With PSOE, PP and Vox abstaining and Cambiemos voting against an Urban Planning proposal, submitted by Ciudadanos, the Orihuela Plenary session has rejected a modification to the General Urban Planning Plan (PGOU) to reclassify undevelopable land as sector E-3 “El Barranco” in Orihuela Costa.
Despite the motion failing, it was nevertheless defended by the Councillor for Urban Planning, José Aix ( Ciudadanos).
It is an area of 33,304 square metres that the promoter intends to be used for tertiary use just across the road from Los Dolses Commercial Centre, less than a mile from La Zenia shopping center. The project is for a building area, two stories high, located between las calles Pimienta and Clavo, la on the Villamartín road.
The change of use is justified by Aix and the promoter because of “the need for commercial developments on the coast due to the high population density”, however they seem to have forgotten about the four commercial centres that are all within walking distance.
See also: Undeveloped land reclassified for commercial use in Los Dolses
The justification insists that tourism is “the fundamental activity, the main engine of development and source of wealth” of Orihuela Costa, so “it must better commit to a model of residential, leisure and commercial tourism development”.
This urban planning process comes after the request in June 2020 by the company Ciudad Quesada Service Station and the Real Estate Developer Espiral de Inversiones, following an environmental evaluation by the promoting companies.
