Council Plenary approves the initial step towards the construction of a new Vasco Núñez de Balboa public school, funded through the Edificant Plan

Benidorm City Council Plenary today approved the procedures to move forward with the new project for the Vasco Núñez de Balboa public school. The project provides for the demolition of the existing school, which is more than 50 years old, and the construction of a new three-form-entry school. According to Councillor for Education Maite Moreno, it represents “one of the most important and ambitious educational projects for our municipality.”

With this proposal, the City Council has withdrawn the request for the delegation of powers submitted to the Regional Ministry of Education for the refurbishment of the school, located in the Foietes-Colonia Madrid neighbourhood, and has initiated a new procedure before the delegation of powers – Phase I of the Edificant Plan – for a new project aimed at the “Demolition of the existing CEIP Vasco Núñez de Balboa and construction, on the same site, of a new three-form-entry Early Childhood and Primary Education school, adapted to current regulations on accessibility, energy efficiency, sustainability and safety, as well as to the present and future educational needs of the municipality of Benidorm.”

The Plenary session began with a minute’s silence in memory of the victims of violence against women, as well as those affected by the disasters caused by the earthquake in Colombia and the floods in Nepal. Tribute was also paid to the memory of Casimiro Vila Esteban, who was named an Exemplary Resident of Benidorm in 2016 and was honorary president of the Doble Amor occupational centre.

During the session, the Council also approved several other matters, including the ‘Benidorm City of Tourism Awards 2026’, which will be presented on 25 September; a budget amendment allocating €19 million from the 2025 Treasury surplus to the purchase of land in Serra Gelada and reducing the bank loan from €55 million to €36 million; and a review of public car park tariffs, among other issues.

Regarding the item concerning the Vasco Núñez de Balboa public school, Councillor for Education Maite Moreno recalled that this procedure is the result of “coordinated work with the Regional Ministry of Education and the Vasco Núñez de Balboa educational community”. Mayor Toni Pérez and the councillor herself have held numerous meetings with the school community in recent months. She stressed that the new proposal has emerged to “address the school’s actual current needs through a much more ambitious and entirely new project.”

The councillor also recalled that “technical studies and tests carried out on the building recommend reconsidering the scope of the initial project planned to refurbish the school, in favour of a project with a longer-term vision.” “We do not want to limit the work at Vasco Núñez to refurbishing a building that is more than 50 years old. Instead, we want to set in motion the process of ensuring that Benidorm has a new, more modern and efficient school adapted to the educational needs of the coming decades, while also moving forward with its conversion into a three-form-entry school.”

Finally, Maite Moreno recalled that, in contrast to the previous period under the PSOE and Compromís regional government, when not a single educational investment was carried out in Benidorm, the record of this new period with the PP in the Valencian Government will include the completion of the Pere Maria Orts i Bosch secondary school, the refurbishment of the Ausiàs March school currently underway, and a project already in motion to build a new, modern Vasco Núñez de Balboa school.

This procedure, which is “prior and necessary” to moving forward with the remaining steps required for the new Vasco Núñez de Balboa school project to proceed and receive regional government funding through the Edificant Plan, was approved solely with the support of the 16 councillors from the local government, while the PSOE and Vox councillors abstained.

During the session, the municipal groups unanimously approved the proposal put forward by Mayor Toni Pérez, on behalf of the Spokespersons’ Board, to grant the ‘Benidorm City of Tourism Awards 2026’ to the Benidorm Half sporting event, McDonald’s Spain and its ‘Mitiquísimo’ promotional campaign, and the companies ALE-HOP and Autocares Grupo Benidorm, in recognition of their role and contribution to tourism in the International, National, Regional and Local categories of these awards.

The motion also includes the presentation of a Special Mention as part of the awards to local businesswoman Antonia Aguilar Masanet, owner of the Hotel Palmeral and other local tourism-related projects.

The awards will be presented at an official ceremony on Friday, 25 September, as part of the activities organised by the City Council to mark World Tourism Day, which is celebrated worldwide on 27 September.

In the International category, the motion highlights that the Benidorm Half “has successfully expanded its reach, attracting runners and accompanying visitors from numerous countries and turning sport into a genuine tourism experience, further strengthening Benidorm’s image as an active, healthy and year-round destination.”

In the National category, the ‘Benidorm City of Tourism’ award recognises McDonald’s Spain for ‘Mitiquísimo’, the summer campaign launched last July and created by the creative agency &Rosàs, which pays a nostalgic tribute to traditional Spanish culture and the iconic symbols of summer in Spain.

In the Regional category, the award will go to ALE-HOP, one of Spain’s most successful retail multinationals, founded in 2001 in Gata de Gorgos and renowned for the large plastic cow that stands at the entrance to all its stores. Although its first shop opened on Calle de la Paz in Valencia, the company’s real commercial success and the validation of its mass-market business model came with the opening of its store in Benidorm, the fifth store launched by its founder, Vicente Grimalt.

Finally, the 2026 ‘Benidorm City of Tourism’ award in the Local category will go to Autocares Grupo Benidorm, one of the Costa Blanca’s leading companies in discretionary passenger transport, whose modern-day trajectory is shaped by a long history of family resilience and strategic succession.

To complete these four awards marking World Tourism Day, Benidorm City Council will also present this year’s ‘Benidorm City of Tourism’ Special Mention to Benidorm-born tourism entrepreneur Antonia Aguilar Masanet, owner of the Hotel Palmeral, which her parents opened in 1956. She was the first manager of the Ulía Restaurant and also founded the La Cala travel agency.

