Veïns de Parcent - Newsletter Nº 58 - 4th June 2007

Dear friends,

Many of you will have received a thick envelope from the Defensor del Pueblo (Spanish ombudsman) last week and may be wondering what it is all about. It has been sent to everyone who signed our petition presented to him last year concerning the three PAIs provisionally passed on 30th January 2006 in which we asked (among other things) for the lack of a water report from the Confederación Hidrográfica del Júcar (the water authority for this part of Spain) showing that there is an adequate water supply for the planned developments, to be considered grounds for stopping them from going ahead.

This report has now been given and is totally against the PAIs being allowed to proceed! The report was drawn up following a request from the Defensor del Pueblo and quotes the arguments given by the Sindica de Greuges (Valencian ombudswoman), various Spanish laws (including LUV), and the judgements handed down in court cases for similar planning problems. It states that the documents provided by the Parcent town hall and the promoters of the PAIs were often inadmissible evidence and gave insufficient proof of an adequate supply for the increase in population proposed, and that they were therefore unable to give a favourable report and allow development to proceed.

This negative report is binding on the town hall and the Conselleria of the Generalitat Valenciana, which, if they pass these plans despite what it says, would be reported to the State Prosecutor.

So, once again, our claims have been vindicated and up-held by an official body:

If there is insufficient water, there can be no more building.

It seems to me now (I have not spoken to the other members of the Veïns Committee, nor the CDP councillors-in-waiting yet as I only got back from the UK yesterday) that the Conselleria will be forced to reject these three PAIs. Presumably we will be able to get the draft General Plan back as well, so that we can draw up something that is feasible and sustainable, given the resources available to the village. I hope too that the developers will have no grounds for claiming compensation for their work to date in drawing up and presenting these plans, given that they have not complied in any way with current land laws.

Another point that is very important for us is that this ruling applies to all three of the PAIs – not just El Replá.

Your CDP councillors will be looking at all the implications for the town and its future with their advisors and will let everyone know as soon as possible what we can do to overturn everything that the PP-run council wanted to foist on us.

What a wasted four years! Let's hope that the CDP can do much better in the next four years. I am sure you will continue to support their efforts on our behalf.

Finally, I would like to thank all of you who have contacted Jacqui, Mark, and me with your congratulations on our election victory. We could not have achieved it without your 100% support. So

THANK YOU, EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOU!

Don't forget we are planning a celebration of our victory on Saturday, 16th June – the day the CDP officially take over in the town hall – and I will give details in the next newsletter, and hope to see all of you there. Now we have one more thing to celebrate too!! Hurray!!!

Jenny