DATELINE RONDA THURSDAY JULY 7, 2011

SUITCASE WITH HUMAN BONES FOUND IN IGUALEJA


By David Eade – Costa del Sol News

A walker on the A-397 which links San Pedro de Alcántara with Ronda found a suitcase on the roadside in Igualeja. He looked inside and there were the skeletal remains of a human. On making the gruesome discovery the man immediately called the Guardia Civil who have opened an investigation.

The suitcase was at km 16 on the busy road that links Ronda with the coast. The judicial police are examining the bones to ensure they are human and to try and see if the victim suffered a violent death.

Officers carried out a visual examination of the site where the suitcase was found in case it offered up any clues. In the meantime the bones are at the institute of legal medicine in Málaga.

The bones are said to be dry and clean and are being arranged to see if they form a complete skeleton. There may also be some mummified remains that can offer up DNA evidence. The sex and age of the victim will also be determined as to establish whether the body was cut up.

The Guardia Civil are also studying the reports of missing people to see whether any can be matched with the find. There have been a number of finds of human remains in suitcases in Málaga province in recent years.

Whilst investigators are keeping an open mind on the manner of death of the victim any relation with the Spanish Civil War has been ruled out. The suitcase is modern and officers say the skeleton is probably between no more than ten to fifteen years old.

CUT OFF

Endesa cut off power to Ronda’s municipal El Fuerte sports centre and council offices in Padre Jesús and La Dehesa last week because of 377,000 euros in unpaid bills. Further disconnections are threatened for invoices dating back to between January and May. The PP – PA administration is furious with the company as the debts were inherited from the previous socialist team of government.

DEBT JUDGEMENT

Not only Ronda town hall had some of its offices disconnected from the power supply because of unpaid bills Endesa officials also went to the Palacio de Justicia controlled by the Andalucía government. The building is shared by Ronda’s local police and the Málaga fire brigade. An angry judge and confusion over which meter belonged to whom persuaded Endesa to delay its actions.

PGOU PUSH

For the last two years the local development plan for Ronda has been in a state of paralysis. Now the new PP –PA administration wants to push ahead with the new PGOU and have it operational within three years. A meeting has been held with a company of town planning experts led by Manuel González Fustegueras who has produced PGOUs for many municipalities.

EIGHT GO

Fall out from PSOE’s election defeat in Ronda continues with eight members of the executive committee resigning. In their letter of resignation they accuse the party of having a dictatorial attitude, lacking internal democracy and are highly critical of secretary general Francisco Cañestro. Several are former socialist councillors including Briton Charlotte Wilmot and they have the support of veteran PSOE member Juan Fraile.

POWERLESS GAUCÍN

CHC Energía has cut off the power to at least ten municipal installations in Gaucín. The outstanding bill is 105,000 euros and PP mayor Pedro Godino says it is not a sum the town hall has at this moment. He is now seeking financial help from other administrations but meanwhile gyms, the cemetery, public fountains and the indoor market are all without electricity.

LEOPOLDO DAYS

Alpandeire recently celebrated the 147 th anniversary of the birth of Fray Leopoldo in the Serranía de Ronda village. Last year the friar was beatified in a ceremony in Granada and he is now on his way to being declared a saint. Apart from the ceremony in the “Cathedral of the Serranía” there was singing and music plus a giant paella for pilgrims.

DATELINE RONDA THURSDAY MAY 19, 2011

EROSKI CENTRE STARTS AT THE END OF JULY


By David Eade – Costa del Sol News

The Eroski commercial centre in Ronda has been a long time coming and now it has been announced work will start at the end of July. The announcement was made by mayor Antonio Marín but as this is election season it remains to be seen if that date is fact or fiction.

The development has been billed as the largest by Eroski in Andalucía. The Basque based supermarket group has allocated 120 million euros to the project spread over 73,100 square metres.

The commercial centre will be located on land formerly occupied by the soccer stadium and old fair ground. The local development plan (PGOU) has been amended to allow the project to proceed and the regional government’s consultative council has given its approval.

Marín stated that the commercial centre will be a reality between 10 and 12 months of work starting although curiously the initial estimates were double that time scale.

The Ronda Eroski is meant to be 50 per cent bigger than the company’s existing development in Antequera. It will create 1,500 construction jobs with 1,200 employees working there once it is operational.

The supermarket will occupy 8,000 square metres with 15,000 square metres given over to fashion outlets, 3,000 square metres to services and a further 6,000 square metres on leisure and restaurants including a multi-screen cinema.

NEW IMAGE

The religious image of Nuestro Señor del Ecce-Homo has been a familiar sight at the Easter parades in Ronda for generations. Now it has been sent to the Instituto Andaluz de Patrimonio Histórico in Sevilla. The regional government has agreed to fund the 40,000 euros required to restore the valuable statue. Incredibly it’s returned to the workshop where it was made in 1713.

SEXUAL CRIME

Guardia Civil have stated they believe the murder of María Esther Jiménez in Arriate in January had a sexual motive although investigations remain on-going. Meanwhile the examination of witnesses by the prosecutor continues and so far 13 people have given testimony. The 17-year-old accused of her murder is being held in detention for an initial six months which can be extended by three.

BLESSED INVESTMENT

The Andalucía ministry of health, Málaga province and Alpandeire have grouped together to fund the 312,600 euros next phase of the medical centre in the Serranía de Ronda village. Málaga province is providing 138,569 euros ensuring work could start shortly. In addition the museum dedicated to Blessed Fray Leopoldo, also backed by the province, is now at an advanced stage of its construction.

BLAS AID

Blas Infante, the father of the modern Andalucía, has special links to Ronda and is honoured by the Paseo Blas Infante, a garden area over the Tajo gorge by the bullring. Sadly the zone was badly damaged in the rains and work is now being carried out to remove the constant threat of flooding. Around 58,000 euros is being assigned to the work.

PALACE ROBBERY

Two youths have been detained accused of breaking into Ronda’s historic Casa del Rey Moro dating from the 18 th century with famous gardens by Forestier. The duo are said to have stolen various antiques and crystal lamps. The police were informed the palace was robbed within the last month; when detained the youths had all the stolen artefacts hidden in a garage.

DATELINE RONDA THURSDAY APRIL 14, 2011

SPECTACULAR TAJO LIGHT AND SOUND DISPLAY


By David Eade – Costa del Sol News

“A light and sound experience that is unique in the world” is how Ronda’s councillor for tourism described plans for an extravaganza using the Tajo gorge as a backdrop.

To make the “Ronda Experience” a reality will cost three million euros. The light and sound spectacle has been created by Manuel Coronado, a company that is the international reference point for such displays having staged similar projects on the Egyptian Pyramids and at Expo 92.

The plan is to project giant images on to the cliffs of the Tajo and the Puente Nuevo. The area to be covered covers 120 metres in height and 500 metres in width. The images would reflect the origins and history of Ronda through the Roman and Arab epochs, water vapour would pour beneath the bridge, birds would fly and the town’s links with bullfighting and the Goyesca feria would be displayed.

The soundtrack would rely for its scripting on historians and researchers. The images would be projected from ten cabins in the Molinos del Tajo area situated at the foot of the cliff face. The images will be visible for 15 kilometres and says the tourist office would attract thousands of people to Ronda and boost night stays in its hotels.

However the first phase it to find the funding required for the project. The hope is that the various levels of government will contribute to the three million euros budget. Little is likely to happen before the May elections and of course a change in administration could make the Ronda Experience short lived.

Jardines de Cuenca reopen this month

Ronda’s celebrated and historic Jardines de Cuenca overlooking the Tajo gorge will be reopened to the public this month. The mayor and his wife, who happens to be the councillor responsible for parks and gardens, visited the site last week and reported the work is 95 per cent completed.

The project has been funded with over 211,000 euros from an ICO loan to improve the tourism infrastructure of the town. New furnishings have been installed in the gardens and the height of the wall above the gorge has been increased. In addition over 1,000 roses have been planted from 65 different species.

MAYOR ACCUSED

The case surrounding the diversion of Grazalema’s river and the building of homes on the old river bed is returning to court. The judge has finalised the preliminaries and ten people will face trial including the PSOE mayor of Grazalema and the former mayor. They are accused of bribery, obstructing justice, carrying out businesses prohibited to public officials and town planning law violations.

JOBLESS UP

The number of unemployed in Ronda grew again in March rising to 4,669 from 4,602. Men were the hardest hit sector with a rise of 84 cases bringing the total to 2,249 whilst the number of women has dropped by 17 to 2,420. Women still dominate the totals. Of the new contracts on offer the majority are temporary; agriculture took up most workers.

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

The training section of the Andalucía health service dedicated to domestic violence is working with nurses in emergency units to enable them to detect cases of women who have suffered abuse. Currently these courses are being held in hospitals in Ronda and La Línea but will be extended to all medical centres in due course. Often these nurses are the victim’s first contact.

STRONG WINDS

Residents of the Ronda area woke up last Wednesday morning to find that 80 km an hour winds had left a trail of destruction overnight. One woman was injured after a lamp post fell on her. Trees were toppled crashing on to cars – eight vehicles were damaged in the Patronato Militar alone and a large pine fell on the hospital’s parking area.

