An official document dated 28 December 1968, uncovered from the archives of the Ministerio de la Gobernación, sheds new light on the history of Planas del Rey. This text confirms that as early as the late 1960s, the municipality of Pratdip had been officially asked to integrate the urbanization… before the process was voluntarily or administratively blocked.
A File Opened at the Request of Pratdip
At that time, the municipality of Pratdip contacted the National Service of Inspection and Assistance to Local Corporations to obtain an official opinion regarding the transfer of the infrastructures of Planas del Rey.
This initiative followed the joint proposal of the developer Francisco Lebasque Belloncle and several property owners, inviting the municipality to accept the transfer of roads, networks, and services already in place in the urbanization.
What the Official Document Says:
The document dated 28 December 1968 is unequivocal:
- It recalls that the law authorizes municipalities to accept this type of transfer and that the handover of roads is even a mandatory element in any urbanization process (Article 129 of the Land Law).
- However, it notes the absence of the necessary documents, in particular:
- The mentioned municipal council agreement (18 October 1968),
- A detailed inventory of the infrastructures,
- The complementary plans and studies essential for an informed decision.
A Conditional Agreement in Principle
While emphasizing that the developer’s offer may be of interest to the municipality, the Service specifies that official acceptance requires beforehand:
- A detailed inventory of the surface area, boundaries, and condition of the infrastructures,
- An assessment of maintenance costs, possible depreciation, and expected benefits,
- Technical documents allowing the estimation of viability and obligations for the municipality.
An Incomplete but Revealing Process
From a legal and historical perspective, this document is crucial:
- The municipality officially acknowledges having been asked to integrate Planas del Rey.
- The integration process was indeed underway, but incomplete due to the lack of the required complementary documents.
- This administrative blockage can be interpreted in two ways:
- Either as a simple lack of initiative from the developer,
- Or — and this is the most likely scenario in light of the following decades — as evidence of a municipal desire to delay, hinder, or even avoid the official integration of Planas.
A Political Decision That Endures
This document, forgotten or concealed for over 50 years, demonstrates that the absence of reception of Planas del Rey by the municipality of Pratdip is not the result of chance or an insurmountable constraint.
From the outset, all the legal conditions were met to allow integration. But the lack of urgency in finalizing the process, the absence of an inventory, and above all, political opportunism, created a situation of incomplete urbanization… which still persists today, to the detriment of the residents.
Asociación de Vecinos Les Planes del Rei (SOS Planas)
