AZCA, an acronym for ''Asociación Mixta de Compensación de la Manzana A de la Zona Comercial de la Avenida del Generalísimo'' ("Mixed Association for Compensation of the A Block of the Commercial Area of the Avenue of the Generalisimo", now called the Avenue of

Paseo de la Castellana Paseo de la Castellana, commonly known as La Castellana, is a major thoroughfare in Madrid, Spain. Cutting across the city from south to north, it has been described as the "true structuring axis" of the city. History and description The street ...

), is a

financial district A financial district is usually a central area in a city where financial services firms such as banks, insurance companies, and other related finance corporations have their headquarters offices. In major cities, financial districts often host ...

Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...

, Spain. The business district, which is located on the northern edge of the city centre, serves as one of the two main financial districts of the Madrid metropolitan area. AZCA

History

It is located between the streets Raimundo Fernández Villaverde, Orense, General Perón and Paseo de la Castellana. Its original conception (and its name) dates back to the ''Plan General de Ordenación Urbana de Madrid'' ( PGOU), approved in 1964. The purpose of this plan was to create a huge block of modern office buildings with metro and railway connections in the expansion area of northern Madrid, just in front of Real Madrid stadium (currently named the

Santiago Bernabéu Stadium Santiago Bernabéu Stadium (, ) is a retractable roof association football, football stadium in Madrid, Spain. With a seating capacity of around 83,000 following its extensive renovation completed in late 2024, the stadium has the second-largest ...

) and beside the new government complex of Nuevos Ministerios. A botanical garden, a library and an opera house were also included in the plans, but these were never built. The construction began in the 1970s after many delays. Nowadays some of the tallest and most beautiful modern Madrid skyscrapers are placed here. The most important are: * Torre Picasso (157 m) * Torre Europa (121 m) * Banco de Bilbao Tower (107 m) * Torre Titania (104 m) * Torre Mahou (100 m) In February 2005, Windsor Tower (106 m) was destroyed by a fire, and it was later replaced by Torre Titania. During the weekend nights, the underground levels attract a Latino audience to the discos but they also have a reputation for gang violence.
Que la violencia no vuelva a Azca
', '' El Mundo'', 7 February 2006. In 2007, a new skyscraper area was built farther north along

. The carless surfaces inside the block have attracted young supporters of

urban culture Urban culture is the culture of towns and cities. The defining theme is the presence of a large population in a limited space that follows social norms. This makes it possible for many subcultures close to each other, exposed to social influence ...

. Since the 1980s, break dancers,

rappers Rapping (also rhyming, flowing, spitting, emceeing, or MCing) is an artistic form of vocal delivery and emotive expression that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and ommonlystreet vernacular". It is usually performed over a backing b ...

skateboard A skateboard is a type of sports equipment used for skateboarding. It is usually made of a specially designed 7–8-ply maple plywood deck and has polyurethane wheels attached to the underside by a pair of skateboarding trucks. The skateboard ...

ers,

graffiti Graffiti (singular ''graffiti'', or ''graffito'' only in graffiti archeology) is writing or drawings made on a wall or other surface, usually without permission and within public view. Graffiti ranges from simple written "monikers" to elabor ...

writers and

parkour Parkour () is an athletic Training#Physical training, training discipline or sport in which practitioners (called ''traceurs'') attempt to get from one point to another in the fastest and most efficient way possible, without assisting equipment ...

traceurs from other Madrid neighborhoods have been gathering there.

References

External links

Photos of AZCA

Satellite AZCA view from Google Earth
*

'. A description. {{DEFAULTSORT:Azca Buildings and structures in Tetuán District, Madrid AZCA, Madrid Skyscraper office buildings in Madrid Cuatro Caminos neighborhood, Madrid

History

See also

References

External links