The Social Club nightlife venue has to be demolished because of the work to redevelop Palma's Paseo Marítimo. The club, which has British owners, has been in talks with the Balearic Ports Authority (APB) for several months. The concession for the club from the APB runs until the end of 2027, and the company - Alhambra S.A. - has disagreed with a compensation of 500,000 euros.
Demolition was originally planned for November last year. The club is still operating, the APB saying that if the land is not available immediately, the execution of the work will have to be paralysed. The consequence of this would be a prolonging of restrictions on pedestrians and traffic in the affected area, "causing great damage to socioeconomic activity".
The APB is the regional organisation for the State Ports and therefore ultimately comes under Spain's ministry of transport. The minister, Óscar Puente, has ordered the "urgent occupation of the assets and rights owned by Alhambra S.A.". This means urgent expropriation.
The order, signed on January 8, refers to the APB having been unable to agree terms "in a friendly manner". The order is, therefore, for forced expropriation, which now requires approval by the cabinet. Once the Spanish government gives this approval, the urgent occupation procedure will begin with a period of fifteen days of public consultation for those affected by the expropriation.
The APB states that there is no appeal and that it will fall to the Spanish government's delegation in the Balearics to establish the compensation.