25 Aug, 2010 @ 09:38
1 min read

Tower gets go-ahead

By Wendy Williams

UNESCO has given the thumbs up for the controversial Torre Pelli tower to be built in Sevilla.

Despite an outcry from local and international pressure groups, the United Nations cultural body insists that the 180-metre tower will not visually impair Sevilla’s famous landmarks.

The decision came despite the body’s own cultural boss arguing that Andalucia’s highest skyscraper will have a detrimental affect on the city’s top monuments.

Despite threats that its construction could lose the city its ‘world heritage’ status, it was given a provisional go ahead at the 34th session of the World Heritage Committee in Brazil.

The committee decided that the new headquarters for Spanish bank Cajasol would not affect monuments, including the Alcazar and Cathedral.

Maribel Montano, president of the local heritage committee in Sevilla, said that losing the city’s 1987 World Heritage Status “was completely ruled out”.

The committee has however commissioned a final report to be completed by July next year. By then, critics say the tower will be half built with its completion scheduled for the end of 2011.

Jon Clarke (Publisher & Editor)

Jon Clarke is a Londoner who worked at the Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday as an investigative journalist before moving to Spain in 2003 where he helped set up the Olive Press.

After studying Geography at Manchester University he fell in love with Spain during a two-year stint teaching English in Madrid.

On returning to London, he studied journalism and landed his first job at the weekly Informer newspaper in Teddington, covering hundreds of stories in areas including Hounslow, Richmond and Harrow.

This led on to work at the Sunday Telegraph, Sunday Mirror, Standard and even the Sun, before he landed his first full time job at the Daily Mail.

After a year on the Newsdesk he worked as a Showbiz correspondent covering mostly music, including the rise of the Spice Girls, the rivalry between Oasis and Blur and interviewed many famous musicians such as Joe Strummer and Ray Manzarak, as well as Peter Gabriel and Bjorn from Abba on his own private island.

After a year as the News Editor at the UK’s largest-selling magazine Now, he returned to work as an investigative journalist in Features at the Mail on Sunday.

As well as tracking down Jimi Hendrix’ sole living heir in Sweden, while there he also helped lead the initial investigation into Prince Andrew’s seedy links to Jeffrey Epstein during three trips to America.

He had dozens of exclusive stories, while his travel writing took him to Jamaica, Brazil and Belarus.

He is the author of three books; Costa Killer, Dining Secrets of Andalucia and My Search for Madeleine.

Contact jon@theolivepress.es

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