Abandoned five-star hotel site to become residential housing in Torremolinos

The five-star Meliá Tres Carabelas opened its doors in 1962 on a site on the edge of what was then the Cadiz road and is now Avenida Carlota Alessandri, alongside Benalmádena. It was a symbol of luxury hotels in a Torremolinos that was beginning to become fashionable, with two five-star hotels very close to each other, as the Pez Espada was already built and inaugurated a stone’s throw away.

With many comings and goings, the Meliá remained standing for decades. Until 2008 when it was demolished to make way in theory for a new symbol of the times. Another five-star hotel, this time with 22 floors and even a heliport. Hotel Cruiser it was to be called, but in the end the macro-project did not make it much beyond the planning stage.

At first the Junta de Andalucía did not approve the project, which had to be modified, but by the time it was approved, the developer already had a series of debts from which it was unable to recover. The works were started, but shortly after they began in 2009, they came to a standstill and from then until now the land has remained unchanged. Locals describe it as a "gaping hole".

It will no longer be a five star hotel, not even a hotel. The full council session of the Torremolinos Town Hall last week gave the green light to an urban development agreement changing the use of the land on the site from hotel to residential.

More details of the planned project are thin on the ground and the number of dwellings and their dimensions have not been disclosed. Municipal sources said that in the next few days, the agreement will be signed between the Mayor of Torremolinos, Margarita del Cid, and the developer, when more details of the future development will be known.

This agreement, as well as unblocking the site, represents a significant financial compensation for the town hall, which will receive 15 per cent of the urban development generated by the developer of the residential project, five per cent above the minimum required by law.

"We have solved a problem that meant that an emblematic place in our municipality, such as Avenida Carlota Alessandri, can no longer have this large, pointless excavation, giving rise to a project that will entail economic compensation and also equipment, and can generate a new centrality in this avenue," said the councillor for urban renewal Marina Vázquez

Another of the issues dealt with in the plenary session was a motion to initiate the procedures for the granting of the title of 'adopted son' to Florentino Martínez Roces. The motion, presented by the PSOE, went ahead with the abstention of the PP, who argued that they disagreed with the way in which this proposal had been presented.

Florentino Martínez Roces stepped down in May 2023 as president of the Centro Asturiano de Málaga in Torremolinos, to which he has dedicated a large part of his personal and family life, contributing to the cultural revitalisation of the municipality and the promotion of Torremolinos as a tourist destination in Asturias.