Mason Jones (Reporter)
ESTEPONA town hall has given the green light to new development on El Cristo beach.
The area, often referred to as the town’s ‘secret beach’, is one of the last undeveloped green zones on the Costa del Sol.
Now, the PP-run town hall has passed a motion to allow the construction of a beach club and restaurant covering 1,250 square metres of the beach.
There will also be a plaza constructed, which is set to cover a further 1,000 square metres.
Councillor Susana Arahuetes has stated that the new developments will not affect current views of the beach, as both developments will be built below the level of the road which runs along the coast.
Former PSOE mayor David Valadez has blasted the decision however, claiming that one of the coast’s last green zones will be destroyed.
That’s a bit of a shame in some ways. It is a lovely, unspoilt little beach – it already has two chiringuitos and is very popular – certainly not a ‘secret’.
I hope they develop it sensitively. If they were to do something with the waste ground/car park between that beach and the port – that would be good.
Thought they had no money .TuT !!
To say this ‘wont affect views of the beach’ is disingenuous, to put it mildly. It may not if you are driving or walking past but if you are on the beach it certainly will!! It will inevitably concrete-over an existing natural area enjoyed by many people. How much money changed hands to win approval for this act of vandalism???
Estepona appears to be in the forefront of an attack by developers with funds from where ???. In Spain it doesn’t matter if the last bit of green grass is being lost – the developers only concern would be how much money it would make – or how much it could absorb from illegal sources.
People-power is the only answer – get out there and stop them!!
But this IS Spain and the rich can do what they like and the population pay homage.
Russian money, no doubt. They are Spain’s new friends.
I trust they gave the obligatory 20 % of the land to the towwnhall , green zones , social housing etc , but it doesn’t sound like it.
I live opposite Playa Del Cristo, and agree definitely not a ‘secret’ beach. In the summer the Spanish and many other nationalities flock here and bring their children, because of the shallow waters and the fact they can park close by and unload their cars. The beach is gorgeous and unspoilt and I agree it would be a shame to start building there.
However, there is an empty area to the side (as mentioned above) in between the beach and the puerto car par. So if they insisted on more construction, then that would really be the only viable place (in my opinion), without ruining what I consider the best beach on the coast. Although, it could affect Lolailo and Havana chiringuitos on Del Cristo, who have been there for years and provide a fantastic service.
The plans for the development of the land between the Marina and Playa de Cristo have resurfaced and the petition is asking for a public consultation in to the plans which presently include three, eight storey apartment buildings plus penthouses and parking and also 4 areas of locales totaling in excess of 35,000 m2, which will have a dramatic impact upon the surrounding area and local residents alike.
Most people will accept that the Marina area will improve if some form of development goes ahead but that it should be sensitive to the surroundings and also comply with all necessary legislation and regulations.
The petition can be found at the following link and has nearly 400 supporters already and it has only been active for just over 1 week.
http://www.change.org/p/junta-de-andaluc-a-do-not-ruin-playa-del-cristo?recruiter=244585771&utm_source=share_petition&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=share_email_responsive
Please could you pass it along / or share on Facebook also.