The Salou Customs building, between Barcelona and Major streets and facing Bonet square, will open this summer as an aparthotel after more than fifteen years with the plot fenced off and unused. The new construction, promoted by the company Amsamar, adds 121 tourist apartments and recovers one of the most visible plots in the center for activity.
The opening comes two decades after the demolition of the historic building in 2006 and after a long urban and judicial conflict between the property and the City Council. The same space that was blocked for years by changes in planning and lawsuits will now begin to function for tourist use, although for the moment only the apartment area will be put into service.
The plot went from fifteen years closed before building 121 apartments
Amsamar began construction in 2022 to build the new block on land that had remained inactive since the disappearance of the previous building. The project was announced in August 2020 and its launch is expected for the summer season, although there is still no specific date.
In addition to the apartments, the development incorporates a ground floor with a dozen commercial premises facing Barcelona, Major, and Llevant streets. These spaces are still without operators, so the initial opening will be limited to the tourist business.
A two-story underground car park has also been built and will add 136 independently managed spaces to the aparthotel. On the roof, the building has a swimming pool and a terrace with sea views.
The City Council imposed the replica of the facade after years of litigation
The conflict began with the urban planning of 2003, which changed the use of the plot from hotel to residential. That modification led to a judicial appeal that the High Court of Justice of Catalonia resolved in 2010 in favor of the owning company.
Later, in 2017, the City Council paid a final compensation of 4.2 million euros to the property after years of litigation. The council also obliged the developer to reproduce part of the facade of the original building from the 1820s, with the cornice, colors, and shapes integrated into the new construction.
During the last municipal plenary session, the mayor of Salou, Pere Granados, defended the final result of the project, referring to the long delay in the action and the urban integration of the new building.
"They took their time, but they have built a building that will be exemplary. A well-done, sustainable, and high-quality work so that people can live in it or use them as tourist apartments" - Pere Granados, mayor of Salou
The commercial activation of the building will be incomplete in a first phase, as the ground-floor premises do not yet have confirmed operators despite occupying facades on three streets in the area. The opening planned for this summer will thus focus on the tourist apartments and the services associated with accommodation.
The detail that ended the long standoff between the property and the council came in 2017, when the City Council paid 4.2 million euros in final compensation after the judicial ruling in favor of the company.