The Plenary also unanimously approved a proposal from the Spokespersons’ Board to provide €8,000 in aid to the victims of the earthquake in Colombia, as well as a further €8,000 contribution to assist the victims and those affected by the flooding that occurred in Nepal last week.

Both contributions will be channelled through the international cooperation and humanitarian aid mechanisms established by the Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces (FEMP), the Valencian Government and the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation. (AECID),or other humanitarian aid institutions or organisations able to provide evidence of their work in the affected areas.

Parking Fees and Recognition for the Local Police

The municipal groups also unanimously approved the review of the June 2026 tariffs for the Ametlla de Mar, Tomás Ortuño and Mercado public car parks. As Councillor for Mobility Francis Muñoz explained, the review “takes into account the 3.20% variation in the Consumer Price Index (CPI).” Accordingly, he said, “the per-minute rate increases by €0.001, bringing it to €0.0377. The maximum daily rate is €22.62.”

The monthly daytime pass will be €156.38, while the full-time monthly pass will cost €201.06 and the full-time annual pass will cost €2,010.58.

In addition, the City Council has confirmed to the concessionaire that the summer season runs from 21 June to 22 September, with the remainder of the year considered the off-season from 23 September to 20 June, thereby resolving the discrepancy that had existed. In this regard, the company may increase its rates by 20% during the summer season, but is required to reduce them by at least 20% during the rest of the year.

Also in financial matters, the Plenary was informed today of the report on the implementation of the municipal budget for the second quarter of the 2026 financial year.

The political groups also supported the proposal put forward by the Councillor for Public Service to initiate the procedure for the Valencian Government to grant official commendations to Local Police officers Enrique Tortosa Casado and Tomás Manchón Ramírez. As Councillor for Public Service Jesús Carrobles explained, their “swift and decisive intervention on 25 July made it possible to rescue an approximately eight-year-old autistic child who was found sitting on the outdoor unit of an air-conditioning system located on the façade of an apartment block on the 21st floor, with an imminent risk of falling.”
 

Key Motions on Economic and Urban Planning Matters

In the area of Finance, the Plenary unanimously approved Budget Amendment No. 15/2026, involving the cancellation of appropriations relating to part of the loan from the Economic Impulse Fund (FIE) that the City Council does not intend to draw down, together with a budget amendment providing for a supplementary appropriation financed through the 2025 general treasury surplus. In both cases, the amount involved is €19 million.

Councillor Aida García Mayor explained that, as Mayor Toni Pérez announced days ago at a press conference, the City Council will use part of the savings generated during the 2025 financial year to meet the payment of the €60 million committed by the City Council under the agreement for the acquisition of the protected land included in APR7 Serra Gelada. This will allow the City Council to reduce the Caixa Ontinyent loan authorised by the Ministry of Finance under the FIE from €55 million to €36 million and, consequently, reduce the interest payable.

Accordingly, the City Council will allocate €24 million in its own funds to this payment before 31 December, of which €5 million has already been paid.

Remaining in the area of Finance, the Plenary gave the green light, with the favourable votes of the PP, to the approval of invoices falling under the Plenary’s remit for the provision of municipal premises cleaning services and public lighting maintenance services.

Councillor for Finance Aida García Mayor stated that the total amount of the invoices is €271,649.85 and explained that they are invoices for which the prior audit function was omitted, as the services are being provided under contracts that have expired and are currently undergoing a new procurement process.

She once again stressed that “all the invoices have received favourable technical reports” and that these reports confirm that “the services have been provided, the prices are in line with market rates, and their provision was essential for the proper functioning of the city and the delivery of essential services.”

The PSOE voted against the payment of these invoices, while the Vox councillor abstained.

Another matter approved was the secondment of a career civil servant from Benidorm City Council’s Legal Department to the staff structure of the Waste Management Consortium for Zonal Plan 6, A1, known as Consorci Mare, where they will serve as an advisory technical officer to the Presidency and carry out the duties assigned by the President.

Councillor José Ramón González de Zárate, President of the Consortium, explained that this is “merely an administrative procedure to allow this civil servant to provide additional support” to the organisation’s management. The Consortium is responsible for the management, treatment and disposal of waste from the 52 municipalities in the two Marina districts and El Campello. The item was unanimously approved by all municipal groups.

Finally, in the area of Urban Planning, the Plenary approved a proposal by Councillor Lourdes Caselles to extend the deadline for completion of the works under the contract for the N-332 interchange and its connection to Avenida de la Comunitat Valenciana. The deadline will be extended by an additional eight and a half months, with the works now scheduled for completion by 29 May 2027.

The extension, unanimously approved by all municipal groups, is due, among other matters, to the need to obtain authorisations from higher-level public administrations, specifically Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat Valenciana, which are required for some of the planned works and are currently undergoing the relevant reporting process. It is also due to the removal of two overhead high-voltage power lines, which Iberdrola is required to carry out, as Councillor Caselles explained. The motion was unanimously supported by the City Council.

 
Additional Matters

Under the section on additional matters, the Plenary unanimously approved its consent for the Central Administrative Tribunal for Public Procurement Appeals (TACRC) to adopt the precautionary measure of suspending the procurement procedure for the contract covering the cleaning of public buildings and educational centres in Benidorm, until the tribunal issues an express ruling on an appeal lodged before it.

Specifically, the procurement procedure was challenged on 3 August by councillors from the Socialist municipal group. With the suspension of the procedure, “the content of the bids submitted will not be disclosed before the TACRC rules on the appeal,” explained Councillor for Public Procurement Aida García Mayor.

The tribunal itself had given the City Council two days to state whether it agreed or objected to the suspension of the procedure, according to a notification received this morning.