By Euro Weekly News Media • Published: 01 Feb 2017 • 9:30
FAMILIES on a campsite on the Costa del Sol fear the owner is planning to move them off and build homes or a commercial property instead.
Surveyors have been seen visiting for the last several weeks and attempts to glean information from the site manager have so far been unsuccessful.
Now the residents of motorhomes and caravans at Camping Fuengirola say they intend to start a petition to appeal for information about the future.
A number of them spoke to EWN but have asked to remain anonymous for fear of recriminations.
“There are at least 100 people who will sign the petition,” said one resident.
“If they tell us what’s going on we can plan around it, but we don’t want to be in a position where we are parking on the street. It’s frustrating and annoying.”
Another added: “Nobody’s telling us anything. If we have to move when are they going to say something and tell us what’s going on?”
One resident has been going to the site for more than 20 years.
“I can’t think of one person who wants to leave. This is a thriving business. No notice has been given to us and they won’t tell us a thing.”
The group hope to be able to get some information from Fuengirola Council and to sit in on planning meetings which may decide the future of the site.
They also claim workers at the site have been told to find other jobs by the summer.
The economic impact of moving so many residents, when there are no alternative sites within the locality with space, could affect local businesses in Fuengirola and Mijas, the group believe.
“We feel we are being treated needlessly unprofessionally by the campsite management who are giving us no information on their plans.”
Another aspect adding to the anxiety of some residents is the fate of more than 300 trees on the site, most of which are mature and help to demarcate the pitches.
“Any change of use to the land that requires cutting down the trees, which are supposed to be protected, will have a negative impact on the local environment,” said one of the residents.
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As a former resident of the camp, I believe I can shed some light on what is happening.
It appears that the Hacienda or the Fuengirola Junta may actually be “cutting off their noses to spite their faces” in this case. A few months ago the rumors were that caravans must not be “permanent” on the campsite. The word was that every resident would have to move their caravan every few months because, suddenly, some bureaucrat became aware that most caravans had occupied the same spaces for years. Of course any observer of any campsite anywhere in Spain, or the world for that matter, would realise that caravans do tend to sit for long periods but they eventually are removed.
The fact is the campsite must be making a good income, over a year ago some caravans were moved from one area where a new swimming pool was supposed to be built, presumably at considerable cost. There are a few “full time” residents on the campsite, but these people are legal residents of Spain and pay taxes on their income or pensions. For many others, their caravans have been there for years and people who are normally resident of other countries, visit when they can, however, must pay rent on their plots, and by doing so, pay a lot of tax to the Hacienda and Fuengirola Junta. In addition, the campsite is full in the winter with people bringing a lot of money to the area.
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