The November issue of Orihuela Town Hall’s public relations glossy magazine, Orcelitania, has on its front page the announcement of €4.6 million investments for the municipality.
However, the front page figure of €4.6 million is misleading An inside article details investments in Orihuela city, surrounding villages and the coast for a total amount of €3.7 million (€1.4 million being the share of Orihuela Costa). €900,000 is missing. €4.6m – €3.7m
The article claims that the in the distribution of these investment funds resulting from the sale of municipal land on the coast, the government respects the principle of 40%, 30%, 30%: 40% for the coast, 30% for Orihuela city and 30% for the surrounding villages.
The principle may be respected in relation to €3.7 millions but the principle should apply to 100% of the proceeds from the sale of land on the coast, not 100% minus €900,000!
The news published in Orcelitania confirms, disappointingly, that the Mayor has not kept his promise to consult and inform C.L.A.R.O., on the investments which would result from the sale of municipal land on the coast. We think we know why! Orihuela Costa has been cheated.
The investments proposed for the coast, apart from a long delayed decision to create an Eco Park, an area for depositing bulky household objects and hopefully recycling garden waste, is mainly a series of small maintenance type improvements in selected areas. There is a project for improving La Regia park which is in addition to the footbridge over the N332 built earlier this year, Orihuela Costa’s only investment project. It shows this area, with only 300 registered residents, is being specially favoured, no doubt because of perceived political support there for the Socialist party.
The planned investments for the coast include an unspecified but no doubt limited amount to diversify the activities carried out in the purpose-built nursery school in Lomas de Cabo Roig. But this is far too isolated (6 kilometres from the centre of Orihuela Costa) and unsuitable to think it could ever become anything like a civic centre.
The glaring, missed opportunity is the failure to include in the investments a proper civic centre for Orihuela Costa. A proper civic centre would be a multi-purpose facility with auditorium, theatre, library and rooms for the activities of the many social groups in Orihuela Costa who have to rent space in restaurants to carry out their activities.
Orihuela Costa’s modest, so-called Civic Centre in Alameda del Mar, is dominated by two private associations. Partipation in their activities is open to those who pay (including residents of neighbouring municipalities such as Torrevieja).
With a population of 35,000, at least if not greater than the population of Orihuela city, contributing at least 50% of the income of the Town Hall, Orihuela Costa should have a proper civic centre with auditorium, theatre, library and rooms for social activities.
A consequence of the failure to include a civic centre with theatre or auditorium in the investments is that Orihuela Costa will continue to be completely cut off from cultural activities funded by the municipal government. These are lavish and amount to a million euros a year.
Orihuela Costa taxpayers no doubt foot over 50% of this bill and get nothing in return. The reason given for the exclusion of Orihuela Costa from the cultural programme is that there are no suitable facilities on the coast for hosting cultural events!
If the investment plans leave Orihuela Costa without a proper civic centre, surprise, surprise, there is an amount of €900,000 to complete a civic centre in the village of La Aparecida with a population of less than 3,000 inhabitants. This is undoubtedly where the missing €900,000 will go. It is additional to at least €300,000 already spent so far on the building.
Filed under: http://www.theleader.info/article/45599/
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