• Lawsuit The City Council of Carboneras paves the way for the demolition of the Algarrobico hotel

One of the most emblematic symbols of the predatory occupation of the coast, the Almeria hotel of El Algarrobico, seems to be heading for the long-awaited last step: designing the demolition and restoration of the land. Two changes of administrative opinion – in the Junta and the City Council of Carboneras – are in the impetus at the end of seventeen years of legal disputes, some contradictory, that laid the groundwork.

How does the conflict arise?

In 1994, the management plan for the Cabo de Gata Natural Park established a C1 protection of high environmental value in this cove. The Junta later modified this decree and changed it, without the necessary public procedure, to D2, developable, in what a ruling would later qualify as a "trick". The City Council proceeded with that endorsement of the urban development, allowing a 400-room hotel that was almost finished when the protests – with the support of Greenpeace and the Minister of the Environment, Cristina Narbona, a regular in Cabo de Gata – put it in the eye of the hurricane in 2006.

What's new?

There are two. The Junta de Andalucía stated, in an appeal to the High Court of Justice of Andalusia (TSJA) in September, that the land had been classified as of special protection since 1994; and the City Council has informed the same court that its municipal plenary session on the 23rd will annul the building permit granted. The political coincidence between the two administrations - the City Council went from socialist to popular mayor in May - points to a coordinated action to eliminate what was once a symbol of urban depredation on the coast.

Specifically, the Junta de Andalucía asked the TSJA to "expressly" order the City Council to reflect "in its documents and in its decisions" that the site of El Algarrobico was, and here is the crux, "non-developable land of special protection since 1994", the year in which the document that gives legal support and marks the planimetry of the natural park is approved. that is, long before the building permit.

"The Junta has finally recognized that this land was of special protection and is aligned with the ecologist theses," and the municipal decision announced for the next plenary session "will make the demolition mandatory, without a doubt," says the lawyer of Greenpeace and Ecologists in Action, José Ignacio Domínguez, who for two decades has led a judicial skein in favor of the demolition that has had a multitude of derivations.

Why did the City Council hold the key to the conflict?

A Supreme Court ruling indicated that demolition was not possible without the cancellation of the municipal building permit, granted in 2003. This allowed the City Council of Carboneras to delay for years. His refusal to take this step even led to the previous mayor, José Luis Amérigo, being sentenced to a fine of 700 euros every twenty days if he did not approve it. The new local government, presided over by Felipe Cayuela, has sent a letter to the TSJA in which it announces that it will cancel the license on the 23rd.

How many courts have ruled?

Almost all instances have intervened. But since the Contentious Court 2 of Almeria ordered the stoppage of the works in 2003, none of the many sentences of different courts "had achieved anything", says lawyer José Ignacio Domínguez. What's more, the Supreme Court accused "all the administrations involved" of "inadmissible leniency": the City Council, the Junta and the State, a lack of rigor that "has led to an action devoid of all reason and logic" in this old controversy.

A conflict that reached a peak when in 2012 the TSJA surprisingly ruled that the land was developable, something that was later overturned by the Supreme Court. José Ignacio Domínguez indicates the circumstance that the magistrate of that ruling later went to a private firm, Martínez Echevarría, which was hired by the City Council of Carboneras

How does the Board manage to obtain title to the land?

The Junta de Andalucía took its best step when it exercised more than ten years ago the right of withdrawal, that is, its priority when buying land that is for sale within a protected area. The sale was made by Azata – the company that owns the land and the hotel – when it passed it from one of its companies to another, but without notifying the Administration. The Board even entered the financial amount, but nothing else has happened. He should file a civil lawsuit against Azata to force him to surrender. At this point, it does not seem that he is betting on it, since the ownership of the land is not key when it comes to demolishing, they are independent ways.

Who will knock it down?

The State and the Regional Government reached an agreement in 2011 to share the tasks, then valued at 7 million euros. The central government will tear it down, and the Junta will remove the debris and restore the landscape to its original appearance. It has even been suggested that some of the debris would be used as artificial reefs on that coast. Azata said at the time that the restoration is physically impossible since 65,000 cubic meters of concrete have been injected into the subsoil.

Will anyone pay for this?

Azata has requested compensation of 70 million euros from the Administrations for damages and loss of profits. This is his current obsession, as he considers himself a victim. At first, the National Court denied it, considering that they knew that the hotel was illegal, as Costas informed him. Since then, he has filed two appeals before the TSJA requesting the same thing, both still without a ruling. The lawyer for Greenpeace and Ecologists in Action believes that if they lose it, they will appeal to the Supreme Court, so this fringe of the Algarrobico is predicted to have years of life.

  • Greenpeace
  • National Appellate Court
  • Almeria
  • Supreme Court
  • Cristina Narbona
  • Justice
  • Environment