FREE COPY WTM 2017 THE NEWSPAPER FOR SOUTHERN SPAIN The region’s Official market leader best goes to Audited by PGD/OJD November 3rd to 9th 2017 London www.surinenglish.com Discover the beauty of southern Spain in our News 2 Food & Drink 54 26 55 Comment My Home World Travel Market Lifestyle 28 Sport 58 Health & Beauty 42 Classified 63 supplement INSIDE in English What To Do 48 Pastimes 70 BANDERAS PLAYS AT BEING PICASSO The actor has returned to his home city to complete filming for Genius, a series about the life of Malaga’s other famous son P29 Antonio Banderas at La Malagueta bullring, where filming took place on Tuesday. :: SALVADOR SALAS One billion investment bonanza for the Costa del Sol as market hots up So far this year new development ment projects. Leading the way is Malaga city projects announced in Malaga province itself, where councillors expect to reach 500 million euros of inward have outstripped all of last year investment in 2017, well up on last year and much of it from interna- Booming tourist numbers and a re- ties along the coast and inland tional sources. All towns from west covering Spanish economy are con- Malaga province are all reporting to east are benefiting, however tributing to a resurgence in eco- an increase in requests for plan- there are calls for the new construc- nomic activity and construction ning permission and announce- tion jobs to be better paid and more on the Costa del Sol. Municipali- ments of new property and invest- secure. P2&3 Ex Catalan ministers Malaga win at last. A late Love letter returned held without bail. penalty from Recio moves after 74 years. A journalist Prosecutors call for the Blue and Whites off has located the relatives of Carles Puigdemont’s the foot of the table as a Vélez man who wrote to arrest in Belgium P23 they beat Celta (2-1) P60 his fiancée in 1943 P20 22222222 November 3rd to 9th 2017 NEWS SUR IN ENGLISH high total by the end of the year,” says town planning councillor An- The Costa del drés Ruiz. He says most of these li- cences are for the sustainable con- struction of new homes, and that the council is studying the situa- Sol starts tion exhaustively to ensure they comply with its master urban plan. The local authority says investors are showing great confidence in Mi- building again jas at present, and so are small and medium businesses who will help to reduce unemployment. “We have set ourselves a major challenge to reduce the number of people with- Malaga city, Mijas, Estepona and out work in Mijas and, above all, Marbella head the list with the most make the municipality attractive to investors,” says Andrés Ruiz. Among new investment projects in Malaga these investments is the one by Tay- province this year lor Wimpey España and La Cala Re- sort, the Horizon Golf development in La Cala de Mijas. isn’t over yet there are very positive Things are also going well in Fuen- signs,” he says. girola. The mayor, Ana Mula, says the He also says Malaga’s town plan- figures show that the market is re- ning policy is enabling this growth. activating. “We have projects pend- IVÁN “You only have to look at Colinas ing with a value of ten million euros; GELIBTER del Limonar, Martiricos, Torre del they will begin this year or early next Río, La Térmica and, hopefully, the year, and that is very good news for Repsol site,” he says. “I believe, and Fuengirola,” she says. ne of the most char- it is something we are starting to do, Estepona is the next municipal- acteristic images of that we have to treat planning pol- ity with the largest number of in- the years prior to icy in the same way as tourism. We vestments of this type. The council the economic crisis have to have an international pres- says things are moving positively, was the cranes. ence,” he says. not only in terms of interest in in- OFrom 2008 onwards One of the most important exam- vesting but also the speed with these structures disappeared from ples of this new construction is in which the town hall processes ap- the skyline of municipalities in Mijas, where there is an increase of plications. Last year ended with works Malaga; a sign that the construction 40 per cent compared with last year, valued at 83 million euros, but by industry was at a standstill, with the which was already a good year. Af- mid-October the figure for this year consequences which everyone now ter ending 2016 with 120 million, at was already over 113 million. knows. Even though the period of the beginning of October the figure social and economic crisis is not yet was already over 150, in a munici- Marbella, along with Malaga city, Mijas and Estepona is one of the Problems with regulations completely over, you only have to pality which still has plenty of land. areas attracting most development investment . :: JOSELE-LANZA The cases of Marbella and Torremo- take a look at any major town to see “For the second year running we have linos are unusual. In the latter, that things are changing. Malaga has increased investment in terms of which has the second highest num- started building again and all the in- works licences. Last year we doubled ber of inhabitants in the province, stitutions say that 2017 is proving to the figure for 2015 and it looks as if council sources were unable to give be a key year in the recovery of the this year will be similar. If everything a concrete figure because they have private sector, to a greater or lesser continues like this, we’ll have a very only just taken over at the town hall extent. By the end of this year, there and have not had the chance to will have been one billion euros of quantify the situation. However, urban investment. the president of the Association of The principal example is in Malaga The future Urban Plan Developers and Constructors in city, where town planning council- Malaga, Emilio López Caparrós, says lor Francisco Pomares announced for Torremolinos will the figure will be about half that of this week that works licences have mean projects worth Mijas, around 75 million. The coun- been granted so far this year for pro- over 650 million euros cil said this week that town plan- jects worth more than 470 million ning in Torremolinos is growing and euros. The final figure is expected to can go ahead it is confident that investment will exceed 500 million, far above the continue after two landmarks were 350 million in 2016. Pomares says reached in September to unblock Malaga could become the second Investment has also the problems suffered by the sec- city after Madrid with the highest tor: the text of the Urban Plan of level of investment. “It’s evident increased in 1986, redacted to comply with the that this city is especially attractive municipalities in inland regional Land Law (LOUA), was ap- for investors. We also have to re- proved and has been put on display member that this is a good time for areas of the province Taylor Wimpey and La Cala Resort will be investing over 11 million for public perusal. the sector, and although the crisis euros on the Horizon Golf project in Mijas this year. :: I. GELIBTER Unsurprisingly, the list of permits November 3rd to 9th 2017 3 SUR IN ENGLISH NEWS for works which are authorised every granted, because building work has CFigures in millions of euros week by Marbella council is grow- resumed on residential develop- Data from the principal municipalities Source: Town halls and ACP ing. As an example, on 9 October the ments which had come to a halt, 2017 (January to October) licences granted were for property and the town hall has been ap- 470 investments which will be worth 17 proached by potential investors. The 2016 million euros. About 90 per cent of mayor also says that investment the capital will be invested in Nueva groups are buying land from the 500 Andalucía, on two large residential banks to build on in the future. complexes and a luxury villa. The “They come to the town hall to ask million euros is rest will be in eastern Marbella, on for advice on how to go about it,” 350 the figure with the Santa Clara Golf development, he explains. which Malaga city 38% with the construction of three high Inland, there are also positive expects to end quality villas. signs for the construction sector. 2017 is the estimated In Torremolinos, investment has Antequera is already approaching growth in invest- grown by more than 20 per cent, al- the 19 million euros it achieved last ment in Mijas though the total figure is low because year, and council sources say there of the age of the Urban Plan. The new is no doubt that the figure will be plan will include the construction exceeded this year. of the biggest shopping and leisure Coín, in the Guadalhorce region, centre in Andalucía between the Pala- is in a similar situation, having al- 150 cio de Congresos and the motorway. ready matched the 1.7 million euros 120 It will cost 650 million euros, plus of last year. 113 indirect investment of around 550 These are all positive signs that million. The new plan also includes the construction sector is on the 83 6.7 6.5 75 more green zones.