The technicians study the proposal to allow establishments on 1st floors and basements of the main avenues

The municipal technicians will study the proposal made by the municipal group of the PP within the Advisory Council of Urban Scene so that some of the main avenues of the city are designated as commercial axes, thus enabling the opening of commercial establishments and restaurants in the basements and the first floors of the buildings of these roads. The councilman of Urban Scene, José Ramón González de Zárate, and the councilwoman of Urbanism, Lourdes Caselles, explained that this proposal "also includes designating pedestrian areas as commercial axes", taking into account "the current reality of Benidorm".

De Zárate has indicated that only the popular group and AICO have moved proposals to increase the commercial axes initially raised by the technicians in a draft that is part of the record of the specific modification number 20 of the General Urban Plan (PGOU). A modification that includes different issues, including - and based on a motion of Citizens (Cs) - to enable the implementation of commercial activity in the basements and first floors in more streets of Benidorm.

The councillor has indicated that the major avenues proposed for qualification as commercial axes are Ametlla del Mar, Beniardá, Foietes, Esperanto,  Armada Española and Vicente Llorca Alós, as well as pedestrian areas. Some streets that are added to the thirty raised by AICO, and that should also be studied by profesionals to determine "if it is possible that, based on the criteria set by the regulations, are commercial axes", clarified Caselles. Subsequently, the modification should be sent to the Ministry, since the structural management must be responsible for the regional administration.

The head of Urbanism has indicated that in addition to the opening of businesses in the first floors and basements, this specific modification also affects the liberalization of the implementation of gas stations and electrogasolineras, and the publicity ordinance. With the aim of "streamlining" the processing of these last two issues, the Board also proposed yesterday to disassociate them from the rest of the amendment, since the environmental procedure depends on the City Council. In this way, both cases "could go to the next plenary session" and be resolved "within a period of six months".

Setbacks

Caselles recalled that in the same Advisory Council of Urban Scene was agreed yesterday to initiate the procedures to draft a new specific modification of the General Plan of Urban Planning (PGOU) to address the arrangement of setbacks in open building.

Based on a study commissioned by the City Council to an external firm dated in 2011, the advisory body - of which all the groups of the corporation, independent advisers and representatives of various business associations and the Neighborhood Council are members - agreed to explore the possibility of following the model of the punctual modification number 1, applying to the tertiary floor a compensation system similar or analogous to that already applied to hotel establishments. That is, that the commercial establishments or restaurants with setbacks give up for public use a part of the occupied surface, or failing that, compensate the City Council economically for that space.

The mayor has indicated that the Ministry has already pronounced at some point on this issue stressing "the increase in tertiary use must be compensated with an increase in use dotacional".

This modification, for which they are going to start collecting reports, should be processed at the municipal and regional headquarters, the latter end of which prevents the establishment of an end date.

Oscar Esplá auditorium cover proposal

In the same session was presented the study hired by the City Council to analyze the feasibility and cost of covering the Óscar Esplá auditorium of the Parque de l'Aigüera. This study, presented by the firm Jas Arquitectura, advises opting for a flexible cover, removable and put in the area of ​​stands, and whose structure is even walkable.

De Zárate has clarified that this study is a line of work, in which some recommendations and technical and aesthetic alternatives are proposed to cover this public space, and that "it was requested to fulfill a plenary agreement". This proposal estimates that the cost of the action with the proposed characteristics is around 1.6 million euros.

The person in charge of Urban Scene has qualified that with this study in hand it will be decided later if it is acted in the auditorium and in what conditions.