Between 2005 and 2006, the project to complete Planas del Rey became more clearly defined. Following several technical reviews and negotiations, its estimated cost fell from €7.36 million to approximately €5.48 million.
The property owners approved the continuation of the project, but no work began. The agreement with the Town Council, the financing arrangements and the procedures required to start construction still had to be settled.
This period directly followed the steps described in the article about the first overall project drawn up in 2003 and 2004 to complete Planas and secure its formal acceptance by the Town Council.
2005 – A project estimated at €7.36 million
On 24 April 2005, an information meeting was held in Pratdip to present the preliminary project for integrating Planas into the municipality.
A few months later, at the general meeting held on 7 August 2005, ACYCSA presented the initial project drawn up to bring the development into compliance with the required standards.
The maximum estimated cost was €7,358,340, including VAT, equivalent to approximately €17 to €21 per square metre of land.
This estimate still had to be refined. Items considered unnecessary could be removed, and the actual cost would depend on the tenders submitted by contractors.
The property owners approved the preparation of the detailed construction project:
- 44.30% of the ownership shares voted in favour;
- 8.22% voted against;
- 0.46% abstained.
This decision allowed the studies to continue, but it did not yet constitute an order to begin the work.
The electricity network drives up the budget
The project covered the water and sewer networks, roads, pavements, drainage, street lighting, electricity, telecommunications, gas and fire protection.
By the end of 2005, the electricity network had become one of the main difficulties. FECSA submitted an estimate of approximately €2 million, mainly for placing the power lines underground.
The EUCC and the Town Council considered that this amount should be renegotiated. As the installations belonged to the electricity company, the property owners should not have to bear the entire cost of modernising them.
The final project, which had been expected in December 2005, was therefore delayed.
2006 – The project is reduced to approximately €5.48 million
In 2006, the municipal technical departments, EUCC representatives and the company responsible for the project reviewed several items, including pavement widths, pipelines, drainage, road surfaces, electrical wiring and the fire protection strip.
Negotiations with FECSA also helped reduce some of the costs. The company agreed to install the transformers free of charge and to waive €158,502.46 in project design and construction management fees if the installation was carried out by an external contractor.
Following these changes, the overall estimate fell to approximately €5.48 million.
However, this figure remained provisional. The final cost could only be established after the public tender organised by the Town Council.
13 August 2006 – The annex to the agreement is rejected
At the general meeting held on 13 August 2006, the property owners were asked to vote on an annex to the agreement proposed by the Town Council.
The annex combined two issues: the installation of natural gas and the payment of the charges relating to the site of the former supermarket.
Several property owners objected to combining these two matters. They also pointed out that the civil engineering work required for the gas network was already included in the project approved in 2005.
The annex was rejected:
- 20.61% of the ownership shares voted against;
- 7.77% voted in favour;
- 4.03% abstained.
This vote did not call the renovation of Planas into question, but it prevented the agreement between the EUCC and the Town Council from being finalised.
A well-developed project, but still no construction work
By the end of 2006, the technical content of the project was more clearly defined and its estimated cost had fallen significantly.
Nevertheless, the work could not begin. The agreement still had to be finalised, the legal framework for the operation established, the public tender organised and each property owner’s contribution determined.
The project had therefore been approved in principle, but its implementation still depended on a political, legal and financial agreement.
In 2007, a new agreement would attempt to break the deadlock. However, it would also be rejected, despite the announcement of a project estimated at around €7 million.
La Tribune de Planas
Reference documents
- Planas Info for the first quarter of 2005, in Spanish;
- Minutes of the general meeting held on 7 August 2005, in Spanish;
- Planas Info for the fourth quarter of 2005, in Spanish;
- Minutes of the Governing Council meeting held on 10 December 2005, in French;
- Minutes of the general meeting held on 13 August 2006, in Spanish.
