Marbella to build new beach bar to replace iconic Ranchón Cubano outside protected dunes

Marbella town hall has launched a tender for a concession to build and operate the new 'chiringuito', officially known as MAR-40.

The original establishment no longer exists and the town hall will not allow its replacement to occupy the Real de Zaragoza dune. The dune forms part of the Dunas de Marbella reserve, a protected area covering 20.9947 hectares that the authorities created in September 2015 under Spain's legislation protecting wild flora and fauna.

The successful bidder will have to build the new chiringuito further from the sea, next to a small access road in the area and alongside two groups of terraced houses.

The new beach bar will still occupy public maritime-terrestrial domain and will cover 199 square metres. Of this, 169.71 square metres will serve as a food outlet, while the remaining 29.29 square metres will provide public toilets. The operator may also add a seasonal terrace of up to 70 square metres, according to the technical specifications for the tender.

The town hall has set the starting price for the seven-year concession at 367,176.88 euros, equivalent to 52,453.84 a year. This combines a 44,021.84-euro fee for the permanent beach facilities: 30,059.84 euros payable to the national coastal authority and 13,962 euros to Marbella town hall, with 8,432 euros for the 70-square-metre terrace, of which 6,468 euros will go to the coastal authority and 1,964 to the town hall.

However, the tender documents warn that the amount will automatically increase proportionally if the Spanish government raises the fee charged for the permanent restaurant facility or the seasonal terrace.

The return of a chiringuito to this part of the coast will still take some time. Bidders have until 9 September to submit their offers, after which the town hall will assess them before awarding the concession.

Once the town hall signs the contract, the successful bidder will have one year to start construction and nine months to complete the work. Before construction can begin, however, the Junta de Andalucía must give its approval, while the concession holder must obtain a building permit and all the other authorisations required to open the new business.

The technical specifications make the successful bidder responsible for monitoring and cleaning the surrounding area and require the operator to keep it in proper hygienic and aesthetic condition.

The documents place particular emphasis on this requirement because the site lies within the Dunas de Marbella and the Real de Zaragoza dune.

The tender documents also allow the authorities to terminate the concession early if they need the public land, in whole or in part, for works or activities declared to serve the public interest.

If carrying out those works requires them to use or demolish any part of the land or facilities covered by the concession, the administration may recover the concession before its scheduled expiry.

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