Sants-Montjuïc · 12
la Marina del Prat Vermell
La Marina del Prat Vermell takes its name from the fields where dyed cloth from the calico-printing factories was laid out to dry, and is now one of Barcelona's main housing-growth areas, with nearly 12,000 homes planned on former industrial land.[1][2][3]
Today the neighbourhood combines industrial sheds and technology buildings with the first blocks of subsidised housing, such as Illa Acer, and with the Cases Barates, put up in 1929 for shack-dwellers evicted from Montjuïc.[1][4]
La Marina del Prat Vermell lies between la Marina de Port and the industrial area of the Zona Franca. It has very few residents for its size because much of the land has been industrial, logistical or empty.[5][6]
In 1897 the town of Sants, and with it this area, was incorporated into Barcelona; the Zona Franca was created here in 1929 and the SEAT factory opened in 1953. The neighbourhood is now moving from industrial sheds to a predominance of housing and new facilities.[1][7]
la Marina del Prat Vermell (neighbourhood 12) highlighted. Other neighbourhoods in Sants-Montjuïc: el Poble-sec, la Marina de Port, la Font de la Guatlla, Hostafrancs, la Bordeta, Sants - Badal.
Where the name comes from
Prat Vermell, “red meadow”, was the name of the fields in this lower part of the Marina de Sants where a calico-printing factory stood. Dyed cloth was laid out to dry on the ground, which took on a reddish colour. In 1851 six prats d'indianes are recorded in the area, among them the Prat Vermell of Serra i Bertrand.[1][2]
Between la Marina de Port and the industrial area of the Zona Franca, with limits at the railway lines, Carrer de la Metal·lúrgia, Carrer del Foc and Passeig de la Zona Franca.[2]
Before the neighbourhood
In the early 19th century the area was occupied by large herds of cattle, goats and sheep. The Canal de la Infanta, inaugurated in 1819, replaced dry-land crops with gardens and fruit trees, but pastures were kept in the wet zones.[1]
In 1846 the city banned new factories inside Barcelona, and industrialists turned to neighbouring municipalities where land and water were plentiful. The Prat Vermell was the nearest area where calico-printing factories were set up.[1]
How the streets were made
The SEAT factory, opened in 1953, brought thousands of workers; nearly a thousand homes were built for them, the first in the neighbourhood with all services.[1][7]
The Eduardo Aunós group of low-cost houses, from 1929, was the first to go up; it was built quickly and with poor means, and floods hit it hard. In the early 1990s the old houses were demolished and new homes built.[1]
Dates that changed it
- 1819 the Canal de la Infanta is inaugurated, transforming the agricultural landscape.[1]
- 1846 the city council bans new factories inside Barcelona and industry moves to neighbouring municipalities.[1]
- 1851 six prats d'indianes are recorded in the area, among them the Prat Vermell of Serra i Bertrand.[1][2]
- 1897 the town of Sants, and with it the Marina del Prat Vermell, is incorporated into Barcelona.[1]
- 1927 workers build the Colònia Bausili on part of the site of the former Brugarolas factory.[8]
- 1929 the Zona Franca is created and the Eduardo Aunós low-cost houses go up for shack-dwellers evicted from Montjuïc.[1]
- 1953-1955 the SEAT factory opens and nearly a thousand homes are built for its workers.[1][7]
- 1990s the old Cases Barates houses are demolished and new homes built.[1]
- 2004 the last houses of Can Tunis are demolished.[1]
- 2005 the urbanisation project proposes 10,865 homes, 47% subsidised.[2]
- 2026 on 25 April the first 60 flats of Illa Acer are delivered; in May a 50 million euro neighbourhood plan through 2028 is announced.[4][9]
People behind the buildings
Colònia Bausili
Workers built the Colònia Bausili in 1927 on part of the site of the former Brugarolas textile factory; the homes measure about 60 m2.[8]
Institutions
IMHAB
The municipal housing body promotes Illa Acer on public land, with indefinite rental tied to family income, according to Moncloa; the first 60 flats were delivered on 25 April 2026.[4]
