If a building is illegal because it has contravened Spanish law,then it is illegal.In San Juan playa ,near Alicante a building company had permission to build an hotel ,El Cabo Hotel.It is right on the beach front and it is within the non-building zone according to the Ley de Costa.The company Inversiones AM 2000 which owns the now derelict hotel has said that it will demolish the building once it has the permission of the council to do so .It seems that the company has an agreement to build an apartment block on the same sight once the building is demolished.The agreement is with the council.How can this make any sense ?
Getting the building demolished has been high on the agenda of the council’s urban image department which has said that the building is in a very dangerous condition and has become the haunt of drug users and vagrants.Last week the Alicante council declared the building a ruin and that the general state of the building was giving cause for concern.
The owners of the building say that they will pull the building down within 15 days of receiving the demolition order and that they will then begin proceedings that will permit them to build 14 apartments and garages.
How can the council allow another building to be built on the same site when it is right on the sea front and within the no-building zone?That is the question which now needs to be answered.This zone is covered by the Ley de Costa which is being enforced in many areas obliging people to demolish their homes.
Rumour has it that Inversiones AM 2000 obtained permission to build in April 2008 provided that their plans were amended.This is one of those very strange cases which seems to have the hallmark of many similar cases in the past.Watch this space.
