Superblocks. A new urban fabric model, pioneered in the city of Barcelona, already established in other Spanish cities such as Valencia, and exported to European cities, such as the kiezblocks in Berlin and the superblocks in Cologne. Efficient, sustainable, and inclusive, featuring vegetation that coexists respectfully with citizens.
As was the case with the La Petxina Superblock and Superilles Barcelona projects, winner of the NEB Prizes 2025, the European Commission continues to support initiatives that improve the quality of life in urban environments.
This is the premise behind the LIFE SuperGREENBlocks project, which, over four years, will seek to transform Cartagena’s neighborhoods in a sustainable way through nature-based solutions and advanced digital technologies. The difference with other proposals is that, on this occasion, the implementation of the ‘superblocks’ model is not solely aimed at reducing mobile traffic and giving more space back to pedestrians.
The intention of both the Cartagena City Council and the other participants, the consulting firm EuroVértice, the Polytechnic University of Cartagena, the SingularGreen studio, the Energy and Environment Technology Center (CETENMA), and Libelium is to go one step further.
Thanks to European funding, the project aims to renaturalize the city through green facades, green roofs, and rooftop gardens; make the soil permeable so that rainwater can feed all the new vegetation and prevent possible flooding, thanks to the combination of shrub and herbaceous layers; and generate clean energy.
The action of these Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems (SUDS), which also improve thermal comfort in the urban context and mitigate the “heat island” effect, is complemented by two other instruments:
- The implementation of active biofilters, which remove organic and inorganic pollutants from water and air.
- A system that monitors impacts, mainly related to air quality.
With all of them, improving spaces through these local interventions will benefit residents. The initiative has a budget of around €700,000 and will begin with an initial project at the intersection of Wsell de Guimbarda and Pintor Balaca streets. This is where a small square is planned to be created, which will serve both as a traffic calming measure and as a new space for neighborhood use.
The intervention seeks to reduce noise and pollution and improve safety, while maintaining access to homes and reorganizing parking to preserve a similar number of spaces, according to information provided by the city council.
This SuperGREENBlocks model will be tested simultaneously in the cities of Reggio Calabria, Italy, and Szombathely, Hungary. In this way, the principles of the LIFE Program, aligned with the European Green Deal and the goal of climate neutrality by 2050, will be introduced at the local level.
