Covid-19 will delay Sagrada Família’s completition one or two years

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Since March 12th Sagrada Família is temporarily closed to the public to avoid possible contagion from the Covid-19. Construction works also came to a standstill that day and will be stopped, at least, until the beginning of 2021. In order to resume them, it will first be necessary to start receiving visitors to the temple again and reactivate the income.

What will this mean for its immediate future, and will the date of completion of the work, scheduled for 2026, be met?

Nobody knows how it will affect the calendar yet, but the alteration is already taken for granted and the large team of architects and constructors are reprogramming the operations of this great project. 2027 looks a more likely year to end the works, and some experts say that the new completion date would be 2028.

The return to normalcy at the church will be gradual and if we consider that the first stone was laid on March 19th 1882, one year more or less may be not that critical. this is the conclusion of the survey we have done through social networks and emailing. 74% of respondents are not worried for the delay and 68% wouldn’t mind to have to wait until 2028 to see completed, but big numbers hide another reality.

In the meantime you can do a virtual visit to Sagrada Família and other building from Antoni Gaudí by clicking here.

Some elders, afraid that this delay won’t allow them to to see the Basilique’s exterior finished before they pass away are planning to give money in order to have construction speed, in the hope that they can accomplish one of their life dreams, seeing Sagrada Família finished with their own eyes. Finishing it in 2026, 2027 or 2028 may seem trivial, but for the elder who dream of seeing it finished, it is an important topic.

Constructions in the recent years had become hectic in an accelerated and uninterrupted manner and some workers have commented us that there was too much preassure to keep track to the 2026 end-date. Now that 2027 looks more likely, some of the workers can arrange better their lifestyle.

The slowdown in activity has affected the two main workshops of the Sagrada Familia, one in Galera and the other one in Les Borges Blanques, two Catalan villages.How are the construction works financed?

Works in the basilique are entirely paid with ticket fees paid by visitors, and in recent years these have not stopped growing. In 2019, the church received more than four million people.

The Sagrada Família had more than 100 million in revenues in 2019, of which more than 55 were directly spend in construction.  In 2018 the basilica had a turnover of 80 million euros, of which 50 million were allocated to the construction of the church.

The place is currently closed and it is not known when the first visitors will be received. Once it opens it will probably reduce its capacity (be at a for the social distancing and for the expected reduction of tourism) the revenues will for sure be reduced, and the rythm of construction will be slower.

International tourism accounts for the majority of visitors to La Sagrada Família and there is so much uncertainty on the future of tourism that we will have to see how the situation evolves, before guessing the date.

It is not known when the first visitors will be received. They plan to open by reducing the schedule from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., when until now it was extended to 7 p.m. They may also limit the total number of daily visitors to 1,000 (before the health crisis it was 10,000).

Given the difficult times that will probably come for some people in the city, some say that Sagrada Família revenues should be spent to help poor people instead.

Covid-19 will probably delay Sagrada Família’s completition one or two years – and some elders are worried.

Sagrada Família is a landmark of its time to which Antoni Gaudí dedicated more than 40 years of his life to build the church, the last 14 only working on it. It remains unfinished 138 years after construction first started.

Health comes first, so we prefer that both works and visits only re-start when it is safe again. So, #keepsafe and #stayathome

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