World Music
Extra cash for new
sewage system
The government has awarded
additional cash to ensure the
completion of Nerja’s new sewage
system. The original budget of €23.24
million set in 2013 has been boosted by
a further €2.04 million.
Nerja Town Hall has confirmed that the
fourth annual Chanquete World Music
event will take place from 4.00pm on
September 14. The venue will again be
Playazo beach with national and local
bands and deejays expected to appear. As
in previous years, the line-up will present a
fusion of music styles to mark the end of
the summer season.
Tourism numbers
The number of tourists visiting the
province of Málaga in the first quarter of
this year was over 1.7 million. Tourism
delegate Nuria Rodríguez said the figure
accounted for nearly 30% of all visitors to
Andalucía and was “very positive.” She
added that the forecast for the rest of the
year suggests that tourism will continue to
grow in the province.
Outdoor sports
A new calisthenics sports area has been
opened on the beach at La Cala del Moral.
It is the third such facility in Rincón de la
Victoria and is located next to the Mare
Nostrum Exhibition Hall. Last month, the
town held a calisthenics championship at
the area on Río Granadillas beach which
attracted 80 athletes from across Spain.
Farm thefts
The Málaga farmers’ group Asaja says that
thefts of produce from farm fields has
been reduced considerably in the last year.
However in the Axarquía, at least 30
robberies of high value tropical crops have
been recorded. Asaja has reminded its
members to report all thefts, no matter
how small they area.
New skating
Rincón de la Victoria last month invited
tenders to build its new skate park in the
Huerta Julién district. The project, which
has a budget of €105,000, will cover 1,129
square metres and is designed so that
enthusiasts can use different areas of the
park, depending on age and experience, to
develop from beginner to expert. The park
is expected to connect to the towns’ future
open-air auditorium.
The Environment Ministry confirmed
its approval of modifications to the
original project at a meeting in Madrid
last month attended by councillors led
by Nerja’s mayor Rosa Arabal.
Infrastructure councillor José María
Rivas described the development as “a
big step” in addressing anomalies
discovered in the plans during 2014.
The revised plans include a new route
for the pipe from the pumping station,
already completed at Playa Burriana,
up to the treatment plant at Mirador de
Bendito on the N340 road between
Nerja and Maro, which originally
crossed private land. It also includes
additional collection points in the
town.
The Ministry also told the local team
that problems with the electricity
supply have been discussed with the
supplier Endesa and plans have now
been referred to the Junta de
Andalucía.
The project to build the sewage
treatment plant is being financed
entirely by central government,
although Nerja will take responsibility
for maintenance and operation once it
is complete. The construction phase
was expected to take 30 months, but
has now reached 60 months, thanks in
part to the collapse of one of three
partners in the consortium which won
the contract. At an extraordinary
meeting of the town council on May 9,
a motion to ask Madrid to declare the
outstanding work as “urgent” was
unanimously passed
Once operational, the plant will have
the capacity to treat 25,000 litres of
dirty water a day, enough to serve a
population of 125,000, more than five
times the municipality’s present
population. Importantly, it will also
end the present practice of dumping
untreated sewage in the sea.
Airbus pilots to train
in Vélez-Málaga
An area of the Agricultural Technology
Park in Vélez-Málaga is to be the home
of a new flying school. A deal to sell
2,788 square metres to Axarquía
Aviation Park, which operates as
Aerodynamics Málaga, has recently
being signed by mayor Antonio
Moreno Ferrer who said the project
would be “unique and pioneering in
Spain.”
The Park lies close to the existing
Leoni Benabú airfield and the space
acquired by Aerodynamics Málaga will
be used for the construction of a two-
storey building to include training
facilities and accommodation for
students.
The company says a new €1.5 million
flight simulator will be installed
towards the end of the year to enable
the centre to train pilots to fly the
Airbus 320. The company says that
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the majority of students attending the
school will be foreigners who have
long demanded such a facility in the
area.
In addition to the sale of land for
construction, a further 32,000 square
metres is to be leased with an option to
purchase. This area will be used for
parking aircraft.
And meanwhile...
Rush hour traffic congestion around
the Andalucía Technology Park in
Málaga has been eased with the
introduction of a temporary extra
traffic lane. Vehicles will flow in one
direction in the mornings and the
opposite direction in the evenings in
a two-month experiment. If
successful, the town hall says a project
to create a permanent solution to rid
the area of peak time delays will be
launched.