MASS OPPOSITION

PSOE in Ronda is feeling the heat from the PP, PA and IU ranged against it. The problem is the socialists absorbed the former PA mayor and his fellow councillors who were officially labelled political turncoats. The PA has sworn it will not pact with PSOE and the socialists say the PP, PA and IU have a secret agreement to keep them out.

RURAL CINEMA

The second edition of cinemáscampo is being held in Benarrabá, Benalauría, Júcar, Jimera de Líbar, Cartajima and Cortes de la Frontera in conjunction with the CEDER rural development programme. The object is to bring dynamism to the rural communities and especially young people in small municipalities through short films with workshops on production and script writing in conjunction with Ronda and Málaga University.

DODGY MAYOR

The socialist mayor of Alpandeire in the Serranía de Ronda, Gabriel Jiménez, will still be number one on the party’s list for the town hall elections despite being recently accused of receiving stolen heavy machinery. The Guardia Civil say he received construction equipment that had been stolen on the coast. Jiménez insists he was set up and never new the machinery was illicit.

SUSPICIOUS NUMBERS

The national statistics institute (INE) and the office of electoral registration have voiced their suspicion over the number of residents added to the roll in seven municipalities of Málaga province, five of them in the Serranía de Ronda and are investigating. They say the increase cannot be justified in these small communities: Benarrabá, Genalguacil, Atajate, Faraján and Jubrique along with Sedella and Totalán.

DATELINE RONDA THURSDAY APRIL 7, 2011

TWO RONDA YOUTHS KILLED IN GRAND PRIX ACCIDENT

By David Eade – Costa del Sol News

The motorbike Grand Prix was held in Jerez last weekend and hundreds of thousands of people flocked to the event many by motorcycles. The traffic authorities and police mount a major security exercise to help prevent accidents but as this year people are still killed on the roads.

The worst of the weekend accidents was on Sunday at around 8.30 at Algodonales on the A-384 Ronda to Sevilla road. Two men aged 28 and 24 years old, both from Ronda, were killed in a multiple pile-up. Six other people suffered serious injuries.

One of the victims was a biker heading for the Jerez circuit when he crossed in to the lane for on-coming traffic and collided head on with a car travelling towards Algodonales. Both he and the young passenger in the car were killed.

Involved in the collision was another biker plus a car. The six injured aged between 24 and 39 years were taken to the hospital in Villamartín. Two have been kept in and whilst they were seriously injured they are not in a life threatening condition.

There were numerous other accidents in Cádiz province related to the Grand Prix. Apart from the two deaths in Algodonales 47 people were injured and first aid teams attended to 307 people at the Grand Prix circuit.

EROSKI DEVELOPMENT HITS ANOTHER SNAG

The major project to build Eroski’s largest commercial centre in Andalucía in Ronda has hit another snag. The property register has refused to issue a deed for the sale of the land to the company because of irregularities in the documentation.

One hitch is that the land was initially to be sold to the Grupo Ruiz Jurado but that was later changed to the Gestión de Proyectos Comerciales SL. The registry states the correct payments for this change have not been made.

The deeds cover the lands of the former football stadium and old fair ground that will be the site of the Eroski supermarket, numerous fashion shops, a cinema plus leisure complex along with a large car park. The town hall recently banked 3.5 million euros for the sale of the land.

The handling of the sale of the land has been highly criticised by opposition parties at the town hall – the Partido Popular and Izquierda Unida. In addition small and medium sized businesses have opposed the development as they fear it will kill the traditional shopping areas of Ronda.

For its part Ronda town hall says it is working to sort out these latest problems with the Eroski project. The last council meeting approved changes to the local development plan (PGOU) to allow the scheme to proceed.

FINISH IT

Ronda council at its last meeting till after the elections allocated 340,000 euros of tourism funding to complete the building meant to house Mueble Rondeño. Finished in 2006 with 1.2 million euros of regional government money it never did become a showcase for Ronda furniture. IU candidate for mayor, Rafael Ruíz, says nobody has any idea what the building will be used for.

GYPSY CELEBRATIONS

Gypsies head for Benarrabá on April 8 - 9 as it holds the first event dedicated to the Pueblo Gitano in the Serrania de Ronda. Benarrabá has one of the highest gypsy populations. There’ll be talks on gypsy history and their origin in Benarrabá, the gypsy flag will fly from the town hall plus there will be gypsy inspired food and entertainment.

DANGEROUS ROAD

There has been another accident on the A-397 Ronda to San Pedro road – the road in Málaga province with the second highest death toll. On this occasion a car collided with a van last Monday at 7.25 at km 18. The fire brigade and ambulance teams raced to the scene and an occupant of the car had to be cut from the wreckage.

RAJOY VISIT

It’s election time in Ronda. Partido Popular leader Mariano Rajoy spoke before 700 people to back Maripaz Fernandez as the party’s candidate for mayor. Meanwhile the Partido Andalucista’s Pilar González went to a notary to swear her party would not form a pact with PSOE as the socialists have absorbed the former PA mayor and councillors – all of whom were deemed political turncoats.

CRIME WATCH

National Police and Guardia Civil have set up a joint watch in Puerto Saúco and Ronda la Vieja. On March 24 six farms were robbed, one had six young pigs killed and over 20,000 euros of machinery was stolen. There has been a wave of such robberies for over a year. Now police will patrol as well as stopping and search passing vehicles.

CABLES GOING

Ronda is removing all the unsightly cabling from its historic old town. The project will take three years to complete. Work has started in the plaza de Mondragón with the power and telephone cables being laid underground. The project is being carried out by municipal employees working with Endesa. They recently removed the cables in the Patio de Santa Ana in Padre Jesús.

WALL CONCERTS

The historic Murallas del Carmen in Ronda date from the 8 th century Muslim period. Now they are to have a specially created space for outdoor summer concerts. Around 120,000 euros of job creation funds will be used to build a stage, changing rooms, toilets and install a lighting system. The work will be finished before the summer for the festival Cante Grande.

UNICAJA GOING

Unicaja has announced it is closing its branches in Cartajima and Alpandeire in the Serrania de Ronda. Another three closures in the Serranía are being considered, all only open for limited hours. The mayors and residents of the zone are angry as this could leave them without banking services. Other banks are being approached to see if they will take over the premises.

BRONZE CHESTNUTS

Igualeja has inaugurated its new plaza de Andalucía with a fountain in which the centrepiece is a bronze statute of man and woman gathering chestnuts in a sack. The chestnut is a major source of income in Igualeja and the surrounding villages – all of whom sent their mayors for the celebrations. The 1.87m high statue is by the celebrated Granada sculptor Venancio Sánchez.

NO POISON

Ronda has signed an accord with the Fundación Gypaetus with the objective of working to eliminate the use of poison bait in the municipality. Many animals die each year from eating the bait laid in the rural areas largely dogs and birds. Ronda will now be linked to the network of town halls that are working to stamp out this illegal practice.

DATELINE RONDA THURSDAY MARCH 31, 2011

FRAY LEOPOLDO NEEDS A NEW MIRACLE


By David Eade – Costa del Sol News

Fray Leopoldo de Alpandeíre, named after his birthplace in the Serranía de Ronda village, was beatified last September 12 in Granada. The Capuchin friar served the poor of the city for many years - he is widely followed by Catholics in Andalucía and beyond.

The friar is now on the road to being declared a saint but one of the miracles that propelled him to be beatified has been discounted by the Vatican from the process. This is because it predates his being beatified and miracles for his sainthood have to have occurred after last September.

Fray Alfonso Ramírez Peralbo, who heads the cause towards sainthood, visited the Holy Office in the Vatican on February 9, the 55 th anniversary of the friar’s death. It was then he was given the news which he admits left him shocked.

The previously admitted miracle happened to Ileana Martínez who interceded to Fray Leopoldo and was cured of an aneurism in her aorta. Patrizio Polisca, the medical consultant to the Congregation for the Cause of the Saints and the pope’s personal doctor, had ruled her cure out because of the timing.

Fray Alfonso is not deterred. He says the process to have Fray Leopoldo made a saint continues and adds that many letters have been received from people who credit the friar with being responsible for miraculous cures. These will now be studied closely to see if any meet the strict requirements demanded by the Vatican.

PP LOSS

José Herrera has resigned from the Partido Popular in Ronda after 24 years on the council. He is angry that he is not on the PPs list for the elections saying the decision was personally motivated. Herrera has twice been mayor of Ronda and had his own party before linking with the PP. He is expected to stand as an independent in May.

NO APPEAL

A Málaga court has ruled that an appeal by the Asociación Silvema Serranía de Ronda against an earlier court decision not to proceeded with a case against the mayor of Ronda over the Merinos golf development would not be allowed. The Málaga Prosecutor had recommended the case be dropped as although the mayor had acted unethically he had not broken the law.

DIGITAL POLICE

Out go the walkie talkies. Local police in Ronda are now using a digital system pioneered in Andalucía which means the control knows the exact location of all its officers and can respond to emergency calls within minutes. The 70 officers will have what looks like a mobile phone which sends a signal that shows up on a screen in the command centre.

