Jerez is making progress in preparing its bid for European Capital of Culture in 2031. This process includes, among its priority lines of action, the restoration of heritage to enhance its value and its conversion into new cultural infrastructure for public use and serving the candidacy’s agenda. This includes the restoration of the Riquelme Palace, which, located in the Plaza del Museo Arqueológico, and after the completion of its first phase, is now a new cultural space for the city.
The rehabilitation of the Riquelme Palace is part of the roadmap for the restoration of the city’s historical heritage for cultural purposes. Following the completion of this first phase of intervention, the project now faces the next two phases, with the aim of first addressing the interior courtyard and finally rehabilitating the interior historic building reserved for the original residence.
This intervention is part of an ambitious Integrated Action Plan (IAP) which, under the general heading of “culture as a driver of change,” has been conceived as a cross-cutting strategy to guide major investment and infrastructure projects for the coming years within the framework of the objectives of the 2031 European Capital of Culture bid.
Developed through citizen participation and listening, and as a result of the lines of action in the city’s 2030 Urban Agenda document, the IAP includes a total of 13 initiatives with a total budget of over €20 million. These initiatives include actions both in the city center and in the neighborhoods based on mature projects in the areas of digital transformation and revitalization, sustainability and energy efficiency, social transformation, and heritage and culture.
Specifically, more than €8 million will be invested in various rehabilitation and restoration projects for city spaces and buildings to house various cultural initiatives: relocation of the municipal archive to the former Diez winery. Merit and its conversion into a documentary research center or the completion of the rehabilitation of the Riquelme Palace (16th century), among other initiatives.
In the opinion of the Mayor of Jerez, María José García-Pelayo, “a city that does not preserve its heritage loses its roots and doesn’t know where it’s going, because we must preserve the essence of where we come from and remember it.” Therefore, this initiative is in line with the Jerez City Council’s strategic plan “to recover the soul of its Historic Center, because recovering the Historic Center also means recovering life and heritage, and to do so, we must provide the center with a dignified appearance and adequate services.” She also noted that “the rooms will be equipped with content so that residents can enjoy this facility. We all share in these efforts and the joy of being able to enjoy it. From there, we will work on the content with the help of neighborhood associations and the cultural sector.”
The rehabilitation and restoration of the Riquelme Palace is being carried out in parallel with the improvement works on the Market Square, which have been extended until early 2026, by Trafisa. “A project designed in its final model by the Historic Center Committee, so the intervention in Riquelme is not a stand-alone project but rather part of a larger project. Both projects began practically in parallel, and Phase I of the Palace will be open to visitors. The access area will be adapted so that it can be enjoyed by the public starting in September.”
This first phase has been financed by the Provincial Council with just over 700,000 euros. The second phase, which includes the gallery connecting the courtyards, “would require an investment of 1.5 million euros, which we intend to address with the 2 percent cultural contribution we have submitted to the Ministry of Culture. We hope to receive positive news at the end, which would be a favorable resolution.” As for the third and final phase, it will allow for the restoration of the domestic courtyards.
The Mayor of Jerez, María José García-Pelayo, accompanied by the Delegates for the Presidency, Urban Planning, and Culture, Agustín Muñoz, Belén de la Cuadra, and Francisco Zurita, respectively, presided today over the presentation of this first phase of the renovation of the Riquelme Palace, where progress was made on the subsequent phases of the project.