Getafe transforms the old church of Perales into an environmental centre

The City Council of Getafe has incorporated into Europan 19 the future Environmental and Archaeological Interpretation Centre, which will occupy the old church of Saints Justo and Pastor, in Perales del Río. The official proposal will be presented in Barcelona on November 5, 6, and 7, and the final submission will be in December 2026.

The City Council of Getafe has taken another step in the creation of the Environmental and Archaeological Interpretation Centre, which will be installed in the old church of Saints Justo and Pastor, in the neighbourhood of Perales del Río. The project has been incorporated into Europan 19, a European competition for architecture, urbanism, and landscape aimed at young talent and focused on sustainability, biodiversity care, and other ways of relating to the territory.

The councillor for Action in Neighbourhoods, Ana González, has pointed out that the municipal team is working on a demand from the neighbourhood movement of Getafe and, in particular, from the residents of Perales.

We are very pleased to continue advancing in a historic demand of the neighbourhood movement of Getafe, and particularly of the residents of Perales, because recovering, caring for, and protecting our territory and its environmental and archaeological wealth is a priority.

The environment where the centre will be located concentrates significant natural and archaeological heritage. Due to its location, it will be the main entrance to the renaturalisation project Getafe Río. The area includes the Lagunas de Horna, the Manzanares Canal, several livestock paths, and birdwatching points. In the archaeological realm, it houses sites ranging from the Paleolithic and the Bronze Age to Roman and Visigothic times, including the Roman villa of La Torrecilla, declared a Cultural Heritage Asset, and the Visigothic necropolis of El Jardinillo.

The City Council has already presented the summary sheet of the project, which incorporates the results of the participatory process ‘Diseñatón’, in which residents collaborated in the design of the future centre. The official proposal will be unveiled at the Entresesiones Forum in Barcelona on November 5, 6, and 7. The final submission of the competition will be in December 2026, when participants will have all the information. Once the winners are known, the architects will begin their work.