WELCOME SIGNS

Ronda’s delegate for commerce, British PSOE councillor Charlotte Wilmot, recently presented the 45 elements of the new specially created sign system for the town’s open commercial centre which is one of those officially recognised by the Andalucía government. Around 132,000 euros has been invested on signs including welcome notices, commercial directories, publicity hoardings for the 100 businesses that make up the CCA.

MILLION STEPS

Málaga’s health authority and Montejaque town hall have launched a scheme to improve the health of those living in the municipality. It’s part of the Andalucía health service’s “Por un millón de pasos” campaign aimed to getting the elderly and chronically ill to walk at least a million steps every month ideally in a group so it becomes an obligation and social activity.

BETTER ACCESS

The Ronda Norte health centre which serves 17,000 people in the town and Serranía has seen a number of recent improvements. These include better access including the installation of a lift plus the opening of a special unit for pregnant women. The 127,000 euros lift is specially adapted for the handicapped allowing easy use by those in wheelchairs or using other walking aids.

WIFI PARK

This summer sees the opening of the Edificio Neotechnológica in Ronda. Over 500,000 euros has been spent on the building which on its top floor will have 60 computers all with high speed internet connection. This is part of a campaign to ensure everybody has access to the internet - outside will be a park with Wi Fi installed permitting free access to users.

TO GAUCÍN

The name of Bernardino Gaona is well known in Arriate as he became deputy mayor in 1995 then mayor in 1999 to the coming elections. The Izquierda Unida politician is not standing in May – well at least not in Arriate –instead he pops up in Gaucín where he is one of the reserve candidates as the party looks to freshen up it appeal.

TAJO DEFENDERS

The project to have a raptor spectacular at the auditorium over the Tajo by Ronda’s famous bullring now has some serious opposition. A dozen associations and political groups have combined to preserve the gorge which they want declared a national monument and stop the demonstration of these hunters as they say they will threaten birds nesting below. They want the spectacular moved elsewhere.

ILLEGAL ROAD

Ecologists in the Serranía de Ronda have reported works to create an illegal road by the arroyo del Algarrobo in Genalguacil to the Andalucía environment ministry. They say its invaded the public domain on the river bank. They are also angry over the extraction of filling material from a nearby site – an action which they say has not been licensed by the authorities.

PIG KILLINGS

Residents of the rural areas of Puerto Saúco and Ronda la Vieja are alarmed after for the third time in a year seven farms were raided on one night. Seven Iberian pigs were killed at a farm and in all farm equipment worth over 20,000 euros was stolen. One raid was prevented when the dogs alerted the owner who turned on security lights.

DATELINE RONDA THURSDAY FEBRUARY 17, 2011

ACINIPO IS NOW AN ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROTECTED SITE


By David Eade – Costa del Sol News

The council of the Andalucía government last week placed in the catalogue of historical heritage sites the Roman ruins at Acinipo. It has been entered in the section relating to archaeological zones.

Acinipo is within the municipality of Ronda some 20 kilometres from the town centre. It was the original settlement in the area and is one of the most important archaeological sites in Andalucía. It dates from the first century BC and was used until the Nazari era.

Acinipo has been well preserved given that it was largely uninhabited after the end of the Roman epoch. The site also contains remains from a fortified Iberian settlement with some circular and rectangular prehistoric homes.

Of the Roman town there are the vestiges of the wall, the urbanisation with terraces and some private homes with painted walls. Near the Roman theatre are some ceramic ovens and two necropolises where they held funerals. There are also baths that were part of the forum complex with painted stones dating from the first century AD.

All these remains along with the theatre have been protected since 1931. To this has now been added the Mesa de Ronda la Vieja which takes in a zone of 251.66 hectares.

The theatre is one of the oldest and best preserved in Spain. To this day can be seen the graded seating in consecutive rows. At the front is the orchestra or semi-circular spaces reserved for the dignitaries. These are marked out in pink local stone. Behind the stage rises the high frontage of the building which in the Greek style has three entrances.

The archaeological excavations currently underway have been very fruitful. Amongst the discoveries has been a large extension dating from the first century AD possibly associated with the forum of the town which includes three tiered bathing pools. Also uncovered is part of the water heating system.

Ronda town hall is to create an interpretation centre at Acinipo. However this has been put on hold as both the regional government and environmentalists have objected to its location.

MAYOR ARRESTED

Alpandeire - a Serranía de Ronda village best known as the birth place of Fray Leopoldo – has had its mayor arrested by the Guardia Civil. Gabriel Jiménez is accused of buying stolen heavy construction machinery. A man in San Pedro and Estepona have been arrested for robbery plus another in Ronda for receiving. It remains to be seen whether PSOE insists he resigns.

HABITUAL ROBBER

Local police recently arrested a 35-year-old Ronda man for breaking into a bar in the plaza Duquesa de Parcent making off with the till. First arrested in mid-January he was charged with a total of 18 such offences - that total has risen to 24. The one man crime wave was released by the court but now has been jailed for 18 months.

BONES FOUND

During construction work on a site between the calles Torrejones and Empedrada in the San Francisco old quarter of Ronda ten skeletons and coins have been uncovered. All face towards Mecca and it is believed the site was a burial ground dating back to the Muslim era. Two of the skeletons have been identified as children aged around 3 and 8 years.

ROUND-ABOUTS

Roundabouts are on the agenda in Ronda where large amounts are being spent to easy the traffic flow. The new 23,000 euros roundabout inaugurated last week is easing traffic through the industrial estate which has seen its flow increase to 13,000 vehicles a day because of diversions caused by the massive new access programme. Two new roundabouts are planned for the industrial zone.

SERRANÍA PROJECTS

Two villages in the Serranía de Ronda are benefiting from projects funded by the province. In Faraján there is now an old people’s residence which can cater for 29 people from throughout the area and has created ten jobs. In Alpandeire the first brick has been laid for the new municipal swimming pool. Catering for 156 it will be completed for next year.

LIGHTS OUT

Montejaque faces having the plug pulled. It owes around 240,000 euros to Eléctrica Serranía de Ronda with the town hall’s bill dating back to 2001. The case has gone to Ronda’s court because money was assigned to pay the debt and used for other purposes. The mayor says the debt is no higher than other municipalities and money was used on vital services.

LEAVING TOWN

The parents of María Esther, the 13-year-old murdered in Arriate on January 20, will leave the village after the mass in her memory. They are from Paterna in Cádiz but moved to Arriate to work five years ago. A petition is making the rounds in Arriate demanding the Ley del Menor is changed to increase the penalties for minors convicted of blood crimes.

MOUNTAIN RESCUE

An 8-year-old girl was rescued from the Sierra de las Nieves by Ronda’s Guardia Civil, fire brigade, Protección Civil and forest guards. The child was enjoying a day at Puerto de Los Pilones, one of the highest peaks in the park, with her parents when she fell injuring her back. Rescuers took her by stretcher to Quejifales refuge where an ambulance was waiting.

STORK’S NEST

A campaign is underway to extend the number of stork nests in the Serranía. The birds are widespread in Cádiz and Huelva but less so in Málaga with nests in Alameda, Ronda and Arriate. A new nest has been placed in the high chimney of an old soap factory in La Indiana and it is hoped that young birds from Ronda and Arriate will nest there.

DATELINE RONDA THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 16, 2010

HOLY WATER FROM ALPANDEIRE

On Sunday Fray Leopoldo de Alpandeire was beatified in Granada before a crowd of around 120,000 at the Armilla air force base. The humble friar was also mentioned by the Pope at his blessing in Rome before he started his travels in Britain.

Now the people of Fray Leopoldo’s home village of Alpandeire in the Serranía de Ronda want to find a company to bottle the local water. Tests have been carried out on the water which comes from an aquifer 115 metres deep. It is of high quality and very healthy with its qualities being credited with the longevity of the residents – so now the town hall hopes to market Agua de Fray Leopoldo.

2012 CREDIT
Ronda says it intends to seek loans to ease the financial crisis through to 2012. The government has placed limits on what municipalities can borrow but this will not affect Ronda as the administration says the amounts borrowed will not exceed the 20 per cent indebted level cut off point. In 2009 the debt of the town hall was 17.5 million euros.

DRUGS PLANTATION
The Guardia Civil has seized 22 marihuana plants of various sizes that were being grown in three houses and a rural zone of Arriate close to the cemetery. They have also arrested three people who are the owners of the properties. The drugs were found after an operation by the officers to survey all properties and land for the presence of such plants.

RETIRED CENTRE
Ronda is to have a purpose built retired peoples centre which will be constructed on the site of the former public works depot in El Furte. The town hall has responded to a long-standing request from the AMARO association that has over 2,000 members but currently can only cater for 400 of them. The 250,000 euros will come from the Zapatero investment plan.

HORSE FAIR
Once the celebrations of the Pedro Romero feria were over in Ronda the fair ground was given over to the traditional horse, donkey and mule market. Buyers and sellers travelled from all over Andalucía and Badajoz for the event. The first day was spent looking over the livestock. Almost 500 animals were at the market and over 70 transactions or swaps were made.

DOWN UNDER
Municipal employees in Ronda has started work in the historic old town placing the various cables out of sight underground. The project will take two years to complete and will involve technicians from the electricity and telephone companies. At the same time rubbish containers will be located below ground. The town hall is spending 1.5 million euros in improving the historic area.

