Planning the future of the Vega Baja
Legislation could override council’s building plans
THE FUTURE development of the Vega Baja area will be conditioned by a territorial action plan (PAT) that will be drawn up over the next six months.
The contract to design this plan has just been awarded by the regional government to a temporary union of the companies Cercle + Territorio and Ciudad, with a budget of €266,684.
They will be helped by ‘distinguished members of Elche and Alicante universities who know the area’, explained regional councillor for territorial policy Arcadi España.
The objective is to produce a tool ‘that helps town halls organise their land so that it is more resilient, prepared and strong to prevent flooding from torrential rain and to foster the economic growth of this important area’, he said. In this sense, it would have higher authority than town halls’ Town Plans (PGOU) to decide what uses can be made of land.
Numerous town halls have had great difficulty passing new PGOUs, which have been repeatedly blocked by the previous and current regional governments for proposing excessive residential development that does not meet EU legislation, for example Almoradí.
The PAT’s standout proposals include defining green infrastructure, in particular natural risks; organising and invigorating farmland; supporting the food industry; analysing what industrial and tertiary land is available to make use of the best locations; and studying the capacity of the area to accommodate new uses, taking the risks these may pose into account.
A meeting is being planned with local mayors to analyse all the regional government infrastructure in the area, how repairs after the September floods have gone, and the best ways for people to travel around the area in the future.
The councillor said they need to know mayors’ opinions ‘because improvements to this area and its economic and industrial potential must come from town halls and all civil society’. Once the draft PAT is completed, it will be published for public consultation, ‘so that people can enrich it with their proposals, suggestions and objections’, said Sr España.
He also announced that after the summer a study will be put out to tender to analyse how the CV-95 road between Orihuela city and its coast can be improved. After decades of proposals and projects that have come to nothing, he said this will study the economic and environmental viability of the best alternatives, in conjunction with local mayors.