Malaga experts guarantee flood prevention features of Guadalmedina plaza-bridges project

Experts and politicians gathered at the forum SUR and Malaga city council organised on Wednesday to discuss all the details concerning the safety of the future Guadalmedina 'plaza-bridges'.

All agreed that this major urban planning project will transform the city, without compromising flood safety.

The river functions largely as the spillway channel for the Limonero reservoir, whose operating rules have recently changed to maintain a greater flood buffer by lowering the maximum storage level from 21 to 14 million cubic metres.

The first panel featured CEO Carlos García and head of architecture and urban planning Andreu Estany, both from engineering consultancy Esteyco, which designed the preliminary proposal for the plaza-bridges.

The preliminary design includes five X-shaped plaza-bridges. Three, ranging from 2,600 to 4,500 square metres, will span the river between Armiñán and Aurora bridges, while two smaller plazas of 1,300 and 1,400 square metres will stand near Santo Domingo. Designers increased the number of plazas compared with the original concept while reducing their weight.

The deadline for companies to bid for the final design contract, worth two million euros, closed on Tuesday. The successful bidder will have eleven months to complete the project. The Andalusian regional government has committed one million euros after designating the scheme a project of regional importance.

Sustainability councillor Penélope Gómez explained that engineers had calculated every aspect of the project, including river flows, tributary streams, sediment transport and debris, using a flood return period of 10,000 years.

She opened the discussion by challenging concerns that the project would reduce flood safety or amount to covering over the river. Gómez explained that engineers had selected the lightest materials permitted under hydraulic regulations and carried out topographical surveys, 3D modelling, 69 simulations and detailed studies of the 22 existing bridges to assess the clearance between floodwaters and bridge decks during extreme events.

Each existing bridge and every new plaza-bridge will maintain a minimum clearance of one metre above maximum flood levels. Gómez said the proposal was "viable, bold and safe".

Representatives from Esteyco stressed that the project's demanding hydraulic requirements had shaped every design decision. The development covers 32 hectares and seeks to integrate the river channel with the city.

Estany said the plazas would strengthen connections between surrounding neighbourhoods.

"The plaza-bridges are not random in shape. They seek the best way to connect streets across the river. They are like islands suspended over what will become a great urban park. Their proportions ensure they never become dark spaces. Each plaza will offer a 360-degree viewpoint over the city and the river, creating places for contemplation and peaceful spaces suspended above the channel. They are like stretched skins resting lightly on the riverbanks, floating in the air."

Estany added that each plaza would have a solid central structure with lighter supports that still provide the necessary strength. Although they will share a common design language, each plaza will reflect the character of its surrounding neighbourhood.

He also highlighted another key feature of the project: burying traffic along both riverbanks so that pedestrians can move seamlessly between the streets and the river.

"The project will be defined by light and uninterrupted green spaces. The mayor said they are more like giant planters than plaza-bridges because we wanted natural shade rather than pergolas or artificial structures. The planting has therefore been designed with different layers of vegetation," Estany stated.

The project also includes an irrigation channel system that will recycle water for cleaning and watering landscaped areas. Only these features will require harder construction materials to create a service courtyard within the riverbed while complying with hydraulic safety requirements.

CEO Carlos García said lowering the riverbed presented a significant engineering challenge because of the varying width of the channel and the different bridge designs. Engineers also had to reduce the height of the retaining walls to street level.

Building underground roads alongside the river poses another challenge because construction must proceed in phases. García said engineers had to combine difficult ground conditions, hydraulic studies, drainage infrastructure and storm overflows while ensuring the city continues to function throughout the works.

Stormwater storage tanks will also form part of the tunnels to help regulate floodwater during heavy rainfall.

García insisted that the tunnels and plaza-bridges must be viewed as a single integrated project. The total investment stands at 280 million euros, with the first phase, covering the riverbed lowering and channel works, expected to cost just over 100 million euros. He added that every phase must also facilitate future plans to improve road access to Malaga Port.

A second panel examined the project from historical, urban planning and hydraulic perspectives. Participants included architect and urban planner Salvador Moreno Peralta, former Andalusian mediterranean river basins water commissioner Jorge Robles and University of Granada professor Leonardo Nania.

Professor Leonardo Nania said Esteyco's design would improve flood safety. He explained that engineers had adopted highly conservative assumptions for sediment transport calculations and noted that some existing bridges currently operate close to their hydraulic limits, whereas the new design provides greater clearance.

Robles said the Limonero dam had attracted alarmism ever since its construction. "Safety is non-negotiable and it has to be absolute."

He described Limonero as one of the best earthfill dams of its kind and said its performance against seepage and other risks had been excellent. He added that the revised operating rules had further improved safety by reducing maximum downstream flow from 600 to 460 cubic metres per second, with reservoir releases falling from 400 to 150 cubic metres per second.

Architect and urban planner Salvador Moreno Peralta criticised the ideological and professional opposition that had delayed the project. He praised Esteyco's proposal as an innovative scheme that successfully combines architecture and engineering.

Moreno Peralta also described improved road access to Malaga Port from Las Pedrizas as a major strategic opportunity. "This is far more than an urban beautification project. It rests on exceptionally rigorous technical studies."

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