Barcelona Arenas Shopping Centre mall complex
Visit Las Arenas shopping centre. Former bullfighting arena at Plaza d'España converted to shopping centre with roof top panoramic viewpoint
About Barcelona Arenas Shopping Centre
Las Arenas, Barcelona opened on June 29 1900 in Plaza d'España and Gran via de Les Corts Catalanes. Las Arenas was initially used for boxing or free fights until it was purchased by the rich entrepreneur Pedro Balañá Forts in 1927 who remodelled it into a bull fighting ring and occasional concert venue.
During the Civil War, the building was occupied by anti-fascist militias. Post civil war, Bullfights went on during the Franco era until the decline of bull fighting in the 1980s. Bullfights were completely banned in Catalunya in 2012.
Remodelling work started in 2009 where the original outer brickwork heritage façade was preserved and jacked up as a whole complete brickwork ring to insert the concrete and steel supporting structure underneath.
The underground levels and parking were excavated and constructed underneath the concrete supported brick outer ring. The inner structures and steelwork were next constructed finishing with a cupula roof. Designed by architects Alonso y Balaguer and British architect Richard Rogers with a remodelling cost 70 million euros.
The construction was completed in 2011 and opened as Las Arenas Centro Commercial shopping centre in March the same year.
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