Council hopes to enlarge the port of Son Serra

The new planning regulations for Santa Margalida will include enlarging the Son Serra port and building a golf course at Can Picafort. However, the regulations have still not been approved, after 15 years spent trying to revise them. The council, however, is confident that initial approval will be granted in November. Felix Estelrich, who is in charge of the planning department and is the councillor who represents Can Picafort, said that Friday had been the last day for firms interested in drawing up the new regulations to present their proposals and only one firm has shown interest. Mayor Antoni del Olmo was optimistic about the plans being ready before the end of the year. The existing regulations date from 1986 and are considered obsolete. The council has tried on many occasions to bring them up to date. Last year, and after months of debates and arguments, the ruling team comprised of the Popular Party (PP) and United Can Picafort (CPU) approved a single modification, introducing the concept of “indexes of intensity” to try to paliate the construction of the large number of apartment blocks planned for Son Bauló, but it feels that the existing regulations are obsolete in other aspects. Estelrich said that the new regulations will have to “graduate the density and volume of construction, study the different sectors and adapt to Council of Majorca and Balearic government's planning regulations.” However, he said that an effort would be made to include the golf course, and to enlarge the port at Son Serra, “because at the moment, entering and leaving is a risky business.” The enlargement of the port will be welcomed by yachties as mooring space is at a premium in the islands, and the authorities are not keen on allowing marinas to expand, despite the demand. But fierce opposition can be expected from the environmentalists as they are opposed to more marinas and more golf courses.