The renovation work on Plaza España and Porta Pintada will fully affect the Christmas market that Cort has decided to move to the Parc de Ses Estacions, as the councillor for Economy and Commerce, Lupe Ferrer, communicated this week to the representatives of the employers' associations and associations of traders, artisans and fairgrounds.
The decision, however, has been greeted with suspicion by those affected, who fear for the lack of security in the park and ask that they be distributed, in small groups, to busier areas of the city. "I think it's a ruin for us because it's a place for strolling, not for shopping, and at certain times of the day there are very bad people", says Claudia Segredos, an artisan.
At the meeting, the possibility of diversifying the stalls into different spaces was raised. However, the final location of each one will not be known until the number of applicants is known.
María José, who also has a stall in Plaza España, warns that Ses Estacions "is death" and recalls that the artisan families are gambling with "the economic bridge of the winter".
In addition, Patricia Cohen, another of the hundred or so people affected, is concerned about security. "Going to the Born could be safer, we deserve it. They demand more and more money from us but they devalue us more and more", she laments. This craftswoman recalls the last editions in Plaza España when "there were days when we called the police thirteen times". She asks to be able to work in better conditions, "we have been demanding decent stands because they are of such poor quality that you kick them and they give way", she explains, recalling that her colleague was robbed of 5,000 euros worth of goods.
Marion Kell has been a sewing and dressmaking artisan for 25 years and is "very concerned" about the change. "For me, the ideal thing would be to find openings in other areas of the city where there is movement of people," she says. Like her colleagues, she is wary of the fact that the Parc de Ses Estacions is a transit area for local residents and not a point of interest in itself. "I don't think we can sell much," she says.
The move also affects the food and confectionery stalls which, like the rest, will be relocated and the aim is to give prominence to local food products with specific stalls.
The Christmas market, which will maintain its La Rambla and Plaça Major locations, will be held between 23 November and 7 January.
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