Figueres plans 50-metre gap between some city centre shops
Figueres City Council wants to set a minimum distance of 50 metres between certain types of shops in the city centre. The aim is to stop businesses that it believes harm the image of the area from clustering together.
The measure is part of a new special plan for commercial uses that the municipal government has been preparing for several months. According to local outlet Hora Nova, which first reported on the project, the document could go to the November plenary session for initial approval. The plenary is the monthly full council meeting where formal decisions are voted on.
Which businesses are affected
The plan targets several kinds of business that have become more common in town centres in recent years:
- 24-hour supermarkets
- shops selling mobile phone accessories
- manicure and nail salons
- takeaway food outlets
- shops selling cannabis products and derivatives such as CBD
The main proposal is a gap of at least 50 metres between these establishments. The plan would also define which types of business should be treated as "priority" in each zone of the centre, so the council has a say in what kind of activity fills each street.
What the council wants to achieve
The council describes the plan as a tool to "bring order" to commercial activity in the centre. It says the plan should also respond to the new reality of the city and create a better "balance" in what it calls "the commercial mix that every city must have".
Mayor Jordi Masquef compared the plan to an earlier measure. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, the city regulated the opening of bank branches on the Rambla, Figueres' main promenade. He said the new plan follows a similar approach.
Moratorium on new openings
The plan also has a legal side. Under current rules, a town must wait five years after approving its POUM before it can declare a moratorium. The POUM is the municipal urban development plan, which sets out land use across the whole municipality. Because of this restriction, the government decided to press ahead with the special plan instead.
Once the plan receives initial approval, a temporary moratorium will apply. This will stay in place until the plan gets final approval.
Where the rules would apply
The plan would cover the whole historic centre of Figueres. It would also include several streets outside it, including carrer Sant Pau, carrer Vilafant, carrer Nou and carrer de la Jonquera. These are among the busiest shopping streets in the capital of the Alt Empordà.
The council has not yet published the full text of the document. Details could still change before it reaches the plenary.
Our Take
For readers in Empuriabrava and Castelló d'Empúries, Figueres is the nearest large shopping centre and the main administrative town of the comarca. This makes changes to its high streets relevant well beyond the city limits. The plan suggests the council wants a more varied mix of shops in the historic centre, and fewer streets dominated by the same few types of business.
It also fits a wider pattern in the area, where local councils are using planning powers to shape how property is used. The recent debate over the tourist flat decree is one example. The comparison with the bank branch rules on the Rambla shows that Figueres has taken this kind of step before.
It is worth watching whether the plan reaches the November plenary as expected, and how long the temporary moratorium lasts. The reaction of affected business owners will also matter, along with whether other Alt Empordà towns consider similar rules.