The Ombudsman has told the Orihuela City Council to curtail the abundance of illuminated advertising billboards in the La Regia and Playa Flamenca Urbanizations, adjacent to the N-332, which “cause inconvenience to the residents and environmental damage to the natural areas of Aguamarina and Punta The Glea”.
He recommends that the local administration “check whether the signs have authorization”. If not, a sanctioning order should be opened, and urban legality restored. The letter adds that “we are also not aware of the existence of a license for the installation of these structures.”
The ombudsman asks to council to review the appropriateness of the illuminated signboards to correct their possible impact on nearby homes and the natural setting. He states that all advertising facilities must be respectful of the environment.
Related: Disgrace of unsightly advertising hoardings
The letter is the result of a complaint made by residents that was presented in May last year and is motivated “by the inactivity of the City Council” and its “lack of response” both to the residents and to the Valencian Ombudsman, Ángel Luna González, who throughout the process has made five requests with only one reply from the council”.
Residents on the coast denounce the entire area which they say is plagued with billboards that pose multiple problems by not respecting distances or heights, but none so flagrant, they insist, as those in the La Regia urbanization.
