Thursday saw the start of work on the new leisure area in the Port of Torrevieja, a private initiative that is being built in Paseo del Mar. The project was finally able to get underway following the recent opening of the new fish market.
Bulldozers began to tear down buildings previously used by the fishing fleet, erected in the 1960s, where fishermen, from the small boats and trawlers, would spread and mend their fishing gear.
Excavation has also begun of the underground car park which will have two floors with a capacity of 600 vehicles, in the area between the new fish market and the old uncovered car park.
The leisure area will have 8,500 square meters of gross leasable area, distributed among 27 premises with cinemas, bowling alley and restaurant franchises distributed in six two-storey buildings connected by walkways with terraces and viewpoints to the bay. There will also be an undergound car park with two floors and 650 parking spaces.
The concession as a whole totals 18,000 square metres and will in turn be connected to the cantilever promenade of the Levante dock, whose renovation work is still pending tender by the City Council. There will only be trading units if they are linked to the nautical activity, according to the restriction placed by the Generalitat Port Authority.
In the old fish market, the operators dismantled the popular El Isla kiosk, which will be relocated by the access to the new fish market, next to the factory that provides ice for the boats. A company that offers tourism fishing experiences will also be accommodated in an area by the access to the same facility.
The leisure centre will be called “Paseo del Mar” and will have 8,500 meters of premises for rent.
In the coming days, a company of specialists will begin the work of removing the asbestos-cement roof of the old fish market buildings, to carry out its demolition.
In recent months, the old Customs building has also been refurbished, and now looks likely to house staff from the Tax Agency, the ports authority and a Civil Guard checkpoint. Initially, the building, which is already furnished will not lodge any municipal offices, something that the Torrevieja City Council had requested.
When these officials are installed in their new work area, the adjacent building, dating back to the 1940’s, and previously used by the Captaincy and the ports authority, will be demolished.
The start of the works has forced traffic to be diverted in this central area of the city. The port avenue that crosses it is now two-way, with an entry and exit lane both at the access to the Casino and from the Paseo de Juan Aparicio.
The open air car park that previously offered hundreds of spaces and was very popular among foreign residents, enabling them to get close to the centre, has also already been closed. Its disappearance has added much to the anxiety of drivers as they look for parking in the city centre and in the network of underground car parks.
