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Make a difference.
Orihuela Costa has been and still is developing in a piecemeal fashion with no real vision and no evidence of a coherent town planning strategy. This is hardly surprising as the planning authority and local politicians all based well over 30 kilometres away have no real interest in the area other than as a money-making machine for them to plunder at their whim and which contributes disproportionately to the coffers of Orihuela City. Yet again this is all too evident as the stagnant local economy looks to house building to get the economy growing yet again, construction sites are springing up like mushrooms again in spite of the Valencian Community still having over a million unsold, complete and partially built dwellings resulting from the crash of the last building boom.
It’s your right.
Anyone living on Orihuela Costa is all too aware of the discriminatory lack of services for every sector to bereaved people having no municipal cemetery in the area to bury their dead. The list of deficits affecting coastal residents is endless; no cultural centre, no library, no day centre for the elderly, no services for people with disabilities, no social housing, no musical society, Added to this is the list of inadequate provision, very low number of police officers out of 140 we only have 20 when in fact we should have at least 40 for the population size of the coast, limited ambulance coverage, minimal bus routes are just a few examples. Not forgetting the terrible road system, the lack of adequate footpaths, the criminal shortage of adequate footbridges over the motorway and the N332, the total oversight of cycle routes, the dreadfully maintained roads, neglected and overgrown parks and green spaces. This list is endless and I’m sure that anyone resident on the coast could add ad infinitum to the list.
Show your voice.
However, in spite of all these fundamental deficiencies there still is a mad scramble to construct housing on every parcel of spare land without due consideration to even the most basic needs of people who might end up living in the newly completed houses. How many of the potential purchasers of these newly built properties really examine what the area has to offer? Are potential homeowners and likely future residents blinkered by the wonderful weather, the glimmering outdoor swimming pool, the glorious beaches and the facilities in towns like Torrevieja? How many purchasers really research the education provision available or look into the services they may need in the future when they are considering making Orihuela Costa there permanent residence? In reality it is often only when you are actually living in an area that the structural inadequacies become apparent.
Your power.
Many Orihuela Costa residents state outright that it is evident that the councillors living and serving on the council in Orihuela really don’t want people to be resident on the coast. Many believe that Orihuela Councillors would much prefer people to purchase expensive Costa property and just use it for a few weeks each year thus boosting the economy at the time of the house purchase and adding to the tourist industry coffers with much needed non-Spanish cash.
Equal rights.
All residents of a municipality should have equal rights and access to council services. The only way residents of Orihuela Costa can ensure equality with people living in Orihuela City is to vote in local elections thus ensuring the needs of the coast are clearly on decision-making agendas.