Vélez-Málaga town hall seals off mobile phone mast following complaints from local residents

The deputy mayor, Jesús Pérez Atencia, maintains that the town hall acted after receiving complaints from local residents, whilst the PSOE councillor Víctor González has asked to see all of the documents to verify the planning and legal compliance of the infrastructure.

The controversy began after González posted an initial message on his social media accounts under the heading ‘The aerial is back. And consistency should be too’. The councillor explained that the infrastructure had been installed in the very same spot where another structure had been removed some thirteen years ago following opposition from numerous residents.

González expressed his support for the local residents and recalled that Pérez Atencia and his group had taken part in the protests at the time. “He is now part of the local government and has the opportunity to show the same commitment,” said González, who called on the town hall to listen to those affected and work towards removing the mast.

“Today we are asking for just one thing: that they do what they stood for thirteen years ago,” added the PSOE spokesperson. In his view, “the opposition comes and goes, but principles should remain”, which is why he called for the residents of Viña Málaga to be “heard, defended and respected” by the town hall.

Atencia responded by accusing the PSOE of trying to gain political capital from a local concern when the installation had already been sealed off. “You’d have to have a very short memory, or be very politically opportunistic to come along now and lecture us about the antennas,” the deputy mayor said in a statement.

The General Telecommunications Act classifies these networks as essential infrastructure and works of general interest. Article 49 limits the possibility of requiring prior municipal licences for certain radio installations on private property, although it provides for exceptions and allows action to be taken where there are material inaccuracies, omissions in the documentation or breaches in the operator’s declaration of responsibility.

Atencia maintains that he still upholds the same principles he advocated thirteen years ago, although he believes that the current national framework leaves local councils with much less scope for action. The General Telecommunications Act grants operators extensive powers to roll out their networks and prevents the requirement for prior municipal licences in certain circumstances.

According to Atencia, the town hall intervened upon discovering that the infrastructure did not, at that time, have the required planning permission. “Action was taken as soon as the first complaint was received from local residents. The facility has been sealed off whilst municipal technicians analyse all the documentation and the legal situation. Those are the facts. The rest is just Facebook posts and political opportunism,” he stated.

This controversy comes on top of other recent disputes over mobile phone masts within the municipality. In June 2024, the full council unanimously agreed to temporarily halt work in Almayate following protests by residents and while the administrative procedures were being finalised. Local residents had complained about the proximity of the mast to homes and public facilities.

Following these statements, González submitted a formal request for information to gain access to the full file. The socialist councillor wishes to find out the specific irregularities that led to the site being sealed off, whether the mast complies with the General Urban Development Plan and the applicable town planning regulations and whether the work carried out corresponds exactly to the project submitted by the company.

The PSOE has also asked whether there is an urban planning disciplinary case and what stage it is at. “The best way to help local residents is not through personal attacks or fruitless controversies. It is to act as a constructive, rigorous opposition based on evidence,” replied González, who stated that he would demand that “all options permitted by law” be exhausted.

Six months later, the complaints shifted to the Pilar neighbourhood, where the Town Planning Department issued another order for immediate suspension and rendered a declaration of compliance ineffective whilst it assessed the infrastructure’s compliance with town planning regulations. In January 2025, the PP also tabled a motion calling on the Spanish Government to grant local councils greater decision-making powers over such installations. In June 2026 councillors also backed the removal of an aerial from Calle Médico Ros Alférez, in Torre del Mar.

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