CLOSED DOWN
Ronda’s delegate for security, Rafael Lara, has announced that an establishment in the carrera Espinel – better known as La Bola – has been closed down for selling alcohol to minors. Local police moved in during the town’s annual fair when officers observed the illegal sale of alcohol. The shop defied a temporary closure order ahead of inspection and a permanent closure measure was imposed.

SWEET GRAPES
The grape harvest is being gathered in the Serranía de Ronda. The expectation is it will be up by five per cent over last year. The bodegas anticipate 1.1million kilos of grapes will be harvested which will translate into the production of 850,000 bottles of wine. The sector hopes there will be no rise in temperatures to affect the acidity of the fruit.

WATER WORKS
Cuevas del Becerro is spending 187,000 euros on two projects that will create 75 agrarian work places. The first scheme involves the calle Andalucía which is to receive a major upgrade and beautification to attract tourists. There will also be work at the source of the river that runs through the village where the channels will be improved to prevent it overflowing.

LIFE SAVERS
Medical staff from Benaoján have been giving a series of courses in the neighbouring village of Montejaque to be train residents on how to deal with heart attacks to reduce the number of deaths caused by the wait for an ambulance. Training has been given to those who are in frequent contact with residents such as teachers, business people and the police.

DATELINE RONDA THURSDAY AUGUST 12, 2010

WHAT FUTURE FOR THE CASA DEL REY MORO

By David Eade – Costa del Sol News

The Casa del Rey Moro, one of the most important historic buildings in Ronda, has been saved from auction. The court that had issued an order for the property to be sold on July 27 because of a long standing unpaid bill has announced the debt of 150,000 euros has been settled.

The small palace dates from the 13 th century and also gives access to La Mina created by the slaves of the Muslim rulers plus historic gardens. Its German owners have wanted to create Ronda’s first five-star hotel in the building but over the last ten years the project has been held up by red-tape and the need to receive permission from the Andalucía culture ministry because of the site’s protected status.

The owner, Johen Knie, having stepping in at the 11 th hour to pay the debt must now decide what to do with the Casa del Rey. The property is in a state of ruin and earlier this year Knie staged a rooftop protest claiming the town hall was deliberately holding up his applications to develop the site.

This led to his arrest by the local police followed by claim and counter claim over whether his detention was illegal. To add spice to the mix the mayor of Ronda, Antonio Marín, has talked of the compulsory purchase of the historic building to save it from collapse.

FRAY LEOPOLDO CENTRE FOR ALPANDEIRE

Fray Leopoldo was born in the small Serranía de Málaga village of Alpandeire. He will be beatified in a ceremony expected to draw 300,000 people in Granada on September 12. The humble friar is renowned throughout Andalucía for his work amongst the poor on the streets of Granada.

Now work is underway in Alpandeire on a two floor shrine that will have various uses. The mayor Gabriel Jiménez says the sanctuary will not be completed to 2013. It will have a hall that can be used for religious services and meetings. These will be a museum dedicated to the life of the Capuchin monk with objects from his life.

The budget for the centre is 400,000 euros part of which comes from Málaga province and the friends of Fray Leopoldo association. It will have a small shop in the building to sell t-shirts and memorabilia in order to raise funds.

JOBLESS DOWN
For the second consecutive month the jobless total has fallen in Ronda but whether that is a result of economic policy or the holiday peak season has not been determined. There are now 4,042 unemployed and it is hoped the figure will fall below 4,000 by the year’s end. Women are still the worst hit with 2,138 of the total, men 1,904.

FRAY ROAD
The president of the Málaga deputation, Salvador Pendón, plus mayors from the Serranía inaugurated on Friday the newly resurfaced road that connects the scenic Genal Valley with Alpandeire. The refurbished road is five kilometres long and cost 2.3 million euros to complete. Fray Leopoldo, who will be beatified in Granada in September, is from Alpandeire and many are expected to visit his birthplace.

SAME DAY
Residents of Ronda who wish to carry out small works or improvements to their property can now obtain a licence on the same day. The town hall says it will take ten minutes to process the required paperwork. Excluded from the system are projects in the protected old quarter which still have to be examined closely plus any work costing over 2,000 euros.

BULLFIGHTING OK
Cataluña has banned bullfighting but Ronda deems itself to be the home of the fiesta nacional. Hence the mayor Antonio Marín has asked the Andalucía government to deem the town the centre of studies and investigation of “Tauromaquia”. Ronda’s bullring was founded in 1785 – the oldest in Spain – and the mayor wants it to have the role to defend the traditions of Andalucía.

TRAFFIC DELAYS
The work to build a by-pass around the village of Arriate so heavy traffic passing to and from Ronda can avoid going through its narrow streets has been put on hold because of the economic crisis. The work started in the Spring of last year and is very advanced. The ministry of public works insists the paralysation will not dramatically affect the road.

RESIGN, RESIGN
A second Partido Popular councillor in Gaucín, Diego Trujillo, has resigned. He follows in the footsteps of Manuel Moreno in 2008. The PP mayor, Francisco Ruiz, also announced he was stepping down earlier this year but has still to leave the bankrupt town hall. There are rumours of rows between Trujillo and Ruiz although he insists his departure is purely for personal reasons.

PAY LESS
Public employees had their salaries reduced by 5 per cent in the government cuts. This led a Ronda furniture manufacturer to offer a 5 per cent discount to all government and town hall workers. If you are a teacher, in the police, Guardia Civil, health service then you can apply. The company also has special plans for the unemployed geared to individual circumstances.

DATELINE RONDA THURSDAY JUNE 17, 2010

NO PAY FOR GAUCÍN WORKERS

By David Eade – Costa del Sol News

The workers employed by Gaucín town hall are starting a series of protests as they have not been paid for April or May. The municipality is ruled by a Partido Andalucista – Partido Popular coalition and the 20 staff say they have no idea when the situation will be regularised.

As a first step they have written a letter to the mayor, the PP’s Francisco Ruiz who has indicated that he is about to step down. They informed the mayor they have families that need to be housed and fed and without being paid they can’t fulfil their obligations. They have not ruled out further protests unless they receive a prompt reply to their letter.

A spokesperson for the workers say the situation at the town hall is dire with a mayor who says he is going to resign but hasn’t and a deputy mayor waiting in the wings who has no authority to take action.

The spokesperson for PSOE and former mayor, Teodoro de Molina, said Gaucín has no government. He added the situation was chaotic and the workers lament that the good name of Gaucín has been dragged through the mud after the media highlighted the political scandal surrounding the barred PA mayor Francisco Corbacho and Ruiz’s previous pronouncements that the municipality was bankrupt.

The mayor says the financial plight of the town hall has been largely caused by the loss of income from town planning licences. He is also hopeful that the municipality will receive a good income from the pending sale of this year’s court harvest although it should be noted that the market is very difficult at the present.

Ruiz wants the workers to know that he has not taken any salary for the past three months – although that does little to ease their plight. He insists he intends to step down this month once the cork has been sold and there is money in the town hall account.

RONDA’S FUTURE FLAG COULD BE RED OF CASTILLA

The project is underway to create a new official flag for Ronda based on the historic records held in archives throughout the country.

At a recent meeting of the commission designated to come up with the design it was suggested that the background colour could be the red of ancient Castilla.

The commission is presided over by the mayor, Antonio Marín, but includes the official chronicler, the delegate for culture, the director of the historical archive plus four historians.

Advice is also being taken from the religious brotherhoods that take part in the Semana Santa processions, the Real Maestranza de Caballería – whose own library has documents dating back to the years of the Reyes Católicas, and the Arunda historic association.

At the first meeting the commission looked through old documents to determine what the ancient flag of the town would have been. Apart from national documents they include the Chancillería de Granada and Archivo de Indias but nothing helpful was found.

The members also laid out what the legal requirements were for designing the flag and having it approved by the regional government and the council. The official chronicler, Manuel Garrido, said there was agreement that the elements on the flag should be based on the historical records and documentation.

MATADORS HONOURED
Ronda is to have “un paseo de los Toreros” a walkway similar to that in Hollywood dedicated to film stars. The hand prints of famous bullfighters will be placed into the pavement of the Blas Infante gardens by the town’s celebrated bull ring. A commission will be set up to determine which matadors should be honoured each year at the traditional Goyesca bullfight.

ABANDONED DOGS
Local police in Ronda have reported a rise in the number of abandoned dogs on the streets due to the economic crisis. Many of the animals are large or potentially dangerous breeds. In less than a month officers have recovered around 40 of these dogs who when abandoned often attack livestock. Officers have asked people to approach them rather than dump their dogs.

ROUNDABOUT WORK
Fifty unemployed people in Ronda will have work for the coming weeks as they are given temporary jobs constructing three roundabouts in the town. The first will be on the busy avenida de Málaga which has long been a demand of residents. The second will be in a traffic black spot on El Fuerte industrial estate with the third on the avenida Andalucía.

ROBBER CAUGHT
Guardia Civil in Benaoján arrested a knife wielding 20-year-old who on June 4 broke in to the home of an 85-year-old woman, put a plastic bag over her head whilst he stole her jewellery. The woman had to be treated at the health centre for cuts and shock. Officers were given a description and they soon detained the youth and recovered two bracelets.

