Congress centre continues to grow

THE finished project for the construction of Palma's proposed convention centre and the hotel annexe will occupy double the area permitted by Palma's General Town Planning Plan, whose reform was approved on Monday. According to the figures given last week by Patxi Mangado, the architect in charge of the project, the Palacio de Congresos will occupy an area of 21'999 square metres, to which must be added another 28'999 for the car park. However, in the modification of the Plan, the maximum area permitted is 17'500 square metres.
The same thing is happening with the five star hotel which is planned for Palma's seafront, in the same area as the convention centre.
The area allowed in the General Plan is 10'500 square metres for the hotel plus 3'000 more for the multi purpose rooms. The project which the Balearic Government is planning is for an area of 22'380 square metres. To this must be added the 1'846 square metres for the commercial area, which is not mentioned in the modification of the General Plan. In other words, the total area which the Balearic Government wants to build on is 47'379 square metres, when the amended General Plan states a maximum of 31'000 square metres for the hotel and the convention centre project. The question now is whether or not Palma council can give planning permission to a project which greatly exceeds the area established in the General Plan. Sources say that, if Palma council cannot reasonably justify the increase in the area to be built on, they cannot grant the licence to start the work. In this case, Palma council and the Balearic Government would have two options to settle the increase in the size of the hotel and the Palacio de Congresos. The first option is that they could make another amendment to the General Plan, which would mean a further delay to the project.
The other option is that Palma council and the Balearic Government could change the existing proposal, that is, reduce the area of the hotel and the Palacio de Congresos.