Palma's Paseo Marítimo is gradually becoming more and more like a promenade you can stroll down. The deadline has opened for businesses in the area to apply to the Balearic Port Authority (APB) for the occupation of space for the installation of terraces. In fact, many businesses already began to set them up this morning.
For the duration of the remodelling project, the occupancy rate will be reduced in order to offset the economic losses caused by the works. In addition, the APB is giving traders a deadline of January 2025 to replace their furniture with a consistent style in order to ensure uniformity in the area.
The first phase was completed today, with the construction of the pavements on the land side and the lanes running in the direction of Porto Pi, from Avenida Argentina to the Paraires torrent. In this regard, the director of the APB, Toni Ginard, said that of the 3.5 kilometres of the promenade, "80 percent of the pavement has already been laid", and that there are still some sections to be completed, such as the Ca'n Barbarà Bridge and the Plaza de Santo Domingo, which are expected to be finished "in the next few weeks or months".
As for the new lane that will go from Palma to Andratx, it will be open to traffic at the end of May - beginning of June, as the installation of traffic lights on that side of the road is still pending "due to accessibility issues", Ginard pointed out. The opening of this road will make it possible to "temporarily" divert the traffic that now circulates on the two lanes towards the Cathedral, precisely in order to carry out the works on the sea side.
During the second and third phases, it is expected work will be done quicker, as "the most difficult part has already been done", assured the president of the APB, Javier Sanz. Although there are channelling and installation tasks on the sea side, "they are minor because the main ones have already been done, including the sewage mains, which are on the land side", added Ginard.
Sanz was also optimistic about the deadlines for the completion of the works on the promenade: "I think that by the end of December and the beginning of January, after Christmas, the work will be finished, if they are not delayed". On the other hand, on the creation of a possible underground car park in the area, he was clear: "I have never ruled out building one. Our idea is to finish the promenade and then there will be other approaches such as car parks".