Alex Atanasov: "El Pla is the authentic Mallorca; it still preserves the culture, the landscape, and the traditional way of life."

SinedThe son of foreign parents, Alex Atanasov (Sineu, 2000) grew up and was raised in the Pla (Pla) region. "My whole life is rooted in Sineu." In 2012, he started secondary school and later continued his university studies in Barcelona. Today, he is an architect, with a career that combines experience in law firms and collaboration on various architectural projects.

You studied architecture. Did you know what career or path you wanted to pursue when you started high school?

— Yes, the truth is that I knew I wanted to study architecture from the very beginning. I was still very young and, obviously, didn't know exactly what being an architect meant or what the career would be like, but I was already passionate about drawing in a more technical way: details, facades, perspectives of homes... Over time, this interest solidified, and when it came time to choose a career, the decision came down to me. And now, when you look back and think that what you wanted to be as a young man, you've finally achieved, the personal satisfaction is so great and so rewarding that it justifies all the effort and the journey you've taken up to this point.

Your final degree project was about the historical and urban development of Sineu. What conclusions did you draw?

— I'd been clear for a long time that I wanted to dedicate my final degree project to Sineu. After all, it's the town where I grew up, where I went to school, where I made friends, and where I developed as a person. When I finished my architecture studies, it seemed almost a moral obligation, but also a very personal desire, to give back to Sineu everything it has given me. The research showed that Sineu's evolution cannot be understood solely from an urban planning perspective, but requires a historical and heritage perspective. Despite losing its status as the royal capital, the town maintained a central role in the Pla de Mallorca thanks to the weekly market and its status as a service hub. This fact explains the continuity of a compact urban fabric, in which representative spaces such as the palace/monastery, the church, and the hospital coexist with a network of streets and squares linked to commercial and social activity.

— The conclusions point in two directions: on the one hand, that Sineu has managed to adapt to economic and social changes without losing its identity, maintaining the medieval layout while incorporating new constructive and functional layers; and on the other, that architecture becomes a tool for interpreting the traditions and cultures that have endured over the centuries. Heritage is not a static image, but a living organism that transforms and updates itself. Understanding this evolution allows us to design interventions that are more respectful and consistent with the character of the town, while inviting us to recognize architecture as a vehicle for collective memory and the future.

Do you think the towns of El Pla, in general, have retained their architectural style?

— Yes, generally speaking, they have retained their architectural style. Most towns in the Pla have regulations and restrictions that protect the characteristic elements of old towns, such as the use of stone, colors, and the proportions of openings. Thanks to this, despite the changes, the historic centers have maintained a coherent and distinctive image. In terms of growth, the pattern is quite clear: they all begin with the old town, with narrow streets and the square as the nerve center, and have subsequently expanded with new neighborhoods to address the housing shortage and with industrial estates or service areas linked to economic growth. In short, we see a process of adaptation: the historic centers maintain their identity and style, while the new areas respond to current needs.

How do you see the situation for young people in the Plan? For example, in housing.

— I'm an architect, and the issue of housing, both for the sector and for me personally, is a very complex and delicate matter. Often, voices raised by uninformed people only generate controversy, and at the same time, there are aspects that go unnoticed, even among those "supposed to know." Too often, headlines or quick fixes are thrown around that, in reality, make no sense. And this is where I think we must be very careful: it's better not to simplify or pretend you have the magic bullet. The issue of housing must be addressed with rigor, time, and depth, because it's an issue that directly affects people's lives and can't be resolved with easy rhetoric. Appropriately, if we talk about the situation of young people in the Plan, the first thing we must say is that there isn't enough housing, and this is a very serious problem that can't be resolved quickly: to ensure there's enough for everyone, time, planning, and strategy are needed, and it's clear that the new generation of architects will face this challenge. Rents are a real nonsense: we have normalized the idea that a family has to spend practically an entire salary on them. And self-promotion, which historically was a means of accessing decent housing, is now almost impossible. The housing problem is not only that not enough is being built or that costs are high, but that many of the existing plots are in the hands of speculators or have exorbitant prices that make building affordable housing unviable. Without regulating this market and without bold policies that free up land or limit speculation, it is impossible to provide real solutions. Furthermore, this means that young people in the towns of the Pla (Pla) cannot settle down in their places of origin. Empty plots remain immobile, and the only thing that increases are prices. This situation condemns the future of historic centers and further fuels inequality. Added to this is the fact that social housing is scarce and poorly distributed, and that new models of coexistence such as coliving are still residual. In the Pla de Mallorca, speaking of coliving, cooperatives, or intergenerational housing still sounds almost exotic, as if it were an idea imported from the big cities. But in reality, they are models that could fit perfectly into the fabric of our towns. Because if we have anything in the Plan, it's compact towns, with closed houses and a wasted housing stock that could be converted into shared, flexible, and more affordable solutions. This would be a change of scale that could address a problem: going from seeing the coliving as an urban fashion to understanding it as a tool to save the future of the towns of Pla and to guarantee that there is decent, diverse and socially just housing.

What do you think of the social and cultural life in the towns of Pla de Mallorca?

— Social and cultural life in the towns of the Pla de Mallorca is a key element that gives them identity and cohesion. Festivals, traditions, and popular events are not just specific moments, but meeting points that mark the calendar and reinforce the sense of community. Fairs, weekly markets, patron saint festivals, artistic activities, and the offerings of local associations form a vibrant fabric that has managed to sustain itself throughout generations. In the case of Sineu, it's easy to see how these traditions have been one of the town's historical pillars. The celebrations have spanned centuries and are still alive today, becoming an essential element of collective identity. This continuity speaks not only to a cultural desire to preserve its roots, but also to the ability to reinvent itself and adapt to each historical moment. From an architectural perspective, all this cultural heritage has had a direct impact on the way public spaces have been conceived and transformed. The squares, streets, and meeting spaces have evolved in line with these collective practices, because ultimately, they are the settings where community life unfolds. Architecture and urban planning, in a subtle but constant way, have responded to these needs: from the configuration of main squares as nerve centers to the creation of spaces adapted for fairs and markets, and even the way urban routes are prepared for processions or popular festivals. All of this makes it clear that social and cultural life is not an added element to the towns of the Pla, but a driving force that has conditioned and shaped both the identity of its people and the physical space where this identity develops.

Too often, when talking about the Pla, people talk about the authentic Mallorca as opposed to the coast. Do you understand this to be the case, or is there no longer a distinction, in terms of tourism, between the coast and the interior?

— It's clear that Mallorca thrives on tourism, and that it's one of the island's main sources of income. However, there are also clear limits, especially when it comes to preserving identity and quality of life. The Pla del Pla is often referred to as the authentic Mallorca, as opposed to the more crowded coast. The architecture and the landscape show us why: in the Pla del ... Therefore, there is still a difference between the coast and the interior, but rather than thinking in terms of contrasts, the challenge is to manage balance: maintaining the identity of these Pla de Mallorca towns and, at the same time, accommodating new economic and social activities. This is where architecture becomes a key tool for reconciling tourism and heritage. Authentic Mallorca is not so much a question of contrasting coast and interior, but rather of preserving what defines us: the culture, the landscape, and the way of life. The Plan is a good example, because it has managed to maintain roots that coexist with new challenges. The key is to understand that authenticity lies not only in the memory of the past, but in the ability to evolve traditions and spaces without losing their essence.