EROSKI DOUBT
The Partido Popular in Ronda is questioning whether Eroski intends to proceed with its major commercial centre in the town because of the economic crisis. The company has acquired the former football ground a year ago but the PP says Eroski has not paid over the 2.8 million euros for the land or started any work and demands the situation should be clarified.

DANGEROUS DRIVING
The road that links Ronda with Setenil was badly damaged by the rains in January and there are still 50 landslides on the three roads in the area. This means tourists cannot visit the ancient Roman ruins at Acinipo and the local residents have to take their lives in to their hands by driving on closed roads in order to go to and fro.

PGOU AID
The Diputación de Málaga has drawn up new local development plans for Benamargosa, El Borge, Genalguacil, Alpandeire, Cañete la Real, Faraján, Iznate and Júzcar – all municipalities of under 5,000 residents who do not have the resources to produce the documents themselves. Diputación president, Salvador Pendón, says the PGOUs allow for sensible development with 1643 new homes of which 727 are social housing units.

HOSPITAL WASTE
Seprona and Ronda’s Green Patrol are investigating sewage contamination in the arroyo de la Toma by the hospital and fair ground. Ecologists have accused the hospital of the leaks but this allegation has been denied by the management. The hospital has its own water treatment plant - officials say it’s working normally but environmentalists say it’s obsolete and water pours into the stream.

DATELINE RONDA THURSDAY MAY 27, 2010

EROTIC PHONE CALLS CHARGED TO TOWN HALL

By David Eade – Costa del Sol News

Diego Gil, the socialist deputy mayor in Cuevas del Becerro, has a mobile phone which is charged to the town hall. Now it has emerged that over a three month period he made frequent calls to erotic telephone lines running up a bill of 240 euros.

His secret was made public by the Izquierda Unida opposition. Last Friday he attended a meeting with 100 local residents and apologised for his actions but insisted he would not resign.
He admitted that he had used the phone which had run up a large bill for the small municipality but argued he had committed no crime. Red faced he attacked his accusers saying they had said he had committed many outrages which simply wasn’t true.

Gil said he had informed the mayor, Joaquin Esquina, what he had done and he had paid in to the town hall the 240 euros to cover the calls. In fact he stated the calls cost no more than 100 euros but had made the additional payments anyway.

The councillor has put his future at the disposal of the local PSOE. However the socialist party has refused to accept his resignation saying he has admitted his mistake and pointing out the valuable work he had carried out over the past three years.

He also has the backing of his mayor who stated the offence was not so serious as to require his resignation. He also believed that the cost was no more than 37 euros – but as Gil hid the pages on which the private calls were listed, so causing the suspicions of the IU, the truth may not be made public.

The IU says it first opted not to publicise the matter because it did not want to cause embarrassment to the councillor’s family. However it decided to act as it said it could not take part in a cover up over the misuse of public funds.

This is the second scandal to hit Cuevas del Becerro town hall over the last 18 months. At the start of 2009 the mayor denounced the municipal accountant, Juan María González, who is accused of taking 360,000 euros of town hall funds. He currently awaits trial at Ronda court.

SAN PEDRO ROAD TO GO AHEAD – BUT NOT YET

The new Málaga delegate for public works and housing, Enrique Benítez, has stressed that the regional government still intends to connect Ronda with the Costa del Sol by a rapid road.

The project was announced in November 2007 ahead of the 2008 elections. At the time the Andalucía minister of public works, Concepción Gutiérrez, promised an investment of between 350 and 400 million euros would be allocated to the scheme which would be finished by 2012.

Well 2010 is nearing its halfway point and not a brick has been laid. Hence 2012 is no longer a reality and the recent debate has been on whether the road project would go ahead or be dropped. It should be a toll road which presents many environmental problems but would cut travel times from 50 to 20 minutes replacing a dangerous mountain road with 365 bends with a fast highway.

Needless to say the project has become a battleground between the political parties with the Partido Popular accusing PSOE of announcing it to buy votes in Ronda but never intending to proceed. The former provincial delegate for public works, Dolores Fernández, had insisted it would go ahead but given the high cost required a viability study.

Now Benítez has restated the regional government’s promise to build the road – but not yet. Whether that is an empty political pledge remains to be seen but many are backing plans to improve the current road by removing many of the bends and adding lanes rather than embarking on the new motorway through environmentally sensitive land.

FAIR SUCCESS
Ronda’s Real Feria de Mayo – the oldest in Andalucía dating back to the Reyes Católicas – returned last weekend after being postponed in 2009 due to the economic crisis. Although it received less funding from the town hall it proved to be a great success attracting over 25,000 visitors. The event is of major importance to the farming sector including livestock sales and displays.

ENGLISH UPGRADE
The famous Paseo de los Ingleses in Ronda that has sadly become in recent years very dilapidated and abandoned is now to receive a major facelift. The works on the walkway behind the Reina Victoria Hotel along the scenic Tajo will cost 273,000 euros from a loan taken out by the town hall with the Instituto de Crédito Oficial to improve tourism facilities.

HEALTH CENTRE
The Serranía de Ronda village of Alpandeire is to have a new health centre thanks to an agreement with the Málaga health delegation. The building will cover 159 square metres, have two consulting rooms plus waiting areas for the 278 residents. A doctor and nurse will be allocated to the centre offering the basic vaccination, blood pressure, diabetics and old people care.

LESS DEMAND
During the height of the economic crisis in 2009 some 340 families depended on the assistance of Ronda town hall for basic food stuffs and household needs. So far this year the demand seems to be lessening with the social welfare department reporting 17 families no longer needed help. La Dehesa, Padre Jésus and Casas de Hierro are the worst affected areas.

FOUNTAIN SAVED
The fountain in the plaza de la Vera Cruz has been at the centre of Benarrabá life for 25 years. Recently it formed the basis of a local battle between the town hall that wanted a smaller fountain because it interfered with stands for the feria and the residents who insisted it should stay. In a referendum residents voted to save their fountain.

ROAD FIRE
The winding mountain road between San Pedro de Alcántara and Ronda was blocked last week after a lorry fire. The vehicle was towing a fair attraction to Ronda when the petrol tank caught fire. The driver was unable to separate cab from the trailer which was soon engulfed in flames closing the road to traffic for 90 minutes whilst fire teams tackled the inferno.

DATELINE RONDA THURSDAY MAY 20, 2010

ULTIMATUM TO ARENAL 2000
By David Eade – Costa del Sol News

Ronda town hall has run out of patience with Arenal 2000 over the 500 home urbanisation it constructed at La Planilla. Now it has been issued with an ultimatum – complete the infrastructure works or lose the two million euros deposit it lodged with the town hall.

The delegate for works, Juan Fraile, said a two month deadline had been issued to Arenal 2000. If the works had not been carried out by June 26 then it would lose the two million euros. Fraile took this tough stance after repeated requests to the troubled company went unanswered.

Work was started on the Planilla development nearly eight years ago. Yet street lighting has still to be fully installed, pavements finished and green zones planted. In addition Arenal had undertaken to create an archaeological park to house the prehistoric dolmans that were on the land and removed so the homes could be constructed.

The council has now given the licences of first occupation to the residents and the majority of the houses are occupied. However the issuing of these licences was delayed as highlighted in Ronda News at the time because Arenal 2000 had not completed the works. This led to many purchasers having to pay the finance on their new homes yet at the same time rent other accommodation or live with their families.

These same residents say there are numerous deficiencies in their homes that need to be rectified by Arenal 2000. They have been pressing the town hall to use the deposit money paid over by the company to carry out these repairs and complete the infrastructure. The town hall has now agreed and hence the ultimatum.

At a press conference to announce the town hall’s actions the deputy mayor and councillor for citizen participation, Francisco Cañestro, told the Costa del Sol News: “the parks are full of weeds and scrub, the electricity cables are in a bad state and the street lighting is very defective which is very obvious at night.”

THREE FAKE DENTISTS ARRESTED
The Guardia Civil have arrested three people who were acting as dentists in Ronda and Cortes de la Frontera without the appropriate qualifications. Two face charge of causing injuries to the patients including the use of radiation equipment and all three for impersonating professionals.
A fourth person has also been arrested and he is the owner of one of the dental clinics at which the trio were employed. He is accused of collaborating with them in the scam.

The two clinics concerned were inspected by officials from the Andalucía ministry of health as well as the ministry of work and immigrations when the irregularities came to light.
A patient of one of the fake dentists had to be rushed to the emergency unit at Cortes de la Frontera health centre after undergoing treatment at the clinic.

The charges also relate to the use of medical prescriptions using fake names, the name of the clinic owner or in one case a stamp of a doctor at the Cortes de la Frontera health centre which had been taken without his knowledge.

Medications were also purchased using the fake prescriptions from pharmacies. Amongst these was the drug Trankimazín that cost just 3.90 euros but was then sold on to patients for the inflated price of 160 euros.

