One of Malaga's main residential development areas to include shopping centre

Cortijo Merino is currently Malaga's main residential expansion area, especially when combined with the more than 3,400 homes built in the nearby Distrito Zeta development.

Reina Marín is building the homes on a 17,401-square-metre plot situated between Avenida de Ortega y Gasset (the old Cártama road) and the new Cortijo Merino central park, next to which Neinor Homes and Nuovit are already constructing their first residential blocks.

The shopping centre will be called BuenavistaPark and its development is contingent upon the final approval of a planning application the municipal urban planning department is currently processing.

Reina Marín has already applied for a building permit with the intention of securing authorisation as soon as the planning study receives final approval.

The aim is for construction to begin before the end of this year. In fact, the property developer is already in the process of contracting the firm that will construct the shopping centre, comprising a ground floor and two upper floors, using prefabricated elements.

The BuenavistaPark complex will be divided into three buildings: a larger central building and two smaller ones at either end. These ancillary buildings are set to house a Grupo Mas supermarket, which will feature a San Tomás café and a Mokai pet shop, as well as a McDonald's, which will offer drive-through service, a terrace, a children's play area and a car park.

As for the main building, the developer is at an advanced stage in negotiations to bring in a chain of gyms and attract an international shopping centre operator, which will facilitate the opening of various types of retail outlets.

Combined, all residential developments in the area comprise more than 6,000 homes. The main outstanding issue is the widening of Avenida de Ortega y Gasset on the section from the Intelhorce roundabout to its junction with the Hiperronda. The road currently has just one lane in each direction, which leads to frequent traffic jams.

The regional government owns the road. It has previously drawn up and shelved plans to widen it. In recent years, the regional ministry of public works has been arguing that the road is now used predominantly for urban traffic and therefore should be taken over by the local council.

Last autumn, the municipal urban planning department commissioned consultancy firm Narval Ingeniería to adapt and update the project to widen the A-7054, from the roundabout at the junction with the Azucarera-Intelhorce road to Mercamálaga.

In response to enquiries from SUR, the urban planning department has reported that the design for the road widening project "has already been updated". It announced that "funding options will be examined in September".

"The matter will be discussed with the Junta and alternatives will be explored," municipal sources stated, adding that the Andalusian regional government remains part of the equation despite having reiterated in several reports its opposition to funding this project.

The project to extend this road would involve widening it to 70 metres so that it can accommodate a central carriageway with two lanes in each direction, separated by a four-metre-wide landscaped median. It would also feature two service roads, each with two lanes, outer pavements and on-street parking. Furthermore, the plan envisages the possibility of reserving a lane for buses and high-occupancy vehicles, as well as a cycle lane.

Studies in recent years have highlighted the need to widen this road so that it does not become a traffic nightmare. The future shopping centre and residential developments will attract thousands of people. In addition, the area houses the Mayoral and Amazon logistics centres, which increases lorry traffic.

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