The Council of Ministers today resolved to grant 109.8 million euros in direct subsidies to Autonomous Communities and local entities for the maintenance and rehabilitation of historical heritage for tourist use. This is an investment planned for this year 2021 in component 14 of the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan that is financed with the Next Generation EU recovery funds.
With these funds that regulates the royal decree approved today in the Council of Ministers, 37 assets of cultural interest will be acted upon, close to the 50 that were committed to the European Commission between now and the second half of 2026, making notable progress in the first year validity of the recovery plan towards the achievement of the milestone.
Most of the assets of cultural interest to be rehabilitated and improved are found in rural areas or small municipalities. It is thus intended to help diversify the offer by developing claims of interest to tourists in inland and rural areas of our country, taking advantage of the boom in cultural tourism in recent years as the main motivation of travelers visiting Spain and which has experienced growth. of 15.9% between 2016 and 2019.
The rehabilitation works will also guarantee the conservation of assets of cultural interest, allowing them to be enjoyed by present and future generations, while preserving access security in those cases in which the assets are damaged and may pose a risk to people.
Beneficiaries
The 109.8 million euros of grants will finance the rehabilitation of assets of cultural interest belonging to three relevant tourist products on offer in our country: the Camino de Santiago, to which 62,137,670.73 euros are allocated; the Ignatian Way of Manresa, which will receive 2,713,815.73 euros and the 15 World Heritage Cities, which will obtain 45 million euros, for a maximum amount of three million euros for each.
The subsidies destined to rehabilitate historical heritage located in different sections of the Camino de Santiago are part of the Xacobeo 21-22 National Tourist Plan endowed with more than 121 million euros. The distribution between Autonomous Communities is as follows:
3,079,887.56 euros
Castilla-La Mancha 3,200,000 euros
Galicia 22,700,000 euros
Castilla y León 5,850,000 euros
Navarra 4,172,877 euros
Basque Country 5,500,000 euros
Aragon 2,550,000 euros
Asturias 5,884,906.17 euros
Valencian Community 2,700,000 euros
Extremadura 4,000,000 euros
La Rioja 2,500,000 euros
Regarding the Ignatian Way of Manresa, the budget awarded in the royal decree to the Manresa city council will allow it to act in nine environments: the reception center for pilgrims in the Old College of San Ignacio; the viewpoint and the archaeological site of the convent of San Cristòfol in the Torre de Santa Caterina; in the itinerary connecting the Pont Vell with public transport; the itinerary from Pont Vell to the Fountain of Sant Pau; itinerary from the Fountain of Fans to the Cruz del Tort; the surroundings of the Chapel of Sant Marc and La Cova; Pont Nou and Balç street.
In the case of the 15 Heritage Cities, it contemplates an investment of a maximum of 3 million euros for each one that will be allocated to the following actions that are included in the Plan Boosts Heritage recently presented in Baeza (Jaén):
Alcalá de Henares: Rehabilitation and improvement of the Plaza de Cervantes.
Ávila: Rehabilitation and improvement of spaces in different parts of the city.
Baeza: Rehabilitation and improvement of the Market Square.
Cáceres: Restoration and enhancement of the Almohad wall and redevelopment of the western walkway within the walls.
Córdoba: Restoration and energy improvement of the Alcázar Reyes Cristianos and Gardens, Roman temple of Claudio Marcelo and Church of the Old Convent of Santa Clara.
Cuenca: Restoration and enhancement of the wall.
Ibiza: Improvement of the accessibility and energy of the streets of Santa María and Tur de Montis, Paseo Vara del Rey and Plaza de Sa Carrossa.
La Laguna: Restoration and rehabilitation of the former convent of Santo Domingo.
Mérida: Creation of the Museum of History and Archeology in the Calatrava Market.
Salamanca: Public adaptation of the Cerro de San Vicente Archaeological Park.
Santiago de Compostela: Energy improvement and conservation of the Pazo de Raxoi.
Segovia: Improvement of access and energy efficiency in the surroundings of the Aqueduct, the Forum of the Roman city, the Romanesque Church of San Nicolás and the Garden of the Poets.
Tarragona: Rehabilitation and accessibility in the environment at the local forum site.
Toledo: Regeneration and viewpoints in the historic gardens of La Vega, Sisebuto and Recaredo.
Úbeda: Accessibility and energy improvement of the Hospital de Santiago Cultural Center.
Eligible actions
The type of actions that may be financed in public property of cultural interest with tourist use or in their surroundings on the Camino de Santiago, the Ignatian Way and the Heritage Cities will be, specifically:
a) Rehabilitation of spaces for tourist use.
b) Improved energy efficiency.
c) Acclimatization and adaptation actions to climate change.
d) Modernization of waste management systems, addressing the prevention and reduction of their generation and the implementation of separate collection systems for the different materials that make it possible to prepare them for reuse or recycling.
e) Rehabilitation and use of spaces with smart technologies (improvement of broadband, installation of Wi-Fi networks, online reservations, virtual visits, or similar)
f) Improved accessibility.
g) Improvement in efficient lighting.
h) Reduction of energy and water consumption.
i) Rehabilitation and restoration of Buildings declared as Asset of Cultural Interest for tourist and cultural use;
j) The reduction and compensation of the carbon footprint by drawing up action plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions;
k) The improvement of energy efficiency through the replacement of diesel or fuel boilers with natural gas boilers;
l) The introduction of improvements in gray water treatment systems.