In a meeting held this morning, Mayor Jesús Lupiáñez (PP) welcomed representatives of the Co-Place project, an initiative supported by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and IPA (Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance) funds. The main objective is to establish a network of sociocultural spaces within the municipality, ranging from libraries to youth centers and networking areas.

This initial contact with the delegation from Brindisi, a city in southern Italy where the project has already been implemented, is part of Vélez-Málaga's development strategy, which prioritizes the revitalization of its Historic Center. The visit was facilitated through the CIEDES Foundation (Center for Strategic Research and Economic and Social Development), a non-profit organization of which Vélez-Málaga is a partner.

The Vélez mayor highlighted the importance of a project based on sustainable development, economy, and culture, positively assessing the creation of an action plan that fosters synergies and dialogue for the city's future progress. The experience of Brindisi, where a network of sociocultural spaces has been implemented under the brand «Case di Quartiere», serves as a model for Vélez-Málaga.

The Communications Director of the Ciedes Foundation, Fátima Salmón Negri, emphasized that these projects represent a valuable opportunity for knowledge exchange, seeking to integrate citizens into the recovery of Historic Centers and maintain them as hubs of coexistence and economic, social, and cultural activity.

In Vélez-Málaga, the proposal is to establish a common narrative thread connecting various sociocultural spaces in the Historic Center. Activities are planned for emblematic locations such as the Contemporary Art Center (CAC), El Pósito, the Historic Center office, the Exile Center, the San Francisco Market, and the Urban building. The visitors, accompanied by councilor Juan Fernández Olmo (PP), toured these key sites to assess their potential integration into the Co-Place network.