Malaga prepares to take over former Aula del Mar building to convert it into future Museo Alborán

Malaga city council will take over the management of the former Aula del Mar building on the Palmeral de las Sorpresas, once the mayor's top team accepts the Port Authority's conditions that will regulate the concession. It is there that the new Museo Alborán will be constructed, within the framework of the biodiversity project called 'Lifewach Alborán'.

The concession covers a plot of 655.20 square metres, on which the central building of the Palmeral de las Sorpresas was built, plus 32.50 square metres of airspace above the pedestrian promenade. The concession period will be ten years, with the possibility of extending it to a maximum of another five years. The annual fee for the private occupation of this public domain amounts to 89,362.65 euros, which is half the regular rate, since the authorisation is held by a public administration.

The future museum will be equipped with state-of-the-art technology and high-quality images of Malaga's seabed and the mouth of the Guadalhorce river.

The ruling councillors have also approved the renewal of the collaboration agreement with the Ministry of the Interior for the Local Police to maintain its participation in the VioGén system, which integrates police, judicial and penitentiary information on all cases of gender-based violence to enable and guarantee the protection of victims and to provide information to the various institutions involved. Through this service, the Local Police of Malaga is currently assigned the protection of 649 victims and the control of 661 perpetrators.

The agreement, signed in May 2017, establishes the protocols of collaboration between the state security forces and the Local Police of the different municipalities for the protection and monitoring of victims. Since then, the Local Police have been responsible for the control and monitoring of compliance with restraining orders imposed in cases of gender-based violence. Since the signing of the agreement, the Local Police have been assigned the protection of a total of 2,908 victims and the monitoring and surveillance of 3,365 perpetrators. In these monitoring cases, the officer-victim contact is continuous, in addition to the surveillance work carried out in the victim's private and working environment. These women can contact their respective protection officer 24 hours a day. In addition, the officers hold personal interviews, carry out regular assessments of the risk, provide accompaniment or transfers to court or alternative housing to the usual residence and handle the processing of judicial reports.

In terms of environmental initiatives, the green light has been given to a new call for subsidies for entities aimed at the maintenance of public green areas managed by urban conservation bodies or owned by homeowners' associations, provided that free access to them is guaranteed for all residents and that they have a minimum area of 1,500 square metres. The budget allocated is 700,000 euros, of which 525,000 euros will be distributed equally among all the applicant organisations that meet the established requirements, while the remaining 175,000 euros will be distributed among residential associations and urban development organisations in residential areas.

The purpose of the subsidies is to promote and channel residential participation and awareness in all matters related to the maintenance and conservation of these green areas. According to the rules, these aids may cover up to 90% of the budgeted amount in the project submitted by the organisation, with a maximum amount of 60,100 euros. The activities must be carried out between 1 January and 31 December 2025, although the period may be extended until 30 June 2026.

Another project approved by the mayor's cabinet is the concession of a municipal plot of land located in the Carretera de Cádiz district for the construction of an electricity substation, which will replace the current one, within the framework of the urban development that is carried out in the area of La Тérmica.

The city council had already given the definitive green light to the La Térmica project in March. The transformation of this 115,944-square-metre area involves the construction of new subsidised housing, as well as shops, offices, a hotel and new green areas.

Specifically, 59,524 square metres will be allocated to green areas; 6,377 square metres to public use space, in which a maximum built-up area of 19,366 square metres will be allocated to social, administrative and sports services; and 23,366 square metres for the road network and car parks. The sum of both spaces, 82,890 square metres, means that 71.49% of the gross surface area of the sector is reserved for free spaces for building and public use. Likewise, 18,908.07 square metres are earmarked for residential use (273 protected dwellings and 400 free dwellings); 2,404.95 square metres for hotel use; and 1,839.92 square metres for offices.

The relocation of the substation, as well as the extension of the Paseo Marítimo Antonio Banderas, are envisaged as external works to be carried out by the promoters of the project.

