The Calp City Council has approved the expropriation of the premises located on the first basement level of the Muralles building, known as Galerías Oltra, at number 9 Avenida Ifach, with the aim of dedicating this space to a social use, especially for young people and local associations.
As part of this process, 21 acquisition agreements have been signed, whereby the owners have accepted the valuation established by the municipal technical services, set at €618.17/m², which also includes the proportional share corresponding to the building's common areas.
The area affected by these agreements totals 1,462 square meters, and the planned investment amounts to €904,145, for which the City Council has a budget allocation of €910,000. The agreed price is final and includes all costs, although the capital gains tax will be paid in accordance with current regulations.
The spokesperson for Defendamos Calpe, Paco Quiles, stated that “public money needs to be accounted for in terms of how it will be spent, and it's unacceptable to allocate almost a million euros of public funds to a gallery whose future use is unclear, given the lack of any technical report on the matter.”
The spokesperson for the People's Party, Miguel Crespo, declared that “we don't want to get involved in the procedure or the agreement reached, but rather focus on what the city council intends to do with this property, since it's public money being used to acquire a basement space, and a project report would be necessary.”
Ximo Perles, spokesperson for the municipal government, explained that “these premises were classified as privately owned facilities 20 years ago, and now an obligation must be fulfilled. There are only two options: either change their use or expropriate them, which has been done with a 25% reduction coefficient and including the common areas, as these cannot be subdivided.”
Paqui Solivelles, an independent councilor, thanked Juan Manuel Pino for his work in bringing this project to fruition and providing this valuable resource for the town.
Ana Sala, the mayor of Calp, stated that “this project is very beneficial, and we will continue investing in creating public infrastructure for our residents. This project will help revitalize this part of the municipality and will be used by young people and associations.”
Municipal Radio
In another item on the agenda, the Calp City Council gave initial approval to the establishment of a local public service by creating Calp's municipal public radio station, operating on a competitive bidding process, as well as the corresponding draft regulations.
According to the economic report, launching the service would entail an investment of €19,800 and an estimated annual expenditure of €172,680.61, which includes personnel costs for the positions of content director, sound technician, administrative assistant, and caretaker, along with other operating expenses related to copyright, radio spectrum fees, and amortization of investments. The City Council may consider covering some of these costs with staff already assigned to other municipal departments, which would result in a smaller financial impact.
The report and the draft regulations, along with the supplementary documentation, will be made available for public review for one month, through announcements in the Official Gazette of the Province of Alicante and on the City Hall's notice board, so that interested individuals and entities may submit any comments they deem appropriate.
The final approval of the regulations and the implementation of the service will take place during 2027, once the observations included in the file have been addressed.
Professional Career Development
In another item on the agenda, the Calp City Council approved the Regulations establishing the horizontal professional career development system and performance evaluation for Calp City Council staff, fulfilling the right recognized for public employees in Law 4/2021, of April 16, on the Valencian Public Service.
The new system will allow City Council civil servants and employees to advance professionally without having to change jobs, through recognition of their career path, continuing education, and performance in the exercise of their duties.
The regulations establish a system of four professional development levels, which staff may access voluntarily and individually after demonstrating a minimum of five years of service in the immediately lower level and obtaining at least 70 points in a merit-based assessment process.
Evaluation criteria include the achievement of objectives, professionalism in the performance of assigned tasks, initiative and participation in improving public service, as well as the training received and provided by each employee.
Recognition of each professional development level will entail a fixed monthly salary supplement, the amounts of which are specified in the regulations. A Horizontal Professional Career Monitoring Committee will be established to monitor, coordinate, and evaluate the system. This committee will be composed of equal representation from the Corporation and the labor unions and will ensure the transparency and objectivity of the entire process.
Street Names
The Calp City Council also approved the naming of ten streets and public spaces in the municipality after women, following the processing of the corresponding file and without any objections being filed during the public consultation period.
Among the affected spaces is the Balcón al Mar Maritime Trail, which will be renamed Anna Boffill Levi; The gardens on Avenida Madrid will be named after Saurina d'Entença i de Montcada; the Fossa-Calalga park will be dedicated to Maria de Maeztu y Whitney; and the PRI square will be named after Maria Ferrer Argudo, among other streets in the municipality.
The proposed names are based on a biographical report prepared for each of the ten selected women, including figures with ties to the local, Valencian, national, and international spheres, and from fields such as architecture, literature, politics, education, music, and social activism.
The report also highlights the life and work of Saurina d'Entença i de Montcada, Lady of Ifach in the 14th century, coinciding this year with the 700th anniversary of her death, as well as that of local musician Maria Ferrer Argudo, recognized in the municipality for her teaching and involvement in various Calp associations.
