Residents of Almayate, El Hornillo, and the area around the delta of the Vélez River are demanding that the Town Hall ensure the new PGOM does not allow new urban developments along the coastal front and protects agricultural land.
Residents of Almayate, El Hornillo, and the area surrounding the delta of the Vélez River have submitted suggestions to the Town Hall of Vélez-Málaga urging that the new General Municipal Planning Plan (PGOM 26) halt the residential and tourist development planned in one of the largest areas of undeveloped agricultural land on the municipality's coastline. The information, reported by Diario Sur, details that the documents have been registered during the public consultation of the Adapted Advance of the planning.
The main focus of the controversy is the Opportunity Area of the Delta of the Vélez River, promoted by Salsa Inmobiliaria. The information that the company maintains on its website estimates the development at 1,121 homes and 2,152 hotel rooms along a maritime front of over 2.5 kilometres between Almayate and the river mouth. The promoter's own page maintains differing figures: its descriptive text states 1,178 homes and 2,015 rooms, and in previous phases, 1,221 homes were even considered.
The residents' documents demand the so-called Zero Alternative, which calls for the PGOM not to incorporate new urban developments along the coastal front between Almayate and the river mouth. They also request the protection of the traditional core of El Hornillo, the conservation of agricultural operations, and the classification of the delta plains and the vega as rustic land of special agricultural and landscape protection.
“The delta is particularly vulnerable to coastal regression and flooding,” warned the spokesperson for GENA-Ecologistas en Acción, Rafael Yus.
The residents' arguments are based on five issues: the risk of flooding, the availability of water resources, the loss of productive agricultural land, the environmental impact on the delta, and the existence of other developable sectors still undeveloped in the municipality. These are proposals presented within the public participation procedure, not technical conclusions from the administrations.
The vega alongside the lower course of the river comprises around 210 hectares of agricultural land on the beachfront, historically linked to the former Sociedad Azucarera Larios and later dedicated to vegetables and subtropical crops. The debate was reopened in 2024, when the Andalusian Government opened the way to modify the POTAX and allow the Tourist Dynamization Zone of the Delta to accommodate nautical-sport facilities, which opened the possibility of a future marina near the river mouth.
The developer defends a high-quality tourist and residential development, with homes, hotel accommodations, sports facilities, and green spaces, and highlights the proximity to the beaches of Almayate. The PGOM 26 is still under development and must pass through new phases before finalizing the urban model of Vélez-Málaga.
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