Restoring Public Lighting in Planes del Rei: A Vital Emergency

A situation unworthy of a state governed by the rule of law

Dear members of our association, dear neighbors of Planes del Rei,

Since October 31, 2017, our urbanization has lived in darkness. Public lighting has disappeared, plunging our streets into total insecurity. Crime has tripled. At nightfall, our streets resemble those of 1930s Chicago during Prohibition — but without the joys of the Cotton Club.

Concrete facts, victimized neighbors

A telling example: in the upper part of calle Lirio, out of five houses, four were vandalized.

  • One house was squatted.
  • Another was burgled in broad daylight at 5 PM, and the guard dog was neutralized with a taser.
  • Two others were broken into, with their front doors forced open.

And all this happened within just a few weeks. We all feel this is going to end badly.

An endless “consultation phase”

We are told the municipality has entered a “consultation phase”… But meanwhile, insecurity is growing, and the town hall remains passive.

Trivial expenses compared to our taxes

The last electricity bill paid to Endesa for public lighting in Planes del Rei amounted to less than €5,000 for a whole year.

At the same time, the residents of the urbanization pay about €250,000 in IBI to the town hall each year. This contempt is unacceptable.

The courts are on our side

The High Court of Justice of Catalonia confirmed, in a final appeal ruling dated May 10, 2021, that the town hall must execute the dissolution order of the EUCC from July 21, 2016 “in good faith”. Clearly, that is far from the case.

What the law says

The Law 7/1985 of April 2, Regulating the Bases of Local Regime, clearly obliges municipalities to provide several mandatory services:

  • Public lighting
  • Cemetery
  • Household waste collection
  • Street cleaning
  • Drinking water supply
  • Sewage
  • Access and paving of public roads

These are the minimum services that every town hall must provide, even in non-receptioned urbanizations.

An institutionalized lie

For more than ten years, the town hall has claimed we are a “private estate”. Yet despite our repeated requests, it has never provided a single legal document to support this claim.

The dissolution of the EUCC, confirmed by the courts, eliminates the administrative intermediary between our urbanization and the town hall. We now depend directly on the municipality.

A partial reception that raises questions

The report by the Baix Camp architect dated March 31, 2021, led the town hall to officially receive a large parcel of green areas.

But then, why not also calle Lirio, calle Magnolia, calle Narcisso…? Where is the logic?

We demand action

We can no longer carry on like this.

We demand the immediate restoration of public lighting throughout the Planes del Rei urbanization.

Sign the petition here. It will be submitted to the town hall, our lawyer, and the relevant authorities.

The Asociación de Vecinos de Planes del Rei (SOS Planas)

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