On and on goes the saga of the project for the Ses Fontanelles commercial centre in Playa de Palma. The latest is that the government's trade department has turned down a request for a licence that was lodged by the developers - Unibail Rodamco - a few days before the Council of Majorca initially approved its plan for commercial centres. The licence application has been rejected because the project is on land that is not classified as being urban. A previous request, made during the period of the last government, was denied for the same reason. The department checked with Palma town hall about the land classification, and the town hall confirmed that it wasn't urban.
There is in any event still a moratorium on building any commercial centres that occupy more than 1,500 square metres. The developers will therefore have to wait in order to request a licence once more. The company is likely to come up against the same objection, but it has filed an appeal with the Supreme Court. This suggests that there are clashes between regional, state and European regulations.
The company argues that refusal to grant permission contravenes European rules on freedom of establishment. The Balearic High Court heard an appeal based on this and rejected it.