, the Council has decided to rehabilitate these areas by providing them with value.

-The “creative economy” is just one of the slogans of the campaign to promote Sitges. What is?
Part of the idea of ​​the economist Richard Florida that future cities will be developed according to their creativity. This is a good idea to tune the plans for the future of the town. The way to survive in a globalized world is by being creative. Sitges has been historically a place that has attracted artists and creators and we want to remain so. The environment influences the creativity and, in turn, generates a creative class economy and indices of emotional stability of the city very interesting.

-In your opinion, what makes Sitges a place to hold events?
First, does the large capacity of citizens to be hospitable, tolerant, active, and knowing how to use these values ​​to generate an economy. We appreciate more intangibles than for tangibles. The only important thing is tangible that we have this magical setting and our special microclimate. To all this must be added an economic movement around the talent and the food very active and very bold company.

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The performances of the “City Project”

There are five main areas. The first is the protection of heritage: the Old Town, including the boardwalk and the beach of Sant Sebastia. It is intended that this space is an excellent human being, zero emissions and generate economic activity. The challenge is to get the nightlife and the rest of the people can live together in the same area. “This environment has to be a powerful cultural dynamic, a protected area in terms of aesthetics, landscape, environment and also to be a civic space where people, commerce and economic activity coexist,” said Baijet. Another major challenge is the underground train line that breaks in half Sitges. The burial will earn new spaces in what has been called “A hug the sea” and a breeze of 90,000 m2 which will go from one end of town, that is, between the Hotel Terramar to Port d’Aiguadolç.

Third is the recovery of quarries in the Parc Natural del Garraf to reconvert to other economies more sustainable.

Then there is the renovation of hotels. A clear example is the Terramar, a landmark hotel opened in 1928, located in a strategic city, which is to host the Festival of Fantastic Film century xxi, thanks to a new audience. Next to the golf course and the Autodromo de Sant Pere de Ribes is able to generate new economic activity and help attract business tourism.

Finally, we want to develop the creative economy through the construction of some new hotels that promote the attraction of artists and creators. This was taken as a model of the legendary Cau Ferrat.