On 23 September 2026, 87-year-old Maricarmen was evicted from the Retiro flat where she had lived since 1955. Two days later, a blue plaque appeared at number 46 on Calle Sainz de Baranda.
The plaque records the eviction date and names Ricardo Alonso Fernández and Fernando Alonso Fuentes as responsible for the decision. It also cites Article 47 of the Constitución Española and links the building to the dispute involving Urbagestión.
The marker appeared on Monday, mounted at mid-height on the right side of the entrance. Independent reports name Urbagestión Desarrollo e Inversión SL as the property owner. BBC Mundo reported that the rent rose from approximately €500 to €2,650 after the property was acquired in 2018.
Its design is easy to recognise: the blue format closely resembles plaques used by the Ayuntamiento de Madrid to commemorate people and businesses, and to mark places tied to historical events.
A private entrance now carries an official-looking public message. The plaque is not from the city; it borrows the city's visual language.
Félix Sánchez, a Bluesky user, reported the plaque and photographed it, fearing municipal agents might remove it. Agents were seen taking pictures that morning.
No information identifies who ordered the removal or carried out the intervention. Two days after the eviction, Urbagestión offered to transfer the flat to Madrid’s city government so Maricarmen could return under an affordable-rent arrangement through the Reviva programme. El Confidencial and ARA reported that the city rejected the proposal, saying it did not meet the legal requirements, and offered mediation instead.
No person or organisation has claimed authorship. The plaque's origin remains unknown, though its wording openly assigns responsibility for the eviction.
Article 47 of the Constitución Española establishes the right to decent housing. By putting that legal reference on a residential doorway, the plaque connects Maricarmen's case with a principle usually discussed in legal and political settings.
Reuters reported that the eviction took place on 23 September 2026, as did BBC and Euronews. Maricarmen had lived in the Retiro flat for roughly 70 years. Euronews described the action as the fourth attempt to carry it out.
Reuters also cited Maricarmen's lawyer, who said the company and court officials refused to suspend the procedure despite humanitarian appeals and documents about the search for alternative accommodation.
Protesters gathered outside the building, then clashed with police. A BBC video report mentioned tear gas being used against demonstrators.
The confrontation took the case beyond the eviction itself. Reuters and BBC placed it within Spain's housing crisis, citing rising rents and a shortage of affordable homes, while noting the pressure on older tenants with fixed incomes.
RTVE reported that Urbagestión rejected the description of the company as a "fondo buitre". The broadcaster also recalled that the former owners sold the building at 46 Calle Alcalde Sainz de Baranda to a major Spanish development group in 2018.
The dispute then moved through the courts and reached Spain's Supreme Court.
An earlier report described the owners' position and the dispute over the home. The new plaque adds another visible stage to a conflict that has drawn attention beyond the building itself.
The earlier report also recorded the campaign around Maricarmen's home.
Maricarmen lived in the same house from 1955 until her eviction. A plaque appeared at the entrance, and municipal agents photographed it. Its author remains unknown.
The city has not officially recognised the marker. Someone borrowed the city's plaque style to turn a doorway into a record of the dispute.
