Environment opens on Friday the application for the new 49 urban gardens in l'Horta

The Department of the Environment opens this Friday, July 1, the deadline to request one of the new urban gardens that have been enabled in the area of ​​l'Horta and that, as in the previous phases, will be awarded by lottery. This has been transferred today by the councillor of the area, Mónica Gómez, who has specified that "with these new plots, Benidorm now has more than 120 urban gardens distributed throughout the city, specifically in the neighbourhoods of Els Tolls, La Cala and l'Horta". Some orchards in which "the awardees practice organic farming".

The urban gardens are located on a municipal plot of 8,500 square meters in the Camí de la Parva, in the district of l'Almafrà, which "with this project is recovered and made available to the residents, with an environmental purpose but also social, since these plots constitute a space for neighbourhood coexistence and collaborative action”.

The councillor has specified that "as in the two previous phases, people registered in Benidorm with at least one year of seniority, and who are physically capable of agricultural work, may request one of these orchards." Also, "the associations registered in the Registry of associations of the City Council".

Gómez has clarified that "as we have been doing since the first urban gardens were set up on Calle Italia, the plots will be awarded by lottery, with priority given to those over 65, the unemployed and people with functional diversity". Also, "will be reserved, if requested, some plots for neighbourhood associations in the area."

The application period for plots will be open until July 10. Applications must be submitted to the Department of the Environment or the General Registry of the City Council. Those interested must provide a photocopy of the DNI -or the document that legally replaces it- and, where appropriate, prove their status as a retired person.

The councillor recalled that the creation of these fifty urban gardens has been included in the practical training of the Escola d'Ocupació Et Formem Benidorm II, a program that has had the support of the Valencian Employment and Training Service (LABORA ) and the European Social Fund. Thus, "the 10 students who have participated in this program, with the collaboration of the Technical Services brigade of the Department of Public Space, have been in charge of conditioning the land, parcelling it out and providing it with all the necessary services for agricultural practice" .

The urban orchard area will be surrounded by a fence and will have an exclusive access gate for the owners of the orchards. An area of ​​aromatic plants with species such as rosemary, thyme, oregano, basil or mint has also been set up on the plot to avoid as much as possible the presence of pests that affect the crops.