Following a series of recent protests, all regarding the management of Mayor José Manuel Dolón by residents of La Mata, the two parties met on Wednesday afternoon with the mayor determined to broker a deal.
One of the complaints centred around the state of disrepair of el paseo de La Mata which local people are saying is dangerous, with sections unusable because of broken and damaged boards.
The mayor said that he was very sympathetic to their complaints but restated that repairs to the promenade are the responsibility of the General Directorate of Coasts. He said that if the Director does not undertake the construction of a new promenade, some parts of which are in a dangerous condition, “we would ask for the dismantling of the facility to prevent further injury to pedestrians.”
Dolón made the statements during the meeting where he tried to pacify the residents of La Mata, who have been holding protests to demand more investment in the area. The meeting was also attended by the board of directors of the Independent Platform Matera (PIM).
In a statement, Dolón said that the residents raised many different issues related to practically all municipal services and infrastructure in the municipality, including tarmacking of the roads and the maintenance of green areas, in addition to cleaning, transport and lighting.
The mayor assured the participants that “he expects the services to improve and, in many cases be resolved, with the introduction of the new municipal budget and the implementation of a number of new contracts by the City Council”, particularly in respect of the collection of waste, transport and the maintenance of public lighting.
He also assured the meeting that action will be taken that will make other improvements to La Mata, “for which municipal resources will be mobilised, trying to provide solutions to many of the complaints raised by the residents,” the mayor added.
