Ibiza's real estate, construction and architectural sectors are joining the growing call for residents to receive priority when the homes planned for Ca n’Escandell are allocated.

The reaction follows comments by Spain's Housing Minister Isabel Rodríguez, who said residents of Ibiza would not receive preferential treatment when applying for the state-led homes and that legally resident applicants from anywhere in Spain could seek them.

Representatives of the architecture, property and construction sectors in Ibiza have questioned that approach, arguing that a major public housing development on the island should first respond to the needs of people already living and working there.

532 homes planned at Ca n’Escandell

Ca n’Escandell is one of the largest public housing developments planned in Ibiza.

The wider residential project provides for 532 homes, with the state housing entity Casa 47 responsible for the development of a substantial part of the scheme.

Casa 47 has previously confirmed that approximately 197 homes will form the first building project on one of the site's residential plots, while the wider development is intended to reach 532 affordable homes.

The Spanish Government previously said that 362 of the 532 homes would be built and managed directly by Casa 47, with an overall investment of around €100 million.

The minister's position triggered the debate

During her September 17 visit to the Ca n’Escandell site, Isabel Rodríguez said the future homes would not be reserved in advance for people already living in Ibiza.

Instead, according to her explanation, legally resident people anywhere in Spain would be able to apply.

Successful applicants would then be required to register as residents in Ibiza after obtaining the rental contract.

Rodríguez defended the approach by pointing to the island's need for essential professionals, including doctors, who may move to Ibiza to work and require housing.

Architecture sector questions the approach

Lluís Oliva, president of the Ibiza and Formentera branch of the Official College of Architects of the Balearic Islands, said he was concerned by the minister's position.

Oliva argued that Ibiza and Formentera face a longstanding housing shortage and that insufficient affordable housing is being built for people already living on the islands.

He said he found it difficult to understand why residents would not receive preference in a highly anticipated public development while the island is simultaneously struggling to keep people housed.

Real estate sector also backs priority

Zenón Helguera, president of the Pimeef association representing real estate agencies in the Pitiusas, also said residents should have priority.

His argument is that Ibiza should not continue adding population through housing developments while people who are already living on the island are leaving because they cannot find affordable accommodation.

Helguera also considered a period of residence or registration to be an appropriate criterion for access to public housing.

Builders question the announcement

Consuelo Antúnez, president of the Pimeef construction association in the Pitiusas, also expressed surprise at the minister's comments.

She pointed to the broader effort underway in Ibiza to increase the supply of housing for residents.

Antúnez supports the inclusion of a residence requirement for access to protected housing, although she did not say whether that period should be five or 10 years.

The 10-year proposal

The demand for a 10-year residence period did not originate with the three professional sectors.

It was proposed by Ibiza mayor Rafa Triguero and subsequently taken to the Consell d’Alcaldes, where the island's institutions called for residents with 10 or more years of residence to receive preference for the Ca n’Escandell homes.

The proposal is intended to give priority to people who have established their lives on the island while still allowing the authorities to define the precise access rules.

Triguero has said the intention is not to exclude people from elsewhere in Spain but to ensure that a public development of this scale first addresses Ibiza's own residential emergency.

Ten years is not the current legal minimum

There is an important distinction between that proposal and the current Balearic legislation.

Article 70.8 of the Balearic Housing Law establishes a minimum five-year residence requirement in the Balearic Islands for access to protected housing.

For public developments, the law also states that applicants who meet that residence period in the municipality where the home is located have preference.

The 10-year period being requested in Ibiza is therefore an additional proposed criterion and should not be described as the existing legal requirement.

The law also contains exceptions

The same provision includes exceptions to the minimum residence period.

Among those identified by the law are public employees displaced to cover needs in areas including healthcare, education, state security forces and justice.

That provision is relevant to the debate because the Ministry has specifically cited the need to make housing available to professionals who may move to Ibiza to work.

The central legal question

The disagreement is therefore not simply about whether Ibiza residents should have access to the homes.

The different administrations are discussing which rules should govern the allocation of this particular state-led development and how regional housing requirements interact with the framework used by Casa 47.

The Balearic Government has argued that Article 70.8 requires a five-year residence condition and municipal preference for protected public housing.

The Ministry, meanwhile, has publicly described a system under which legally resident applicants anywhere in Spain can apply, with residence in Ibiza becoming mandatory after the rental contract is obtained.

The Govern has taken a firm position

Balearic Government spokesman Antoni Costa said on September 18 that the Ca n’Escandell homes would be for people with at least five years of residence in Ibiza.

