The abandoned Es Fogueró Palace lies opposite Alcudia's industrial estate. Close to a well-known restaurant (Los Patos) and the Muro Hospital, it acts as a curious welcome for those arriving in Puerto Alcudia and Playa de Muro who take the Bellevue bypass road or the road by Albufera from Sa Pobla.
This was a nightspot that was supposed to have been a Las Vegas-type venue, one of the grandest show places in the whole of Europe. It could accommodate 2,000 people and was the brainchild of Pepe Casas, a nightlife entrepreneur. Also involved were Tomás Cano of Air Europa and Agustin Pinillos of Mundicolor, a tour operator.
It opened in 1989. On August 6 that year, the Palace had its greatest moment. Julio Iglesias was in concert. The price of a ticket, including dinner, was 20,000 pesetas per person (equivalent of 120 euros). It closed three years later. There were various reasons why it proved not to be viable. Location was one. Despite having a large space for vehicles, including coaches, the transport connections with the rest of the island back then did the Palace no great favours.
There have been calls for its demolition, no serious attempt having been made to do anything with the site for more than 30 years. Alcudia Town Hall once proposed moving nightlife venues en masse to a redeveloped Es Fogueró. Those in charge of clubs gave the idea short shrift.
The building is unsafe. It has been fenced off, but as with another relic of an entertainment past in Mallorca, the Foro in Binissalem, this has been no deterrent. Last year an 18-year-old was rushed to Son Espases in a critical condition after falling from the roof. Youths go to Es Fogueró for 'botellón' drinking sessions and to take drugs. And there are squatters; around twelve in all.
A couple of them are African. They are street sellers. They say: "We don't bother anyone. There's no other place to live, we can't afford a home." There's a German and there's a Hungarian. "We've been here for a while, all winter." Others work in the local hospitality industry but can't afford rents in the area. As to services, the industrial estate is used for stocking up on water.
Theirs is an all-too-familiar story, while the Es Fogueró Palace is a further example of abandonment in Mallorca for which there is now one main purpose - a place to live, even if it is a precarious place.