Residents of Plaça Major in Palma have complained that the lift that connects the Galerías with La Rambla and the escalators that connect with Plaça Major are not working.
“A few days ago, when I returned from shopping, I left the car in the underground car park, but the stairs were not running so I had to take the shopping, which weighed at least 10 kilos, through Carrer dels Oms and Carrer de Sant Miquel to Plaça Major because I couldn’t walk up all the stairs,” said Carme Vidal, President of one of the neighbourhood communities in the Plaça, who claims Palma City Council is breaching the regulations by not activating the escalators in a place that's home to so many elderly people.
“The escalators were stopped during the lockdown and that was logical, but now there is no reason,” says one resident.
The fact that the lift is broken, again, just adds to their misery and it’s something that the authorities have received regular complaints about along with demands for an alternative solution.
Vidal says locals are going to start up a Neighbourhood Association in the area to fight for their rights.
Galerías
Bartolomé Castañer, Administrator of the Community of Owners of the Galerías of Plaça Major, has criticised "the desolation of the area, with the stairs not working and premises closed."
Meanwhile, the wrangling over what to do with the Galerías continues. PSOE is determined to convert the commercial space into a parking lot to make the one that’s already there even bigger, whereas Podemos wants to launch an alternative project combining commercial activity with social or neighbourhood projects but if the necessary financing doesn’t materialise it is likely to become a car park.