ANGRY SCENES
Ronda played the last soccer game of the season against promotion rivals Motril before over 3,000 spectators. A win or draw could have seen the home side promoted to Division 2B. The ref disallowed two legal goals and turned down a penalty appeal. Ronda fans were furious after Motril were given a penalty in the 98 th minute consigning Ronda to Division 3.

SALARY CUT
IU in Ronda has called on the town hall to make cuts in order to reduce its expenses. It wants councillors and officials employed by the administration to take a 10 per cent pay cut. In addition it wants a 50 per cent reduction in the entertainment and publicity budget. The objective is to save money to create jobs and boost the economy.

TECHNO CENTRE
Tenders are being accepted to create Ronda’s new Edificio Neotecnológico to be located next to the Casa de la Juventud. The objective is to make the internet and other new technologies available to local residents. Over 430,000 euros is being allocated to the project from Plan Zapatero funds to be the economic crisis creating seven jobs. It should be operational in nine months.

ROAD CHECK
Ronda has announced it is to publish a full list of all the public rights of way in the municipality after the Andalucía high court ordered the list to be issued in full. Now any properties in rural areas that have incorporated these rights of way or fenced them off will be required to open them up or to hand the land back.

DEMOCRACY WATCH
A Ronda group including professionals, students, writers, artists and foreign residents has been established “to return to the town the sense of democracy that has been lost”. It will monitor the abuses of power to demonstrate that democracy no longer exists or is in danger. It is concerned over the actions of the mayor and his fellow ex-PA councillors being classified as political turncoats.

BONES FOUND
The Guardia Civil are investigating a find of bones in Alpandeire in the Serranía de Ronda. They were discovered by archaeologists working on a project in the area. They believe the bones are human but very old. An autopsy is underway which it is hoped can determine the age and possible cause of death to determine if any further action is required.

DANGEROUS CARGO
A freight train was derailed in Ronda station whilst carrying a dangerous cargo. The incident happened at 21.40 last Friday when 20 wagons carrying frozen liquid oxygen and acid were being pulled by a locomotive that slipped off the track. A specialist fire brigade team attended the scene, cordoned off the area including the level crossings but there was no damage or injuries.

DATELINE RONDA TUESDAY APRIL15, 2010

HEART ATTACK VICTIM’S NINETY MINUTE WAIT
By David Eade - Costa del Sol News

The lack of adequate health care has again hit the headlines in the Serranía de Ronda.

In April 2008 residents of the Valle de Genal demonstrated against the Andalucía health service (SAS) demanding a second ambulance for the area after the death of the young man ‘Lucky’ who died from peritonitis after delays in sending an ambulance to his aid in Gaucín.

Now it has emerged that on March 24 a 76-year-old woman living in the neighbouring village of Algatocín was left waiting 90 minutes for treatment after suffering a heart attack. The ambulance with its medical team that is assigned to the area was in Ronda at the time attending to another emergency. It was two and a half hours after the attack that she was finally transferred to hospital.

Her daughter says that in December her mother had suffered an attack of angina resulting in her being kept in the intensive care unit at Ronda’s hospital for four days. When she phoned the Algatocín health centre at 22.00 on March 24 she was told the ambulance had left five minutes ago for Ronda.

The family decided to take their mother the 25 kilometres to Ronda’s hospital in their own car. On the road they called the 061 emergency service to seek help. As they neared Atajate the 061 service told them to return to Algatocín and they would send an ambulance from Cortes de la Frontera health centre.

They returned home and then had to wait 15 minutes for the ambulance to arrive. The medical team gave her mother first response treatment – 90 minutes after she suffered the heart attack. Further delays allegedly caused by Algatocín health centre meant she had to wait another hour before going to hospital.

Once at the hospital she spent three days in the emergency unit as intensive care had no beds. She was then released and it was on her return home that her family spoke out over her plight – it was a miracle she survived they declared.

For its part the Serranía health service insists that as soon as the woman’s condition was known, as the Algatocín ambulance was on an emergency, the nearest medical team was made available.

There are five emergency stations in the area – Ronda, Algatocín, Benaoján, Cortes de la Frontera and El Burgo which have six ambulances between them.

LESS JOBLESS
Ronda’s unemployment total dropped by 52 in March. The total now stands at 4,153 according to the regional government’s employment ministry. Women head the table with 2,163 jobless with 1,990 men on the dole. The town received a boost over Easter when businesses recruited staff for the holiday period. The town hall has provided work for 208 through its job creation programmes.

ACCESS CUT
Ronda’s 13.3 million road upgrade programme being funded by the regional government has led to the access to the town from the A-374 Sevilla road at the Ciervo junction being cut for seven months. Traffic for the industrial estate can enter via the Olivar de las Monjas junction whilst vehicles heading for the town centre are advised to use the avenida de Málaga.

NOT US
The Partido Popular has angrily rejected claims by the mayor Antonio Marín and his socialist deputy Francisco Cañestro that it has opposed the connection of Ronda to the AVE high speed rain service. The party was targeted after the PP administration in Marbella called for the AVE line to come to the Costa del Sol town rather than Ronda and the Serranía.

MUSIC SCHOOL
Ronda’s delegate for education, Lidia García, urged those interested in enrolling in the municipal music school to sign-up as soon as possible at the Casa del Jalifa. Closing date is April 30 and the school can cater for 265 pupils with the various courses starting in May. Amongst the work shops are music stimulation for infants plus special lessons for the over 50s.

PENSION THEFT
The home run by the Hermanitas de los Pobres in Ronda has reported that 3,000 euros was stolen on Easter Sunday. The money was largely the proceeds from a collection held during Semana Santa and was taken whilst the sisters and the residents were attending mass. The distraught nuns said 1,000 euros was money allocated for the pensions of the elderly inmates.

FLAG ROW
The Serranía village of Alpandeire was honoured with the title of town in 1815 by King Fernando VII after it valiant defiance against the French occupation forces. Now it is facing another battle over the designs for the municipal flag and coat of arms. The design favoured by residents was rejected at a council meeting with opposing parties at loggerheads demanding new designs.

JOB BACK
The Partido Popular mayor of Gaucín, Francisco Ruiz, has now quit his post and will be rejoining the regional government’s ministry of the environment as a forest agent on April 15. His deputy the Partido Andalucista councillor Francisco Macias is putting himself forward as his permanent replacement. Meanwhile PSOE’s Málaga provincial secretary has slammed the PP for the irresponsible behaviour of its mayor.

DATELINE RONDA TUESDAY JANUARY 12, 2010

BUCKING THE TREND

In December the number of unemployed in Ronda dropped shaprly which bucked the trend for municipalities of over 20,000 people in Málaga province that all showed an increase.

According to date provided by the Andalucía ministry of employment the total number of jobless in Ronda was 3,999. That is a decline of 102 over the November figure of 4,101. Mayor Antonio Marín said in presenting the statistics this represented a fall of 2.5 per cent.

There is a heavy imbalance in Ronda between male and females in the jobless tables with women bearing the brunt. Hence Marín expressed his satisfaction that 95 per cent of those who found work in December were women.

Marín credited the job creation schemes under the government’s plan Zapatero and the regional government’s Proteja for helping peg back unemployment in the municipality. The town hall has also cut its spending including the cancellation of last year’s May fair and used the money on creating work for 300 residents.

Of the other major municipalities in Málaga province Málaga city, Fuengirola, Torremolinos, Antequera, Marbella, Veléz-Málaga, Alhaurin de la Torre, Estepona, Mijas, Rincón de la Victoria and Coín all showed increases. Whilst in Rincón de la Victoria the leap was just 7 per cent in Estepona it was a massive 291, in Marbella 238 and in Mijas 234 per cent.

FIRST DEATH CRASH IN SERRANÍA

It was the first fatal accident in the Serranía de Ronda of 2010. On Monday morning at 7.50 a car left the MA-9300 road in Gaucín and fell down in to a gulley. The 45-year-old driver from Bormujos in Sevilla was killed but his two passengers aged 31 and 36 years only received light injuries.

According to the Guardia Civil the accident was at km 2.5 on the road that links Gaucín with El Colmenar. The tragedy happened on a bend and the car’s fall was slowed by the bushes and undergrowth.

One of the injured was taken to Ronda hospital but the other declined further treatment. The victim was travelling in the back of the car and all three worked for Copersa. They were a security team engaged in the improvement work on the Ronda to Algeciras railway line.

Ronda fire brigade, the 061 ambulance service, the Guardia Civil from Gaucín and Marbella along with the local police all attended the scene. They all reported on the difficulty in carrying out the rescue and recovery because of the heavy rain and lie of the land.

FRAY LEOPOLDO TO BE BEATIFIED AT AIR BASE

Fray Leopoldo, the friar who is on the path to being declared a saint by the Catholic Church, will be beatified on September 12 at an air force base in Armilla in Granada province. The site was chosen because of the large number of people who want to attend the event which will be presided over by the Archbishop of Granada, Francisco Javier Martínez.

Fray Leopoldo was born in the white village of Alpandeire in the Serranía de Ronda. Visitors can drive along the Fray Leopoldo route that runs through the village of his birth and around the area in which he grew up. However it was whilst he was a friar based in Granada that his work amongst the poor of that city earned him the respect and devotion that led to the calls for him to be declared a saint.

