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The Ateneo Popular Nou Barris in Barcelona is a social circus taking the form of a self-governing institution based on territorial synergies. This article studies how, in a context of privatisation and commodification of the public space and increasing socio-territorial inequalities, the community management model of this public cultural facility might constitute a motor for the democratic reinvention of urban governance methods. We highlight the way the construction of this urban commons relies on the interaction of two processes: first, the consolidation of territorial autonomy through a network based on mutual assistance and co-operation between community organisations within a single local territory and second, the ability to exert collective influence and foster a dynamics for co-constructing public policy at municipal level.