Benidorm to vote thursday on awarding the design and construction Contract for the Open Arena to redevelop the bullring and surrounding area
The project proposes redeveloping the bullring and its surrounding area into a multifunctional venue dedicated to culture and young people
The successful tenderer will have three months from the signing of the contract to complete the project design.
Benidorm City Council will vote this Thursday, August 6, at an extraordinary council meeting on awarding the contract for the design and construction of Open Arena project. The initiative will redevelop the town's bullring and surrounding area into a multifunctional venue dedicated to culture and young people, while also improving connections with Els Tolls, Colonia Madrid and town centre neighbourhoods.
On Monday, the proposal to award the contract, submitted by the Municipal Procurement Board after the completion of the tender process, received a favourable opinion from the Internal Affairs Committee (CIRI). The contract was put out to tender with a budget of €15 million, attracting bids from two temporary joint ventures (UTEs) and one private company.
The project comprises three main components. The first, Arena Live, will see the refurbishment of the bullring and its transformation into a large multifunctional venue for cultural, social and sporting events. The second, Arena Joven, involves the creation of a youth centre designed as an accessible, multicultural, inclusive and dynamic space for education, leisure and active youth participation, featuring classrooms and flexible multi-purpose facilities. The third component, Arena Encuentro, focuses on upgrading the surrounding urban environment to improve connectivity between the Els Tolls–Salt de l'Aigüa neighbourhood and the town centre, as well as the northern part of Foietes district via L'Aigüera, while enhancing accessibility and the quality of public spaces.
Benidorm Open Arena is co-funded by the European Union through the Local Integrated Development Strategy (EDIL Plan). Under this competitive funding programme, Benidorm secured €6.4 million in EU funding against numerous competing projects. The remainder of the project's cost will be covered by Benidorm City Council, which has allocated €2.7 million in this year's municipal budget.
Once the contract has been awarded and signed, the successful bidder will have three months to complete the project design and 18 months to carry out the construction works.