| Castelldefels | |||
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| — Municipality — | |||
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Castelldefels
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| Coordinates: | |||
| Country | Spain | ||
| Autonomous community | Catalonia | ||
| Province | Barcelona | ||
| Comarca | Baix Llobregat | ||
| Government | |||
| • Mayor | Manuel Reyes (PPC) | ||
| Area | |||
| • Total | 12.9 km2 (5 sq mi) | ||
| Elevation | 3 m (10 ft) | ||
| Population (2009) | |||
| • Total | 62,080 | ||
| • Density | 4,812.4/km2 (12,464.1/sq mi) | ||
| Demonym | Catalan: castelldefelenc, castelldefelenca. Spanish: castelldefelense, castelldefelensa. | ||
| Time zone | CET (UTC+1) | ||
| • Summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) | ||
| Postal code | 08860 | ||
| Official language(s) | |||
| Website | Official website | ||
Castelldefels (Catalan pronunciation: [kəsˌteʎdəˈfɛɫs]) is a town in the Baix Llobregat comarca, in the province of Barcelona, in Catalonia, Spain and part of the Metropolitan Area of Barcelona. Its population is 63.151 (INE 2011).
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It is located about 20 km (12 mi) southwest of Barcelona, just to the north of the massís del Garraf and is the last town on the coast before the comarca of Garraf. The town is famous for its long beach (more than 5 km), for being the place of residence of many famous sportmen and for being the city which inspired the creation of the character "El Neng de Castefa" who used to appear on the late night show called "BFN" hosted by the showman and presenter Andreu Buenafuente. During the summer, many people from Barcelona and the countryside visit it. Nearby towns include Gavà, Viladecans, Sant Boi de Llobregat, Sitges and el Prat de Llobregat. Castelldefels borders the coast of the Mediterranean Sea between Sitges and Gavà.
The Olympic canal, called Canal Olímpic de Catalunya, built for the 1992 Summer Olympic Games of Barcelona is in the town.
Between 1979 and 2011, the town was governed by the Socialists' Party of Catalonia (PSC). The first democratic mayor after Constitution was Agustín Marina Pérez. In 2011, the conservative People's Party (PP) won a plurality of seats for the first time, and Manuel Reyes of the PP was elected mayor of the town.[1]
| 1979 | 1983 | 1987 | 1991 | 1995 | 1999 | 2003 | 2007 | 2011 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Socialists' Party of Catalonia (PSC) | 8 | 15 | 12 | 11 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 9 | 7 |
| Initiative for Catalonia Greens (IU) | 5† | 2 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 | ||
| United and Alternative Left (IU) | 1 | ||||||||
| Union of the Democratic Centre (UCD) | 4 | ||||||||
| Independents/Residents groups | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | ||||
| Convergence and Union (CiU) | 1 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| Republican Left of Catalonia (ERC) | 1 | 1 | 1 | ||||||
| People's Party (PP) | 2* | 1* | 3 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 8 | |
| Party of the Communists of Catalonia (PCC) | 1 | 1 | |||||||
| Democratic and Social Centre (CDS) | 1 | ||||||||
| Citizens – Party of the Citizenry (Cs) | 1 | ||||||||
| Total number of seats | 21 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 25 | 25 |
†results for the Unified Socialist Party of Catalonia
*results for the People's Alliance
Source:[2]
Castelldefels School of Technology provides higher education in aeronautics and telecommunications technology. The town is also the location of the British School of Barcelona. There are ten public primary school and three public secondary school.
Lionel Messi, football player; Alexis Sánchez, football player;Juan Antonio Flecha, cyclist; Lorenzo Quinn, sculptor; Calixto Bieito, theatre director.
Transport links include two stations (Castelldefels and Platja de Castelldefels) on RENFE line R2 from Sant Vicenç de Calders to Maçanet-Massanes via Barcelona, bus routes to Barcelona (L94, L95, L97), Barcelona Airport (L99) and Sant Boi de Llobregat (L96), as well as an urban bus route connecting the rest of the town (CF1), the C-32 motorway and the C-31 and C-245 dual carriageways. A second railway line is due to be constructed from Cornellà de Llobregat to Castelldefels.
On 23 June 2010, 12 young people were killed, and 14 injured, when they were hit by an express train as they crossed the tracks in the railway station at Platja de Castelldefels, while on their way to a summer solstice bonfire party.[3]
| 1900 | 1930 | 1950 | 1970 | 1986 | 2005 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 289 | 797 | 2039 | 13,219 | 27,932 | 56,718 |