After more than twenty years and numerous failed projects, the Fundación Unicaja has received a 75-year lease for the site of the former Astoria-Victoria cinemas in Málaga's Plaza de la Merced. The foundation will develop a cultural project and its headquarters in the city on this central plot, which has been fallow since the cinema building was demolished.
The plot was acquired by the Málaga City Council in 2004 for 21 million euros. Over the years, various municipal plans failed to materialize, including a proposal by Mayor Francisco de la Torre for a multidisciplinary center focused on dance, theater, and music.
This will be the ninth project to be undertaken on these grounds. Previously, an preliminary design was commissioned from the firm Barozzi Veiga, who had to be compensated for their work. The plot, acquired alongside private developer Promociones Baensa, saw ideas such as luxury housing, an expansion of the Picasso Birthplace Museum, a 'Museum of Museums', representations of the Pompidou and the Russian Museum, a five-star hotel, Antonio Banderas's 'Ecos Urbanos' project, the 'Zoco Cultural', and archaeological findings.
The Fundación Unicaja now takes on the challenge of bringing this space to life, promising a building that will be a landmark for the city and the province.
