Rob HorganBy Rob Horgan
DISGRUNTLED Estepona residents are taking a dispute with the town hall to the European Court of Justice after being charged up to €45,000 each for ‘unfair’ road improvements.
Members of the Valle Romano urbanisation are unhappy at being asked to pay so much for the ‘enormous’ infrastructure charges.
After a petition was ignored by the town hall, the Estepona Expats Residents Association contacted the EU courts to step in.
The chairman of the association, Tony Dodd, said: “These people are being totally ripped off. You cannot treat one group of people one way and then treat another group totally differently.”
Residents are said to be so worried about making the payments that they are ‘getting ill’.
Xavier Lazaro, 64, said: “We cannot afford this. We are middle-class people who don’t have lots of money. I receive €340 disability allowance a month and I’m being asked to pay €14,000. It’s crazy.
“People are asking if they are going to be chucked out into the streets. They are so worried they are getting ill, some people are even going on medication to deal with the stress.”
Another British resident said: “We have fought this on our own until now and we are simply being ignored.”
A large % of that will be going in the pocket of the Mayor and his mates, the corrupt building contractor to raise the invoices and so on. The Town Hall are acting illegally I would have thought. I would not pay, go through the courts and if the courts awarded them my house I would set it on fire, of course I have another house so it may be easier for me to say. Buy a house in Spain!!
When doesn’t a “A place in the Sun” tell you any of this?
Der.. because this is a ridiculous case by a corrupt town hall.
It’s always as if you’re smirking when you say all your negative things Fred.
btw, are you both in the yUK at the moment?
Are we not allowed to comment on Spain if we go abroad? I’m abroad in December as well, does that mean I can’t comment on stories in that month too? lol.
Btw, it’s “duh” not “der”. Der is also short for Derek, interestingly.