Barcelona's Sagrada Familia gets building permit 130 years late

  • 10 Nov - 16 Nov, 2018
  • Mag The Weekly
  • Mag Files

The iconic Sagrada Familia basilica in Barcelona has agreed to pay €36m (£31m) to authorities after going without a building permit for more than 130 years.

Spanish architect Antoni Gaudi's famous building has been under construction for 136 years – but with no official oversight or permit from either the local council or regional government.


The cathedral is also not listed in the property registry and since 1995 has only been marked as an empty plot belonging to the diocese of Barcelona, according to Spanish newspaper El Pais.

In 2015, the construction board and Barcelona Mayor Ada Colau began negotiating to regulate the building and licence payments.

Over the next decade, the basilica's money will fund improvements to public transport and access to the monument, as well as assisting the local neighbourhood.

By next year, its status should become regularised, the mayor said.

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