Pla de barris de la Marina
The 50 million euro neighbourhood plan through 2028 provides for a nursery school and a municipal sports centre, still to be built according to the May 2026 announcement.[9]
What can still be seen
Colònia Bausili
It is not catalogued as heritage, but the district has put it on its tourist maps as one of the few remaining vestiges of the Marina's industrial and working-class past.[8]
What disappeared
Can Tunis
From the 1920s the works for the Zona Franca made the neighbourhood of Can Tunis and many scattered farmhouses across the delta disappear. The last houses were demolished in summer 2004 and the neighbourhood was absorbed by industrial and port infrastructure.[1]
The neighbourhood today
La Marina del Prat Vermell had 3,174 residents in 2026, a density of 2.2 inhabitants per hectare, a €19,074 mean census-section income in 2023, an enormous area of 1,423.8 hectares, and 26.5% of residents held non-Spanish nationality. Density averages large non-residential surfaces and does not describe the intensity of small inhabited nuclei.[5][6]
Non-Spanish nationality (2026): 26.5%
What is changing
Illa Acer and the new housing
According to the city council, nearly 12,000 homes are planned in the neighbourhood, about 50% of them protected. Illa Acer, where the streets of l'Acer, Motors, Cal Cisó and Ascó meet, has 234 subsidised homes. The first 60 affordable-rent flats were delivered on 25 April 2026, from 400 euros a month, and the municipal housing body IMHAB planned to tender another 90 flats on the same block before the end of 2026.[3][4]
Neighbourhood plan 2026-2028
In May 2026 the city council announced a 50 million euro neighbourhood plan for the Marina through 2028. It includes a nursery school, a municipal sports centre, reactivation of municipal ground-floor premises, and renewal of Passeig de la Zona Franca, Plaça de la Marina and the Jardins de Cal Sèbio and Can Ferrero.[9]
What the guides leave out
Read it on foot
Start: Foc (L10 Sud) · End: Illa Acer[4]
Walking (excluding stop time): 10 min · 750 m · Estimated visit (with stops): 36 min
The geometry follows the pedestrian network between the three marked points, but it has not been verified as step-free. The approach from public transport is not included in the stated distance.
la Marina del Prat Vermell (neighbourhood 12) highlighted. Other neighbourhoods in Sants-Montjuïc: el Poble-sec, la Marina de Port, la Font de la Guatlla, Hostafrancs, la Bordeta, Sants - Badal.
Coordinates
Coordinates
Coordinates
Sources for this page
Dates, figures and historical claims are linked to the records used for this page.
- [1] Ajuntament de Barcelona, Districte de Sants-Montjuïc (2026). Història de la Marina del Prat Vermell. Accessed: 2026-10-03.
- [2] Viquipèdia (2026). La Marina del Prat Vermell. Accessed: 2026-10-03.
- [3] Ajuntament de Barcelona, Info Barcelona (2025). Illa Acer, the city's second largest protected housing development. Accessed: 2026-10-03.
- [4] Moncloa (2026-04-26). Barcelona entrega 60 pisos asequibles en la Illa Acer desde 400 euros. Accessed: 2026-10-03.
- [5] Open Data BCN (2026). Padró municipal. Accessed: 2026-07-17.
- [6] CartoBCN (2006+). Límits de barris. Accessed: 2026-07-17.
- [7] SEAT S.A. (n.d.). SEAT: 70 años de historia. Accessed: 2026-10-09.
- [8] Betevé (2025). Sants-Montjuïc dóna a conèixer la Colònia Bausili de la Marina. Accessed: 2026-10-03.
- [9] Betevé (2026-05-26). Injecció de 50 milions d'euros per consolidar els barris de la Marina com a plenament residencials. Accessed: 2026-10-03.
- [10] Ajuntament de Barcelona — Open Data BCN (2026-01-01). Padró municipal d'habitants (pad_mdbas) — població per barri. Accessed: 2026-07-17.
- [11] Ajuntament de Barcelona — Open Data BCN (2021). Densitat de població per barri. Accessed: 2026-07-17.
- [12] Ajuntament de Barcelona — Open Data BCN (2023). Renda disponible de les llars per persona. Seccions censals. Accessed: 2026-07-17.
Last reviewed: 3 October 2026 · 12 sources consulted