The mayoress of Calpe, Ana Sala, has stated that the Calpe town council "is not against tourist housing - we all live directly or indirectly from tourism - our obligation and commitment is to solve the problems of the municipality", including the difficulty of access to affordable and decent housing.
The mayoress made these statements at the second meeting of the working group, set up to study the housing situation in Calpe, as a result of the concern and unease which, as she has pointed out, she has received as a result of the latest decisions taken by the Town Hall aimed at limiting tourist housing. "I want to make it very clear that we are in favour of everyone and we are not against anyone and I want to put an end to the rumours on the street that we are against tourist entrepreneurs," she said.
Ana Sala referred to the measure approved by the last plenary session of the Town Hall which suspends the change of use from commercial premises to housing, a decision which aims to "prevent us from destroying the commercial fabric of Calpe, as 99 percent of the applications received by the Town Hall are for this change". And he stressed that the aim of this working group is to seek a consensual solution. "It has not already been decided, nor do we intend to impose anything," he said.
At the meeting of this working group, the need to draw up a study or analysis of the demand and need for housing in Calpe, as well as the supply, was discussed, as a necessary step for the adoption of concrete measures. The possibility of offering aid or certain reductions in municipal taxes and fees to homeowners who rent their homes as their habitual residence has also been raised, as well as the implementation of mechanisms to denounce illegal tourist rentals, in addition to creating public housing. In this regard, the mayoress recalled that the City Council has joined the Generalitat's Plan Vive in order to allocate public land for subsidised housing.