DEMOLITION OF THREE ANTENNA TOWERS AT PUIG DE LA LLORENÇA
At the plenary session on 27 March the mayor announced the Council's plans to demolish three antenna towers and two adjacent huts located at the top of Puig de la Llorença. Further demolitions are still expected.
The estimated cost of the demolition is 41.000€, to be funded from the cash surplus; this cost will be passed on to the companies concerned.
The Council has carried out the mandatory consultation process with the affected businesses; however, it has received only one response and has therefore decided to proceed with their demolition.
No information was provided at the plenary session regarding which businesses are affected or the expected timeline for the demolition.
It is also unclear whether the businesses affected by the demolitions have contacted their customers to inform them of the imminent disruption to their services.
OVFC assessment
OVFC contacted the mayor’s office to obtain further information, specifically regarding:
- Records of when the installation of antennas began.
- A list of companies that have installed the antennas.
- Actions taken to date by the Council so far, including demolitions carried out.
- Planned schedule of demolitions.
- Illustrative visual material.
- Measures to revitalise Puig de la Llorença as a tourist attraction.
- It was in 2012 that the first “serious administrative irregularity” occurred when a municipal asset was awarded through a hand-picked process without a tender. The contract was signed by the former mayor, Josep Femenia.
- The tenant expanded the premises and allegedly sublet them to third-party companies, a practice that is strictly prohibited.
- In 2018 the Council, led by the former mayor, Josep Femenia, agreed to set up a committee to address the urban planning and environmental issues in Puig de la Llorença, and proceedings have begun to reclaim the municipal plot currently occupied by Abertis, the concessionaire of the AP-7 motorway. The opposition party Compromis, led by the current mayor, rejected the proposal.
- According to the terms of the contract, “the leased land is intended for the installation of telecommunications equipment, and the lessee may not alter or extend this use […] No further antennas or dishes may be installed on the existing masts beyond those currently in place […] Should new antennas or dishes be installed without the relevant authorisation, this shall be considered grounds for termination of the contract”.
- “The local authority has no record, either documentary or conclusive, that the agreed payments have been made. The contract established a monthly invoice divided into two parts: one monetary and the other “in kind, consisting of institutional advertising spots by Benitatxell Town Council broadcast on regional media”. This second method of payment “in kind” lacked any form of control, meaning it cannot be verified that it was carried out”
- In 2019 the Council, led by the current mayor Miguel Ángel García Buigues, terminated the lease agreement of the municipal plot.
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