The plot subject to this public-domain concession by direct award in favor of the company Edistribución Redes Digitales SLU, for which a concession fee of 1,434,613.06 euros has been set for the entire 75-year term, is located on Calle Miguel de Mérida Nicolich 2.

The go-ahead has also been given to the collaboration agreement between Malaga city council and the University of Malaga for the transfer of the east wing of the Pabellón de Gobierno on the El Ejido campus. Once this procedure has been completed, the city council will be able to put out to tender the third phase of the adaptation work on this part of the building and complete the headquarters of the Malaga philharmonic orchestra (OFM).

The city council has already carried out the first two phases of the rehabilitation of this former UMA pavilion. These earlier stages focused on the ground floor and first floor, which the university transferred to the city in March 2022 under a previous agreement. That first agreement covered 815 square metres in the west wing of the building.

This refurbishment work has involved an investment of 2,857,703 euros and has focused on converting the ground floor into a 689.96 square metres recording studio and, on the other, on adapting the first floor for the orchestra's administrative use. Both rooms are already in use by the OFM.

Once the third and final phase has been completed, the OFM will have the largest recording studio in Andalucía (already in use) with an auditorium, a general rehearsal room, individual rooms and administrative offices.

The city council has also approved the admission of the planning initiative for the development of the 'Camino de Liria' area, promoted by Prolira Málaga S.L.

The purpose to establish the detailed planning of the area, which has a surface area of 339,511.80 square metres, in accordance with the planning provisions established in the general urban plan.

This project is intended to link the districts of Campanillas and Santa Rosalía, completing the area with a mix of different uses. The proposed layout respects the landscape, shaped by the agricultural training school and the natural contours of the terrain. To ensure good road connections, the plan includes a perimeter service road connected to the main road network.

The proposed development alternative envisages a land-use model organised around a linear park along the A-7056 road, creating a long green corridor. The design prioritises medium-density residential development arranged in large blocks, with commercial and business uses located at central points within the sector.

The proposal includes the creation of a network of open spaces that connect the sector with the linear park on the other side of the A-7056, which, in turn, will create a network of pedestrian routes around the area that will connect with the adjoining sectors.

A total of 152,780.31 square metres of buildable area is proposed, of which 90,904.32 square metres are for free residential use, 38,958.99 square metres of roof for protected residential use and 22,917.00 square metres of buildable area for tertiary or business use.

Following approval, the preliminary document will be submitted to the public consultation process for a period of 30 days. At the same time, a request will be made to the Andalusian regional government's department of sustainability, environment and blue economy to start the process for a strategic environmental assessment.

The city council has given initial approval to a modification of the special interior reform plan G.3–Intelhorce Industrial for a specific area. The plan aims to update the zoning of the company's property to meet the current needs of the new Centro Logístico Mayoral. The changes will create more green areas, both public and private, without increasing the allowed building volume.

After the initial approval, the developer must obtain mandatory and binding reports from the roads department of the regional ministry of development, territorial planning and housing, from the civil aviation authorities, as well as from the railway sector of the Ministry of Transport.

Finally, a study for the planning of the building units on a plot located on Calle Sawa Martínez 1, with a surface area of 752.13 square metres for the construction of a residential building with a ground floor plus one on the facade facing Calle Sawa Martínez and a ground floor on the facade facing Calle Angustias, has been initially approved.

Increased employment aid under the Pefa programme

The mayor's governing team has also approved an increase of 200,000 euros in the budget earmarked for the call for applications for the Pefa employment programme, dedicated to the generation of stable employment through the self-employed and recently created companies. The programme will now have a 950,000-euro budget.

This programme subsidises both employers and those contracts that are made on an indefinite basis, as long as the people for whom the application is made have been legally registered as job seekers prior to their registration or incorporation into the company. The activity they carry out must be located in the city and must have either started within the 12 months prior to the presentation of the application or been active for less than five years.

Applications can be submitted through https://sede.malaga.eu/ or https://imfe.malaga.eu/ until 30 November.