Splau!’ shopping park brings major Barcelona stores to another four million people

Opening tomorrow and developed by ACCIONA Real Estate, Splau! features top name brands, a leading supermarket chain and a state-of-the-art (3D) 18-screen cineplex.

The Splau! shopping park, developed by ACCIONA Real Estate, opens its doors to the public tomorrow.

Located between the Catalonian municipalities of Cornellà and El Prat de Llobregat, Splau! brings together a broad range of big name stores, creating 1,700 direct jobs. The park is expected to breathe new life into the surrounding area, providing a boost to local sports and cultural activity.

The official opening took place this afternoon and was attended by more than a thousand guests, along with local officials and the Vice Chairman of ACCIONA, Juan Ignacio Entrecanales. Following the official speeches, guests celebrated the brand new park's first hours with a performance by dancers from the Spanish version of the hit TV series 'Fame' and a selection of tunes in live DJ sessions on each of the complex's floors.

The Deputy Mayor of El Prat de Llobregat, Sergi Alegre, who also heads the municipality's Department of Town and Territorial Planning and the Environment, explained that the Splau! Shopping park "will cover the growing demand for leisure and services in the Llobregat delta area". The Deputy Mayor of Cornellà, Antonio Martínez, believes that the shopping park is destined to "become an integral part of the profound transformation undergone by the south side of the town over recent years". Both officials agree that "the park will make a major contribution towards creating jobs locally, which is very important in the current adverse economic climate"

Finally, the ACCIONA Vice Chairman Juan Ignacio Entrecanales explained that "for ACCIONA Real Estate, Splau! represents a firm bet on a strategic project that aims to bring radical and dynamic changes to the former Plana del Galet". She also stressed that 2in these times of economic difficulties, we want to give Catalonia's third most populated area a shopping park capable of generating wealth locally and contributing to job creation in the area".

A highly accessible complex

Splau! stands out for its singular building style and state-of-the-art open-plan architecture in which stores make up a two-level ring. The complex includes a cutting-edge 18-screen cineplex; free parking for 2,800 vehicles; top-flight brands, including Zara, Bershka, Stradivarius, Mango, H&M, Jack&Jones, C&A, Oysho and Primark, plus a variety of restaurants, entertainment centres, bowling alley and a Mercadona supermarket. Major consumer electronics chains Media Markt and Miró have also given their vote of confidence to Splau!

The new shopping complex enjoys a first-class location in one of the most dynamic areas of Barcelona. It will serve around a million people within ten minutes' driving time and more than 4.25 million people within a half-hour driving radius.

Splau! also stands out for its excellent communications. Shoppers and visitors have a number of transport options: by car (from downtown Barcelona along the Coastal Ring Road, near the Ronda D'Alt junction); on the underground (line 5), or by bus (numbers 57, 67, 68, 95 and 153).

Splau! is the name of not only the shopping complex but also its irresistible mascot, a real charmer who has made the park his home along with his friends, and who embodies the new concept of leisure centre that underpins the complex.

Pioneers in eco-efficient homes

All ACCIONA Real Estate projects incorporate sustainability principles, in line with one of the company's main goals - to protect the environment. To do so, it follows three major lines of action: energy efficiency, efficient use of water, and clean construction and sustainable design.

ACCIONA Real Estate buildings are always designed to save energy, and feature materials and devices that ensure overall energy efficiency, limiting heating demand through passive insulation techniques and materials. Bioclimatic architecture technologies are used, as too are efficient heating and air conditioning systems, renewable energies -solar thermal, among others- regulating and automation systems, efficient lighting -low-consumption lights and timers-, energy efficient electrical appliances (A, A++) and low-consumption elevators.

To ensure the efficient use of water, buildings feature faucets with shut-off valves and double-flushing cisterns, while gardens and grounds are fitted with automated watering systems, native plants and recycling and reuse systems for gray water and rainwater for watering communal areas.

ACCIONA Real Estate builds using all the latest advances in habitability and accessibility, improvements in acoustics and ventilation, easy maintenance and efficient construction systems. It uses materials that have a low impact on the environment, through life-cycle analysis and by using environmentally certified recycled materials and FSC-approved wood. It also makes use of alternative systems for chlorine-free pool-water quality and waste management.