With the participation of more than 200 members, we held their Ordinary General Assembly at the Ateneu Popular de 9 Barris

During the assembly we modified the statutes to improve management and approved new cooperative housing projects throughout the country

The meeting also served to commemorate twenty years of the cooperative's history, highlighting the successes achieved and presenting the new challenges and initiatives

Last Saturday, June 29, we celebrated theOrdinary General Assembly de Sostre Cívic at the Popular Athenaeum of 9 Barris. This is our most important annual corporate event, where the 1.550 members are invited to participate: users, expectants and working members. With a record participation of nearly 200 members, 130 of them in person and the rest online, the assembly has been a space that has allowed us to connect, share ideas and make important decisions for the future of our organization.

This year we changed the format of theAssembly, moving it to Saturday instead of Friday afternoon. This decision, more in line with the times of growth and consolidation we are experiencing as a cooperative, has been key to allowing greater participation including more activities during the day.

Tackling new challenges

Before the formal part of the assembly, we held two information sessions for members, where key issues for the development of new cooperative housing projects were discussed. On the one hand, we discussed the current situation of the ESAL Agreement with Barcelona City Council, dedicated to the promotion of social housing through the transfer of municipal lots to cooperatives and foundations. On the other hand, we discussed new financing methods for projects in the development phase.

The assembly began with the approval of the annual accounts, which present a positive result of 120.000 euros from a total budget of approximately 1,9 million euros. Contributions for membership fees have increased by 22%, thanks to the growth in the social base. Revenues have also increased by 40%, coming from the management of new projects and new forms of financing promoted by the assembly, such as the raising of voluntary capital, which in 2023 has reached 250.000 euros, contributed by 22 new collaborating partners.

Beyond the formal aspects, in the general assembly important steps were taken to improve the management of coexistence and strengthen the cooperative through the modification of the our statutes. New categories of partners have been created, adding the cohabiting partner category, and the possibility of subrogation of the right of use has been regulated, both between partners and due to death.

New projects underway

In addition to the internal aspects of the cooperative, the assembly also served to promote new projects. We continue to grow with initiatives ranging from small initiatives in rural environments, such as the project of 3 houses of Can Serreta at Cellera de Ter, up to large new construction buildings on municipal lots transferred to the cooperative: Pati del Gall-The Scaffolding, 24 homes in Vilafranca del Penedès; 25 homes in the neighborhood of Ball Game a Lleida; and 60 homes in Manresa. With the support of Next Generation grants, many councils have adopted the cooperative housing model in right of use as one of the instruments to increase the stock of social housing. With these new projects we consolidate the presence and dimension of Sostre Cívic all over the country Between 2024 and 2025 we are promoting 9 new constructions which will mean that by 2026 we will have 343 new homes in coexistence.

All these items on the agenda of the Assembly were approved by a large majority, demonstrating the strength and unity of our social base. The participation spaces open before the celebration of the Assembly have been very positively evaluated: the second partner meeting held in April, with sessions dedicated to presenting the main assembly debates, and theSpace Open, an electronic session convened a week before to be able to present and resolve doubts about the items on the agenda.

Celebration of 20 years

To finish, we celebrated twenty years of Sostre Cívic, highlighting the long journey to build an alternative model of access to housing in Catalonia. Sostre Cívic was born on June 5, 2004 as an association thanks to a group of people linked to theInfoEspai de Barcelona, inspired by the Scandinavian Andel model. Initially, the association was dedicated to dissemination and political advocacy, achieving the inclusion of the model of right of use in the Catalan housing law in 2007. subsequently, was established as a cooperative in 2010 to better manage cooperative housing projects, although in the first years only some projects were consolidated.

The first major project was Pomaret in 2012, and in 2015 the first agreement was signed with a town hall in Sant Cugat, to reform the old teachers' houses. In 2018, the project of Princesa49 was the first cooperative housing in right of use in Barcelona. Since then, Sostre Cívic has been growing with new projects every year. From rehabilitating buildings acquired by the right to counting as Mur (Hammer) i Ponent (Palafrugell) in 2020, until new construction with La Balma i Cirerers (Barcelona) between 2021 and 2022. 

Currently, the cooperative already has 12 projects with 175 homes in coexistence and hopes to manage a park of more than 650 homes among 25 projects in the next three years. This brings new challenges in the management of coexistence, building maintenance, social participation and sustainability. The Governing Council took advantage of the anniversary celebration to ask for everyone's involvement in facing these challenges with courage. We celebrate twenty years with a look to the future, presenting a new updated logo and renewing our commitment to social transformation, the right to housing and co-operatives.

To end the day of debate and cohesion, we enjoyed a community lunch and later visited the building of Cirerers. We appreciate the participation of all people, both in person and online, thus contributing to the success of ours General Assembly. With your support, we will continue to fight for a better future by promoting decent housing for all. It is thanks to the work and collective debate that the cooperative can advance to achieve our goals and transform social reality through the cooperative housing in right of use.