At 22 Irena Sendler Street, just a few meters from the bustle of Glòries, one of the most visible examples of a new urban architecture has been standing since the end of 2022: APROP Glòries, a block of public housing built with recycled shipping containers. Seven floors, 42 apartments and only 26 weeks of construction. All this in a city where access to housing is increasingly difficult and solutions are urgent.
APROP, which stands for Alojamientos de Proximidad Provisionales (Provisional Proximity Housing), is part of a project that seeks quick and sustainable responses to the housing emergency. Inspired by models applied in cities such as London, Copenhagen or Vancouver, this type of facility is set up on empty lots on a temporary basis and is intended for individuals and families referred by social services.
The stay is limited to two years and the objective, beyond the roof, is to accompany processes of autonomy and reintegration. Therefore, APROPs are not only housing: they are also spaces with social care, educational and labor support, and common areas that promote coexistence.
60m2 houses with balconies and urban vegetable gardens.
In the case of APROP Glòries, the project includes a 550 m² hydroponic urban garden in the inner courtyard of the building. It occupies half of the space and is managed by organizations of people with disabilities and residents. It is not a decorative element: it is part of a wider network promoted by the Municipal Institute for People with Disabilities, and seeks to create links, activity and a sense of belonging.
The other half of the courtyard is reserved for relational spaces, and the first floor has a communal laundry and a multipurpose room that underline the collective dimension of the facility.
Each housing module, measuring 30 or 60 m², has natural ventilation and lighting, functional furnishings, and highly efficient thermal and acoustic insulation. Most of the work is done in the workshop, which reduces the environmental impact and construction time. In total, the building cost 5.77 million euros and has a floor area of 3,666 m².
The APROP in Ciutat Vella, container-home in the middle of the Gothic Quarter
This is not the only project of this style in Barcelona. There is another APROP project in the Gothic Quarter, built shortly after the pandemic to provide a solution to the housing emergencies of the people of Barcelona.
Both Glòries and Ciutat Vella are just one example of other construction models, such as the modular construction of prefabricated apartments.
This type of construction allows, among other things, to be erected in just 10 days, with the superposition, by means of cranes, of prefabricated floors, as if it were a giant Lego. One more example of those being carried out in Barcelona to offer other, more sustainable options to the city’s prolonged housing crisis.