When two traffic lanes are eliminated from Palma's Paseo Marítimo, no more bars or restaurants will be allowed to open. Deputy mayor for the model of the city Antoni Noguera says that this will affect the section between Monseñor Palmer and the auditorium.
The decision is in line with demands from the Majorca Association for Bars, Cafeterias and Restaurants, whose president, Alfonso Robledo, has said that the Paseo Marítimo is dead during the day because of a lack of shops. Although there are a number of hotels, comparatively few tourists walk along the Paseo Marítimo during the day, meaning that restaurants get mostly all their business in the evenings. The town hall measure for the front line road is a further one for limiting the number of new bars and restaurants.
In order for this to come into effect, the town hall has to first conclude its negotiations with the Balearic Ports Authority regarding the traffic calming measure for the Paseo Marítimo and to then make a specific amendment to the city's general urban plan. This amendment will be similar to the one already adopted for limiting to no more than three the number of new bars and restaurants that can be opened in a 50-metre radius in pedestrianised areas.
Noguera has clashed with the Partido Popular's Lourdes Bosch, who claims that the amendment will affect all of Palma except certain specific areas. Noguera has accused her of lying and of creating alarmism, insisting that it applies only to pedestrianised streets and areas of so-called civic axis.