In Friday’s Plenary meeting, Pilar de la Horadada has provisionally approved the environmental evaluation for the reclassification of 292.881 square meters of rustic land destined for the construction of 1,086 tourist homes in the Lo Monte Playa sector. The proposal has gone ahead with the favourable votes of the government with an absolute majority of the Partido Popular. The motion was also backed by Vox, in opposition, while the PSOE has abstained. The procedure must now be validated by the Generalitat.
The urbanisation will have a capacity to accommodate 2,700 new inhabitants in a municipality that has a population of just over 22,000. The plots are located between Avenida Federico García Lorca in Mil Palmeras, Camping Lo Monte and Avenida Levante to the south, and the coast.
The promoter, Santamar de la Vega, justifies the reclassification by stating that it is wasteland and “has not been used for any agricultural activity in the last 30 years. The developer also considers that it is necessary to “fill the area” because it already sits among other consolidated urbanisations.
The developer also states that there is no risk of flooding, despite the fact that the Generalitat Flood Plan (Patricova) considers that there is a structural risk due to a rambla that crosses the sector. However, the Segura Hydrographic Confederation and the Generalitat have both validated the builder’s report, although according to allegations of Friends of Sierra Escalona, there are several constructions in slope to channel runoff water.
The investment in the development to be carried out by Santamar, which has 98% of the ownership of the land, has been estimated at 21.7 million euros. The disbursement per year for the municipal accounts, to cover the basic services of lighting, cleaning and maintenance of green areas, is around 410,000 euros, while the income for the Council from IBI is estimated at around 578,000 euros per year, in addition to the construction tax and initial licensing fees.
The proposed land reclassification was initiated by Santamar in mid-2015. This Orihuela firm also has a partial plan in San Miguel de Salinas for 2,000 homes together with other projects in Orihuela and Torrevieja to develop commercial areas, in addition to promoting the skyscrapers of Los Náufragos, also in Torrevieja.
