Alex Trelinski
TORREVIEJA’S popular Paseo de la Libertad market is moving to a temporary home as a major redevelopment of the city’s port area continues.
The hippie market – which first appeared in the mid-1970’s – will move in March for around a year to the Antonio Soria park.
The existing site has to be cleared by March 1, and traders have been given until Monday to declare whether they are moving.
Around 160 of the 190 stall units are occupied but so far only 80 sellers have committed to the temporary site.
The Antonio Soria park is over two kilometres away from the city centre and has none of the footfall of the current busy location.
Torrevieja council will pay for the stall removal and businesses will share the site with the regular Friday market and summer’s Brilla Torrevieja music festival events.
Stall holders can remove and keep the units at their own expense if they are not going to the park, or the council will simply tear them down.
The current site will be remodelled with several areas of stalls to be created by the revamped Customs building and the Hombre del Mar.
It’s believed the maximum number of stalls will only be around 100.
Last summer, the council closed down traders selling fake goods or had no no licence in addition to purging names linked to units that had not been open for a long time.