It was 49 years ago that the process of having Fray Leopoldo declared a saint were started and on September 12 his name will be inscribed in the book of the beatified by the prefect of the Congregation for the Cause of the Saints, Angelo Amato. Services will also be held in Málaga and Alpandeire to mark the event.

Fray Leopoldo is held in great veneration in the Serranía village and the local people have been at the forefront of the movement to have their famous son declared a saint. Hence there will be major celebrations there when he is declared blessed by the Catholic Church.

PASOS LARGOS
A wine from the Pasos Largos vineyard has been listed in the Best Wines of Spain Guide produced by Repsol. Pasos Largos is a red wine created in the Serranía de Ronda and is the only one from Málaga province to make it in to the prestigious guide. It is judged as the best red wine in Andalucía and is rated one of the top wines in Spain.

TAKING ACTION
Ronda mayor, Antonio Marín, has taken action against the opposition Partido Popular councillor José Herrera for “disobedience” at a recent council meeting. Marín ordered him to sit down and stop speaking on five occasions but Herrera refused to give way. The row is over the new magazine that the mayor is editing in which he is said to ridicule the opposition and hostile media.

SNOWY RONDA
No sooner had Ronda taken a breather from the torrential rain than the snow fell. On Friday residents and those in surrounding areas woke up to a white scene with several inches of snow on roofs, cars and on the ground in rural zones. There were numerous accidents on the San Pedro road - drivers were urged to use chains on their vehicles’ wheels.

HOW MUCH
The true extent of the recent rainfall in Ronda has become apparent with the release of the figures for the period from December 16 to January 7 when 578 litres of rain fell which is more than half of the 973 litres recorded over the year. The worst day was December 24 with 113 litres with 61 and 57 litres on previous days.

MUSHROOM MUSEUM
The village of Júzcar in the Serranía de Ronda is this year to open a cultural centre that will also host a tourist office and a museum dedicated to the wild fungi found in the area where a mushroom fest is celebrated every November. It is one of a number of projects that will be realised with 252,000 euros funding from Málaga province.

YEAR ON
The highly dangerous 2010 Dakar Rally is underway and January 13 marks one year since the Ronda biker Cristóbal Guerrero was seriously injured. His progress over the last 12 months has been slow but sure. He has spent a lot of time at a specialist clinic in Barcelona but was well enough to spend the festive season with his family in Ronda.

TOURISM PROJECTS
Ronda issued this week the tenders for three tourism projects. Together they will see an investment of 2,663,000 euros. Two will involve the enlargement of the Paseo de los Ingleses and the Cuenca gardens both of which are located above the edge of the Tajo gorge. The main road into Ronda – the avenida de Málaga – will also be upgraded over its first stretch.

DATELINE RONDA TUESDAY DECEMBER 15, 2009

SWITCH OFF OF ANALOGUE TV HAS STARTED


Since today (Tuesday) the process of turning off the analogue TV transmissions has started. The switch to digital is now underway and 20 municipalities in Málaga province are abandoning the traditional form of receiving their television programmes for the new TDT service.


The process has started in the Serranía de Ronda and the western Costa del Sol with Algotocín, Atajate. Benadalid, Benahavís, Benalauría, Casares, Cortes de la Frontera, Estepona, Faraján, Gaucín, Genalgaucil, Igualeja, Jimera de Libar, Jubrique, Júzcar, Montejaque and Parauta leading the way.


According to information issued by the Ministry of Industry, Tourism and Commerce around 80,000 people will be affected by the switch. As the transmission and relay stations carrying the old signal are switched off the TV screens in those homes will go blank and owners will have to purchase new sets or the adapters required by the digital system.


However it would appear that some residents of these zones will be without TV whilst the engineers catch up on the installation programme. A number of people in the Serranía villages are complaining that whilst they have acquired the digital decoders nobody has yet turned up to install them.


RONDA’S PA MAYOR AND COUNCILLORS DECLARED TURNCOATS


The mayor of Ronda, Antonio Marín, and his eight fellow Partido Andalucista councillors have been declared political turncoats by the Comisión de Expertos Independientes del Pacto Antitransfuguismo.


In June they abandoned the party and joined PSOE although they now sit as non-aligned councillors. Previously Marín had entered in to a coalition with PSOE so that party now rules the town.


After studying the situation in detail the commission was unanimous in its verdict that PSOE had won control of the town hall without the councillors resigning and seeking re-election. Indeed although many people voted for Partido Andalucista councillors at the last election their voices and views are now totally unrepresented at the town hall.


On December 17 the Mesa Antitransfuguismo will decide whether to ratify the commission’s decision or to reject it. Mayor Marín says he is not over worried by the decision as it has to be ratified and declared that anyway he had Ronda’s interests at heart.


Such sentiments cut little ice with the opposition groups. The secretary general of the Partido Andalucista, Pilar González, called for the resignation of Marín and his fellow former PA councillors adding that Ronda should not have a mayor who is a turncoat.


The two opposition parties on the council, the Partido Popular and Izquierda Unida, claimed that the mayor and his councillors had cheated the people of the town and had assaulted democracy.

The local secretary of PSOE, Francisco Cañestro, remained silent on the commission’s findings and its verdict that its party had benefitted by the actions of the mayor and his PA team. Depending how the Mesa rules it could have a significant effect on the future of government in the town of the Tajo.

PEACE KEEPERS
The Tercio Alejandro Farnesio 4 of the Spanish Legion based in Ronda are preparing to go to Afghanistan in March. The force will consist of 600 Legionnaires backed by armoured units. It is not the first time that these crack troops have been to Afghanistan and they have also been sent to the Lebanon, Kosovo and Bosnia under the banner of the UN.

SERRANÍA BOOST
The Director General of rural development, a department of the Andalucía ministry of agriculture, visited Ronda to announce that 47 million euros will be assigned between now and 2014 for projects in the Serranía. This amount marks a seven fold increase over the previous budget. Some 192 projects will benefit creating 290 jobs, 88 will be for women and 40 for young people.

PUBLIC PARKING
The former military installations by Ronda’s sports complex close to the Renfe station will be demolished and resurfaced. The land covers some14,000 square metres and has been used for the parking of lorries. Now it will be converted into a parking area for cars with 60 spaces. The funding for the project will come from the Plan Zapatero and cost four million euros.

FULL HOUSE
The effects of the economic crisis seem to have passed Ronda by during the recent long holiday weekend. The tourist office reports that hotels were 90 per cent full and that 43.6 per cent of the visitors stayed two nights in the town. The tourist office received 2,410 enquiries, 2.5 per cent more than last year, 78.4 per cent of visitors being Spanish.

WOMEN SUFFER
Jobless figures for Ronda showed a 20 person increase in November over October but it is women who are the worst hit in the town of the Tajo. Not only were 18 of that increase female but of the 4,101 rondeños out of work 2,158 are women. The town hall is enacting various short-term work creation programmes but they only offer 166 jobs.

DATELINE RONDA TUESDAY AUGUST 25, 2009

SOMETHING OLD, SOMETHING NEW
By David Eade

The regional government’s culture and heritage ministry ruled some months ago that the car park that occupied the large plaza by Ronda’s 200-year-old bullring should be removed. It insisted that Andalucía’s third most visited site should be pedestrian only and the town hall quickly complied closing the car park at the beginning of August.

This has now left the plaza Teniente Arce which leads on to the paseo de Blas Infante looking rather forlorn but not for long. The councillor for gardens, Josefa Valle, has launched an international competition for how the area can best be utilised but Ronda historians have also come up with a suggestion.

To start with the historians who are concerned about the location of the main gate to the plaza de toros that is currently on the calle Pedro Romero. However this was not always so and from1788 to 1923 it faced on to what is now the plaza Teniente Arce. The imposing main gate is very important to the bullring because apart from the Goyesca Ladies and Bullfighters entering here during the Pedro Romero bullfights in September it is also out of this gate that matadors who perform well are carried shoulder high in triumph.

It is ease to see from old photographs why the focal main gate was moved in 1923. At that time the old Teatro Vicente Espinal came within feet of the entrance but now where the door once stood faces on to the centre of the open plaza Teniente Arce. So the suggestion of the historians is that the celebrated main gate should be returned to its original position.

Whilst the heritage experts debate the pros and cons of such a move Josefa Valle has opened a competition for ideas that would see gardens created as part of a new layout of the plaza Teniente Arce. Valle explained that the town hall wanted to create an exciting vision for this site which is so important to Ronda and to find ways of utilising the space that currently lies empty.

Hence the competition that is open to Spanish and foreign designers, gardeners, architects and other professionals of international standing to come up with new ideas that would create a zone to relax in for both residents and visitors. The designs will be studied by the town hall, local experts as well as the regional government’s ministry of culture and heritage and some exciting submissions are expected for what is a world-renowned historical site.
ALGATOCÍN BLAZE
Infoca has reported that nine hectares of pasture were destroyed by fire on Monday in the municipality of Algatocín. There fire was detected at around 13.24 close to the boarder with Benalauría and was not brought under control to 15.00. Fifty fire fighters attended the scene supported by four helicopters, one with a high water carrying capacity and an aircraft. The fire alert is now at a high level and the Andalucía government has asked that everybody is especially vigilant.

