Eloise HorsfieldBy Eloise Horsfield
THE protest against a gigantic hotel and housing complex planned for Tarifa continues to gather momentum – while local residents remain divided.
The 84,000 square metre urban development, comprising 1,423 hotel beds and 350 properties, was given the go-ahead by Tarifa Town Hall last week.
This despite the fact it will be built on 700,000 square metres of unspoilt sand dunes on a UNESCO-protected Biosphere Reserve.
On Tuesday Salvemos Valdevaqueros (Save Valdevaqueros) organised a worldwide ‘cyber action’ protest, manning social networking sites to drum up support.
Nearly 18,000 people have now ‘liked’ the Facebook page and 60,000 have signed an online petition against the move.
Meanwhile a thousand people gathered in Tarifa’s Santa Maria place on Tuesday at a meeting organised by the town hall in support of the plan.
PP mayor Juan Andres Gil said he had organised the meeting to ‘avoid distortion’ and to give detailed information ‘about the elements of the project that have not been covered in the national press’.
The Junta’s environment councillor Luis Planas added the project ‘is perfectly compatible with sustainable development for future generations’.
Gil said: “The Valdevaqueros development has been discredited through a media campaign,” insisting it would ‘not touch the beach or the natural park’.
He added that it would provide a European example of sustainable development.
Meanwhile the mayor told online paper El Confidencial what Tarifa needs is ‘more jobs and fewer guiris’, concluding his thoughts with the throwaway comment: “To hell with ecologists.”
Perhaps this Mayor would like the guiris to leave and tell all their friends not to come. See how is economy would fare then.
With people like Snr Gil in power we can quickly see why parts of the Costas have become an ecological disaster. PP take note and sack this fool please.
Development for who? How about an article about the recent “royal decree” 12/2012 which kills off “resident tourism” to spain for good as even foreigners who spend less than 183 days in spain but whose wives and kids live here will be deemed resident and have to declare their worldwide assets and income to the spanish tax authorities. Apparently the “Beckham Law” royal decree 687/2005 that exempted wealthy foreigners has been scrapped. So everybopdy will have to pay spanish tax on wealth or income that has nothing to do with spain. Surely the deathknell for spain’s resident tourism industry.
Tarifa’s Mayor Gil – we had a famous Mayor Gil in Marbella not long ago! Other than putting the Construction License & Tax fees into the Town coffer so the political group in Office can hire more employees… and maybe get re elected? WHAT IS TO GAIN FOR TARIFA? Ex: employment is NOT “sustainable” when construction is over, and if the hotel can NOT attract adequate guests – the employees have NO WORK. Ex: Marbella – Los Montereos… Incosol… Guadalpin, etc
Menawhile the natural LAND has been raped and no longer natural..or “sustainable”.
We travel often to Tarifa because of its natural & unspoiled beauty. If THIS huge commercial development gets approved – we NO longer go to Tarifa. And I’m sure other “Guiris” like us would do the same.
I’ve signed the Petition to STOP this and suggest: 1) Tarifa Residents should kick Gil out of Office and 2) File a Class Axction Suit against him personally and his Party via Antonio Flores at LAWBIRDS in Marbella. Then the EU Court of Justice to SAVE TARIFA!!
how about a Euro Vegas for all of Spain’s Villages ?
We all know that Spain is about Who you know, not what you know. It seems no one is interested in stopping the corruption and tackling real issues.
How can anyone want another Benedorm on their shores – especially in the last beautiful spot in spain.
This mayor needs to go and live with poor spaniards in Benedorm before opening his orifice again.
I bet it happens. And i bet is a disaster. And i bet the mayor makes a lot of illegal money.
it is all unbelivable and we are so sad to read what happens in Tarifa… alle the guiris must fight against this project! Los Espanoles and Tarifenos, too.
This project can be understood only when you know details about corruption: (“white collar crime” is my job in the police-organisation) The mayor and a lot of his friends will be happy about this project because they will have a better future – all the people of Tarifa and of course guiris will be the looser … since 26 i stay every year in Tarifa and I like it… if Tarifa will change, we will look for another paradise… but Tarifa was one of the last ones…