By David Eade - Costa del Sol News
Good and bad news for the mayor of Ronda Antonio Marín over the controversial golf and leisure development at Los Merinos.
The environmental prosecutor has recommended that the case brought against Marín for obstruction of justice in the approval of the complex be filed. Although the project is currently halted because of the financial crisis when it proceeds there will be two golf courses, 800 luxury homes and hotels built in the open countryside.
The prosecutor says that having studied all the documentation relating to the mayor’s decision it does not appear that any law has broken but he believes Marín did not follow the moral or environmental code.
When he gave the go-ahead for the development by his own decree Marín was a member of the Partido Andalucista. He and his fellow PA councillors have since left the party, sit as non-aligned but he will lead PSOE in to the elections this May.
In February 2006 Marín issued his decree for the development to proceed although an environmental impact report had already raised questions over the lack of water resources on the site. This has led to major protests by environmentalists and the residents of nearby Cuevas del Becerro that fear the complex will drain their own water aquifers on which they and farmers have depended on for generations.
Curiously the prosecutor says there is more than a simple suspicion that irregularities have taken place but says that alone is not sufficient to determine whether illegal conduct has taken place. So Marín stands condemned of unethical behaviour but seemingly spared prosecution.
The battle over Los Merinos will continue not least because the ecologists will not give up even though the Andalucía High Court will ask the regional government to lift any hold-up on its final approval for the scheme.
However this is the second blow suffered by Ecologistas en Acción and Silvema Serranía de Ronda in a matter of days. Last week the regional government’s environmental ministry said it was dropping the complaint against the developers for carrying out works that damaged the environment. This complaint was laid in 2006 and the environmentalists will contest the decision.
In the end a lot may rest with politics and not the courts starting with whether Marín is re-elected mayor in May for PSOE and whether PSOE remains the government of Andalucía in 2012.
SEVILLA ACCESS
The new intersection on the road from Ronda to Sevilla has been opened as part of the Andalucía government’s 14 million euros investment in creating three new access points to the town. Two other flyover - underpass links are being created from the San Pedro and El Burgo – Ardales roads and despite financial hold ups they should be completed in around two months.
ARTS BOSS
José Garasino, currently the director of the Media Business School in Ronda has been unanimously appointed as director general of the Acadmia de las Artes y las Ciencias Cinematográficas de España in Madrid. Born in Paris Garasino has worked for 18 years in the film business and films include Torrente 2, La niña de mis ojos, Soldados de Salamina and Pasos de baile.
NOT TALKING
Ronda’s councillor for employment, Josefa Valle, who also happens to be the mayor’s wife, has broken off relations with the Apymer small and medium business association. Valle has accused Apymer of criticising the administration’s handling of the economic crisis and being opposed to the Eroski commercial centre. Apymer says the Eroski report was signed by Los Verdes and Valle should learn to read.
STREET WORKS
You can tell the local elections are approaching as Ronda has given work to 50 people and ordered them to put the town’s streets in order in the shortest possible time. Thirty streets will benefit with work starting in the Cruz Verde - 500,000 euros is being allocated to pavements; 600,000 euros to repairing the road surface and the filling in of potholes.
EROSKI CLOSER
Ronda’s council has approved its fourth amendment to the local development plan (PGOU) to allow the Eroski commercial centre to proceed on the site of the old sports stadium and fair ground. The change was required by the Andalucía government to allow the project to proceed. It’ll see a 120 million euros investment and create 1,200 jobs. The opposition PP and IU abstained.
MAY TRIAL
In February 2007 we first broke the news four National Police and a Guardia Civil officer in Ronda had been arrested for extorting money from brothels and having sexual relations with the girls. The case will finally come to trial this May in Málaga’s court with the prosecutor seeking a total jail term of 39 years for the five.
GIVING BIRD
Ecologists have given the bird to the spectacular of raptures from Ronda’s Blas Infante auditorium. The tourism initiative was launched at the FITUR tourism fair in Madrid. The ecologists say they don’t oppose the spectacular rather consider it a positive initiative but point out the proposed location will have the raptures flying over breeding nests and the Murallas del Carmen would be better.
TARMAC ROW
Angry confrontations in La Indiana as work crews ordered by the Andalucía environment ministry tried to remove tarmac from the right of way through the Ronda enclave. Tarmac had been laid by Adif after heavy lorries had broken the surface during the works on the Ronda to Algeciras line. The tarmac cost 60,000 euros. Adif will be fined 150,000 if it’s not removed.
