In 1999, Pratdip Town Council and the Planas del Rey Urban Development Conservation Entity (EUCC) signed an agreement to organise the funding of maintenance and the work still required in the development.
Among other measures, the Town Council undertook to provide an annual grant calculated on the basis of part of the property tax collected in Planas del Rey. For their part, the property owners approved an extraordinary budget to fund the work identified in the technical study carried out the previous year.
This agreement marked an important step, but it did not mean that the development had been formally accepted by the Town Council. Its purpose was precisely to fund the work that still had to be completed before Planas del Rey could potentially come under municipal responsibility.
An agreement prepared following the 1998 technical study
In September 1998, a technical study estimated the necessary work at 47,234,044 pesetas, equivalent to €283,882.32. It covered sewerage, the drinking water supply, public lighting and road surfacing.
The documents from 1999 show that this estimate led to negotiations between the EUCC Governing Board and Pratdip Town Council.
At its meeting on 13 March 1999, the Governing Board discussed a new agreement providing for a municipal contribution equivalent to 50% of the property tax collected in the development, together with a share of the funds received in connection with the nuclear power station.
The proposal was considered again on 10 April in the presence of Mayor Josep Fortuny and several councillors. Those attending presented the agreement as a preliminary step towards bringing Planas del Rey under municipal responsibility.
The Town Council unanimously approves the agreement
On 22 April 1999, Pratdip Town Council unanimously approved the agreement and authorised the mayor to sign the necessary documents. Municipal secretary Gloria Sabaté Sabaté certified the decision on 3 May 1999.
The document recalls that the Town Council had been unable to formally accept the development works because of deficiencies in relation to the original development project. It also acknowledges that the EUCC faced high maintenance costs, while residents continued to pay their municipal taxes without being able to deduct the fees paid to the entity.
Pending the possible formal acceptance of the development, the Town Council therefore agreed to contribute financially towards its maintenance and certain works.
A contribution based on the property tax collected in Planas del Rey
The agreement required the Town Council to include an annual amount in its budget equivalent to 50% of the total property tax actually collected in the Planas del Rey area.
This was not an individual 50% reduction for each property owner. The property tax remained payable in full. The agreement simply used half of the total revenue collected from this tax in the development as the basis for calculating the municipal contribution paid to the EUCC.
The amount of this contribution could therefore vary each year according to the sums actually collected by the Town Council.
Municipal grants and external funding
The agreement also provided for a contribution linked to the funds received by the Town Council from ENRESA. Its amount was to be calculated approximately according to the number of Planas del Rey residents registered in the municipality. However, the document states that this amount could not be determined in advance and could be reviewed by the Town Council.
The municipality also undertook to apply for public grants for the development. If awarded, they were to be transferred in full to the EUCC.
The grants were intended to cover maintenance expenses and projects proposed by the Governing Board, previously approved by the Town Council and supported by the necessary documentation. The agreement provided for these projects to be funded up to 50%, within the limits established by the agreement.
The minutes of the General Meeting held on 8 August 1999 mention, among other matters, that a grant of 1,000,000 pesetas (€6,010.12) had been obtained for the installation of fire hydrants.
An extraordinary budget of 55 million pesetas
During meetings held in May and June 1999, the Governing Board prepared an extraordinary budget to fund the work identified in the technical study.
Although the September 1998 study estimated the work at 47,234,044 pesetas, the extraordinary budget presented in 1999 amounted to 55,000,000 pesetas (€330,556.66). The available documents do not explain the precise reason for this increase.
After deducting approximately 6,000,000 pesetas in municipal grants (€36,060.73), 49,000,000 pesetas (€294,495.16) would remain to be funded over two financial years, representing approximately 24,500,000 pesetas (€147,247.58) per year.
The property owners approve the funding
On 8 August 1999, an Extraordinary General Meeting brought together 156 property owners, including 67 attending in person and 89 represented by proxy.
EUCC president Antonio Agredano explained that the agreement proposed the previous year had been renegotiated and improved through new grants, unanimously approved by the Town Council and signed by both parties.
Before Planas del Rey could come under municipal responsibility, the necessary work and alterations still had to be completed. The minutes state that the contribution required to cover the extraordinary budget for the 1999–2000 financial year was set at 55,000 pesetas per property owner, equivalent to €330.56, with the same amount payable by everyone.
The proposal was put to a vote. According to the minutes, the result was:
- 130 votes in favour;
- 20 votes against;
- 1 invalid vote.
The extraordinary budget intended to fund the work identified in the technical study was therefore approved.
Funding arrangements, but still no formal municipal acceptance
For the first time, the 1999 agreement established a mechanism directly involving the Town Council, the EUCC, public grants and contributions from property owners.
However, it did not amount to the formal acceptance of Planas del Rey by the municipality. On the contrary, the documents explain that the work had to be carried out or completed to bring the development into compliance with legal requirements before it could come under municipal responsibility.
By 1999, the Town Council and the EUCC therefore had a funding agreement, and the property owners had approved their contribution. The next step was to carry out the work and continue the procedure through which the municipality could eventually assume responsibility for the development.
Jim – La Tribune de Planas
