Dilip Kuner
THE notorious Algarrobico Hotel in Almeria may finally be demolished 14 years after construction was halted.
Money has been set aside in the preliminary 2021 budget of the Andalucian regional government (Junta) to send the bulldozers in to flatten the massive 411 room, 21 floor illegal building.
It was partly built on protected land in the Cabo de Gata-Nijar Natural park, leading to howls of protest from environmental groups desperate to keep the virgin beach unspoilt fort future generations.
The Olive Press has long campaigned for the hotel to be demolished – indeed the story featured in the first ever edition of the Olive Press in 2006.
Now it looks like the authorities have finally decided to take the plunge and level the site – as they were ordered to do in 2016 by Spain’s Supreme Court.
It overturned a 2014 decision by Andalucia’s TSJA court which ruled in favour of developers Azata Del Sol. The supreme court also decreed that the land belongs to the Junta.
The ruling accepted arguments by Greenpeace and the regional government that the land should be protected.
The property on Cabo de Gata beach had at the time been the focus of a decade-long legal battle.
A building licence was granted for the project in 2003 with Greenpeace directors dubbing it ‘Hotel Illegal’ in 2006.
The president of the Junta, Juama Moreno, has now promised to demolish the Algarrobico as part of a ‘green’ programme outlined by the regional government. It is not yet certain that the hotel will be demolished as the budget for 2021 has yet to be finalised.