President Marga Prohens went further in Parliament on September 22, saying the homes would be for residents of Ibiza.

Those statements reflect the regional government's interpretation and political position. The definitive allocation rules for the state project have not yet been published in full.

The five-year and 10-year proposals are different

The distinction is important because several different numbers are now being discussed.

Five years is the residence period specified in Article 70.8 of the Balearic Housing Law.

Ten years is the longer period proposed by Ibiza's mayor and backed by the Consell d’Alcaldes as a way of giving stronger priority to people with longstanding ties to the island.

Neither figure should be presented as if both are already part of the final Ca n’Escandell allocation rules.

Architects propose broader criteria

Oliva has also suggested that length of residence should not necessarily be the only factor considered.

He said a residence period could be treated as a merit rather than an exclusionary condition and suggested that other circumstances, such as whether applicants have children, could also be taken into account.

This reflects a wider debate over how public housing should balance local residence with household circumstances and the needs of essential workers.

The state argues Ibiza needs new workers too

The Ministry's position is based partly on the argument that Ibiza needs to attract professionals who do not yet live on the island.

Rodríguez specifically referred to doctors and other workers who may arrive from elsewhere and need somewhere to live.

The argument is that a housing system restricted only to existing residents could make it harder for Ibiza to attract workers needed for essential services.

That is a policy position advanced by the Ministry, rather than an independently established conclusion about the only workable allocation model.

Local authorities say the housing shortage is already severe

Ibiza's institutions have stressed that the island already has a large pool of people seeking public housing.

Mayor Rafa Triguero told the minister that more than 2,000 applications for public housing in Ibiza city were registered with IBAVI.

That figure has been cited by local authorities in arguing that the new Ca n’Escandell homes should primarily address the needs of residents who are already waiting for housing.

The 10-year idea has also faced criticism

Not everyone involved in the debate supports a 10-year residence requirement.

Raquel Guasch, the state government's director in Ibiza, has argued that demanding such a long registration period would be unfair because Ibiza's public and private sectors depend on workers who move to the island from elsewhere.

Her argument is that the island needs housing not only for long-term residents but also for people who arrive to provide essential services and work in the local economy.

Professional groups want a balance

The position emerging from the architectural, real estate and construction sectors is somewhat more nuanced than simply calling for a closed allocation system.

Oliva, for example, acknowledged that 10 years initially seemed like a long period but still argued that some form of residence criterion should be established.

Helguera backed a residence period, while Antúnez supported the concept without committing to either five or 10 years.

Their comments show support for local priority, but not necessarily a single agreed formula for how the allocation system should operate.

The development is still moving ahead

The disagreement over allocation comes as the Ca n’Escandell project itself continues through its development stages.

Casa 47 awarded the contract for the architectural project and construction direction for the 197-home parcel to Stefano Boeri Architetti in June 2026.

The broader development is intended to include 532 homes along with public spaces and other facilities.

The Spanish Government has previously said it expects the wider urbanisation works to be completed during the first quarter of 2027, although that timetable concerns the project's development schedule rather than the date on which residents will receive keys.

The final allocation rules are still important

The debate is now moving towards the point at which the definitive access and allocation conditions will become crucial.

Questions include how residency will be defined, how the five-year provision in Balearic legislation will interact with the state project's rules, how essential workers will be treated and whether any additional local-priority criteria will be included.

Until those rules are formally published, it is too early to say exactly who will be eligible or how applications will be ranked.

What is clear today

There is broad agreement across the different sides of the debate on one point: Ibiza needs substantially more affordable housing.

The disagreement concerns who should receive priority when those homes become available.

The Ministry has said applicants from anywhere in Spain who are legally resident can apply, with registration in Ibiza required after obtaining a contract.

The Balearic Government has cited a five-year regional residence requirement for protected housing and municipal preference in public developments.

Ibiza's mayor and the island's mayors have called for an even stronger local priority based on 10 years of residence, while the architecture, property and construction sectors have backed the principle of giving residents preference without agreeing on exactly how many years should be required.

A bigger question for Ibiza

Ca n’Escandell has become more than a housing development.

It is now at the centre of a wider discussion about how Ibiza addresses its housing shortage while continuing to attract the workers needed by its public services, businesses and economy.

The final rules for the 532 homes will determine how that balance is put into practice.

For now, the debate continues between state and regional interpretations, local requests for greater priority and the need to ensure that the homes ultimately fulfil their stated purpose of providing genuinely affordable accommodation in Ibiza.