The Governing Board has approved the call for an ideas competition to define the future Botanical Garden, with locations at the Cases del Retiro and the Parc de les Vies. The guidelines allow for new buildings if their necessity is justified.
The Palma City Council has taken the first step towards making the Botanical Garden a reality, a project that will combine science, education, and leisure in two locations in the city. The Governing Board approved on Wednesday the call for an ideas competition that will define the final design of this infrastructure, which will be located at the Cases del Retiro, within the Bellver forest, and at the Parc de les Vies.
The mayor, Jaime Martínez, explained that the competition guidelines allow teams to propose new constructions alongside the existing buildings of the old possession, as long as their necessity for the functioning of the centre is justified. "New constructions will be allowed as long as they comply with the regulations, which are very restrictive because we are talking about rustic land and a system of free spaces," he pointed out.
Martínez insisted that the municipal intention is for the current constructions to be sufficient and that any additions respect the environmental values of Bellver. Possible actions must be compatible with the forest and respond to needs directly related to botanical, scientific, or service uses. As an example, he mentioned some technical installation or one linked to a cistern, but emphasized that the goal is to preserve the ensemble "as it is" and to limit any new construction as much as possible.
The project must comply with the General Plan approved in 2023, which establishes very restrictive guidelines for the area. The Botanical Garden is not conceived as a conventional park or a closed facility, but as "a scientific, environmental, cultural, and educational infrastructure" aimed at conserving Mediterranean flora, disseminating its values, and bringing nature closer to citizens.
The Cases del Retiro site will occupy about 49,000 square meters in a part of Bellver that has been degraded and abandoned for years. Cort has already tendered an investment of two million euros from the sustainable tourism tax to rehabilitate the old possession and convert it into an interpretation centre for the Mediterranean pine forest.
This space will include exhibition areas dedicated to flora and the historical memory of the property, educational and scientific areas, horticultural production, and services for visitors. The old terraces will regain some of the agricultural character they had in the past through new botanical collections.
This action is supplemented by another three million euros to improve access to Bellver Castle, restore paths, and carry out forest regeneration work. In total, Cort already has investments of nearly five million euros underway in this area.
The second site will be located in the Parc de les Vies, on land made available through an agreement with the Consell de Mallorca. This space will act as the urban gateway to the Botanical Garden, connecting the project with the urban fabric of Palma.
The Botanical Garden will be integrated into the Metropolitan Forest of Palma, a large green infrastructure that includes the Son Quint estate, the future velodrome of El Tirador, and the green area that will be created on the grounds of the old Lluís Sitjar. This metropolitan forest aims to create a green ring around the city, improving ecological connectivity and providing new leisure spaces for citizens.
The ideas competition seeks to gather proposals that define the image and functionality of the Botanical Garden. Interested teams must submit their projects in the coming months, and the winner will be responsible for drafting the executive project. The City Council hopes that construction can begin within two years, once all administrative procedures have been completed.
For the residents of Palma, this project will mean the recovery of a degraded space in Bellver and the creation of a new cultural and scientific facility. The Botanical Garden will not only be a place for the conservation of Mediterranean flora but also a meeting point for environmental education and sustainable leisure.
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