After nearly two decades of demands, residents of the Dehesa Vieja neighborhood in San Sebastián de los Reyes are seeing the construction of their health center progress, although the definitive opening date remains unknown. The Community of Madrid has revised the planned deadlines twice in less than three months, prompting the Platform for Public Health in the North Zone and the Sanse Residents' Association to call for a protest to demand that promises be kept.
The protest will take place at the intersection of Alejandro Casona and Juan Gris streets, in front of the building under construction. This location was chosen for its symbolic value, as it is where the future center is being built. The facility will span 3,450 square meters across three floors, featuring 26 consultation rooms, including family medicine, pediatrics, physiotherapy, dentistry, and social work, with an investment exceeding 6 million euros.
Resident distrust is fueled by the inconsistency in the deadlines announced by the Community of Madrid. In November 2025, the autumn of 2026 was set as the completion date. However, just two months later, in January 2026, President Isabel Díaz Ayuso, during a Governing Council meeting held at the San Sebastián de los Reyes City Hall, postponed the completion of the works to the first semester of 2027. This change, without a public explanation, adds several months of delay to the previously known forecast.
The history of this health center's demand spans nearly twenty years. During this time, the neighborhood has grown significantly without its own healthcare infrastructure, leading to the progressive saturation of surrounding centers and longer waiting times for appointments. The organizing entities denounce a lack of political will to finally establish the center.
Beyond the construction itself, there is concern about the possibility of the center opening without adequate staffing. The organizations warn that this scenario is already occurring in other primary care centers within the Community of Madrid, where incomplete staff and excessive workloads are common issues. "An empty building is not a health center. Without professionals, resources, and a clear opening date, this remains an unfulfilled promise," they state, demanding doctors, nurses, and open consultation rooms.
The specific demands from the organizers include setting a definitive opening date, ensuring full staffing from day one without provisional solutions, guaranteeing real operational functionality, and providing urgent reinforcement for already saturated health centers that have been serving the neighborhood's needs without additional resources.