LONGER PARTY
Ronda celebrates its Feria de Pedro Romero from September 3 to 6. The hours of the day fair in the town centre have been extended. On September 3 and 4 it will continue to 19.30 but on the final two days will last till 20.00. The night fair will be held at the new fair ground by Hipersol with the former fair ground across the road used as a parking zone. The two are connected by a foot bridge.

STORM DAMAGE
The recent storm that saw 50 litres per square metre fall on Ronda in just 30 minutes is estimated to have caused 1.6 million euros in damage. Some 170 rodeños have submitted claims for compensation and these have been forwarded to the Andalucía government by the town hall. The areas worst affected were the UVA, Padre Jesús and the commercial town centre.

TREE PROTEST
Ecologistas en Acción have officially complained to Ronda town hall over the felling of three hectares of pines at La Dehesa by the regional government’s public works ministry. The trees were felled as land was cleared for a new access roundabout, part of the 14 million euros road scheme. The ecologists insist the felling is illegal and no environmental impact study was commissioned.

NOT ME
Ronda’s mayor, Antonio Marín, slipped in and out of the local court last Thursday to give evidence in the case on the illegal construction of an agricultural warehouse built on non-urban land in the protected Hoya del Tajo. He blamed the councillor for public works, José Herrera, plus other councillors sitting on the Commission for Works in July 2006 when the licence was granted.

FLU CAMPAIGN
Ronda’s health delegation and the Serranía health authority are co-ordinating plans to launch an information campaign in September to advise residents and to help control the spread of ‘Gripe A’ swine flu. The campaign will concentrate on basic hygiene actions such as the thorough washing of hands that will help prevent the contraction of swine flu or the propagation of the virus.

SAX ROBBERY
The economic crisis is driving many people to petty crime but the theft of two saxophones with accessories from a house in Cortes de la Frontera on August 11 raised eyebrows. The Guardia Civil soon tracked down the culprit who was a fellow resident who lived nearby. Officers are staying quiet on how the thief was found – blowing a stolen instrument perhaps?

SELF ESTEEM
The Diputación de Málaga is to organise courses by the Instituto de Sexología aimed at improving the residents’ self-esteem, self control and communication skills. Over 30,000 euros is being assigned to the project that will be held in Benadalid, Cañete de la Real, Cartajima, Cuevas del Becerro, Gaucín, Jubrique, Júzcar and 24 other villages in largely rural, inland areas of the province.

SPRAY TIME
High summer temperatures coupled with the humidity caused by recent rain storms has meant that 10,000 hectares of olive groves are being urgently sprayed to kill off the olive fly. Failure to take action could lead to four million euros of losses for the olive growers of Ronda, El Burgo, Cuevas del Becerro, Ardales, Cañete la Real, El Saucejo, Benaoján, Jimera, Montejaque and Cortes.

USA BULL
Members of the USA Asociación de Clubes Taurinos, led by their president Lore Monnig, were recently received at Ronda’s Palacio de Mondragón by Mayor Antonio Marín. They attended the bullfights at the Málaga feria then visited Ronda. The mayor explained the role of Pedro Romero in creating the modern bullfight and that Ronda’s plaza de toros was the third most visited monument in Andalucía.

DATELINE RONDA TUESDAY AUGUST 18, 2009

TEN TOWN PLANNING VIOLATIONS IN COURTS
By David Eade

The three judges of the Ronda courts and the Málaga prosecutor are currently undertaking ten investigations in to the breaking of the town planning laws in the municipality. Ecologistas en Acción reported that some of these cases dated back to 2003 and although no hearings have yet been held they remain open.

The most high profile investigation involves the illegal construction of four buildings in the Hoya del Tajo. This development has been denounced by the ecologists but also the regional government’s police force and the environmental wing of the Guardia Civil, Seprona.

Also under the spotlight is an equestrian centre at the Puerto de la Muela. In this instance ten councillors of the previous administration are under investigation for obstructing justice. There are also reports of overbuilding in the same zone of two chalets and an agricultural unit.

Amongst the other cases are the building of a warehouse used by a bodega but which is situated very close to the Roman ruins of Acinipo and a house built in the same area on non-urban land. It was Seprona that took action in both these cases.

Of course the most celebrated case in Ronda relates to Los Merinos golf – luxury urbanisation development. Here the town hall issued a works licence despite the regional government having given it a negative report. There are now court cases brought by Izquierda Unida and the regional government against the mayor, Antonio Marín, and town hall officials.

PSOE propose expropriations in historic quarter

A working party set up on the special plan for the historic quarter of Ronda by PSOE – one of the town hall coalition partners – has submitted a series of changes it wants made to the provisional document. Amongst these is a series of property expropriations to improve the image of the area and to protect Ronda’s heritage.

Specifically the PSOE groups wants the town hall to take over abandoned properties in the historic quarter or those that are in a poor state. It sites the case of the Casa del Jalifa that was taken over and restored and is to be used for public services.

GAUCÍN RESIDENTS CONTINUE FIGHT AGAINST HIGH TENSION POWER LINE

It was back in November 2007 that the Ronda News first broke the story of the fight by Gaucín residents against the plans by Endesa Sevillana to build a high-tension power line across a beautiful protected valley.

At the time Gaucín resident Jane Powell told us: “Endesa is proposing to put a new line of high tension 20m high pylons some 7 km in length across an EEC protected valley near to Gaucín. They are using the certificate of “national priority” to override the protection order.”

Since then the battle has very much gone against the residents who formed an action group to halt the project. It was authorised by the regional government on the grounds that it was in the public interest, a ruling as Jane suggested seems to outweigh the fact that is going to ruin an area of natural beauty which is home to endangered species and deemed of special environmental interest.

It is not just the action group with Jamie Ewing at its head that is fighting the project. Gaucín town hall, Ecologistas en Acción are both strongly opposing it and 2,000 residents have signed a petition to have the power line stopped.

Last Wednesday the action group went to Sevilla to make their voices heard holding a demonstration outside the offices of Sevillana-Endesa. Jamie Ewing said they were taking their case to the Andaluz Ombudsman, José Chamizo, to tell him: “the new high tension lines are not necessary because there exist others going to the same place and these can be enlarged instead.” Chamizo is now studying the case.

Ewing explained that this view was supported by a study of technical engineers who say that it is viable to change the project to make it accepted both environmentally and technically.

The mayor of Gaucín, Francisco Ruiz, has suggested that Sevillana Endesa should reinforce and reutilise the high tension line that transports electricity to the centre at San Roque. He said this would avoid a new high tension power line causing a large amount of environmental damage.

DAYLIGHT ROBBERY
There was an attempted robbery on the Caja Rural Granada in Ronda’s central plaza de Socorro at 12.20 on Monday. A man and a woman entered the bank whilst a second man kept the door open to avoid it being locked by the security system. The sub-director managed to sound the alarm causing the trio, all thought to be South American, to flee. National and local police were soon on the scene but as of yet no arrests have been made.

ACCESS RONDA
Last week Ronda announced it had produced a tourist guide in Braille so blind people could enjoy the sites – the first town in Spain to do so. This week the tourism office launched its ‘ciudad accesible’ project aimed at ensuring the historic town and its buildings would become fully accessible to handicapped tourists and also make life easier for residents with disabilities.

ARMED ROBBERY
Last Wednesday at 21.30 four masked gunmen held up the BP Los Pinos petrol station on the Campillos road in Ronda. The staff had been told in such instances to offer no resistance and to hand over the cash box to the thieves. This they duly did and the robbers escaped with – 300 euros. The Guardia Civil are searching for the gang’s Opel Corsa.

FIRST JUMP
The provincial delegate and Ronda’s councillor for agriculture last week opened the first phase of the municipal equestrian school being built adjacent to the horse stud farm. So far 120,000 euros has been invested on a horse training track and now another 120,000 euros is to be spent on an equine therapy centre for use by handicapped people or those with chronic illnesses.

AGUSTÍN’S BACK
There was much consternation in El Burgo last August when the venerated statue of San Agustín fell to the ground and was smashed injuring a woman. The accident happened as those carrying the patron performed a dancing movement accompanied by the municipal band. Now after eight months of restoration the statue will be ready to again take to the streets on August 28.

LEOPOLDO HOMAGE
The village of Alpandeire in the Serranía de Ronda is the birthplace of Cappuccino Fray Leopoldo, the holy friar later who worked amongst the poor of Granada where he is also venerated. On August 29 a number of events will take place in Alpandeire as part of the campaign to have Leopoldo beatified a process on the path to sainthood which started in 2006.

WATER INVESTMENT
As part of a wider programme of investment in water infrastructure the Diputación de Málaga is carrying out two projects in the Serranía de Ronda. In Benaoján 10,000 euros is being allocated to purchasing a new pump and engine for improving supply within the village whilst in Cuevas del Becerro 26,408 euros is being spent on the mains from the municipal reservoirs.

NOCHE VIEJA
Whilst most of us celebrated Noche Vieja – New Year’s Eve – on December 31 the people of Cañete La Real held their party on Saturday night. Many have moved from the village to other places in Spain and Europe but return for the month of August hence it was decided to hold this fiesta in their honour including a “Miss y Mister Emigrante” competition.