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La Voz de Andalucía

Quarto Neighborhood in Seville to Preserve Valme Hermitage and Old Cortijo

The urban project by the Provincial Council of Seville in Bellavista ensures affordable housing while protecting historical and natural heritage.

Visual representation of the future Quarto neighborhood in Seville, integrating historical and natural elements.
IA

Visual representation of the future Quarto neighborhood in Seville, integrating historical and natural elements.

The Provincial Council of Seville has unveiled the urban plan for the future Quarto neighborhood in Bellavista, aiming to balance the provision of affordable housing with the protection of the Valme Hermitage, the Old Cortijo, and their natural surroundings.

The design proposed by the Provincial Council of Seville for the Quarto neighborhood, located in Bellavista, prioritizes the safeguarding of key heritage elements such as the Valme Hermitage and the Old Cortijo, whose tower dates back to the 13th century. This project guarantees the availability of affordable housing while preserving the spaces dedicated to the celebration of the Valme Pilgrimage, the existing pine forest, the ancient palm grove, and the historical context of the cortijo.
Among the new features, the creation of Valme Park is planned, an extensive green lung covering 70 hectares that will surround the Hermitage and maintain the current pine forest. This green space will encompass the Old Cortijo and extend to the Guadaíra River, connecting with a longitudinal park along the riverbank. The area will not only provide a suitable space for the annual Pilgrimage but will also offer a recreational area for citizens throughout the year.
The urban approach seeks to environmentally revalue the cortijo's land as the structural axis of the new neighborhood. The Provincial Council, through its public company Sevilla Activa, has modified the layout of the main north-south road, moving it up to 150 meters east of the Hermitage before it turns towards the rear of the Valme Hospital. This arc-shaped design aims to mitigate traffic impact, reduce circulation speed, and decrease CO₂ emissions, avoiding straight avenues that would be unsuitable for this environment.
The Valme Pilgrimage is recognized in the General Catalog of Andalusian Historical Heritage as an Activity of Ethnological Interest and declared a Cultural Interest Asset. The Hermitage of Cortijo de Cuarto is the destination of this pilgrimage that departs from Dos Hermanas every third Sunday of October for centuries.
The religious building, of medieval origin and Neo-Mudéjar style, features a single nave, a gabled wooden roof, and a small side sacristy. Above its entrance, a ajimez with horseshoe arches frames a tombstone that narrates how in 1248 King Fernando III the Saint invoked the Virgin with the plea "Váleme Señora" before the conquest of Seville. The original chapel was rebuilt in 1859 thanks to the patronage of the Dukes of Montpensier, with a project by architect Balbino Marrón that included a Rococo altarpiece from 1788. The central niche of the altarpiece annually hosts the Virgin of Valme for a few hours on the day of the Pilgrimage.
The adjacent Old Cortijo houses the oldest architectural element in the area: a fortified tower from the 13th century, which served as a defensive watchtower in medieval times. This heritage complex will be safeguarded by the new urban project.

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