The Benidorm City Council plenary session has approved this Thursday, with votes in favor from PP and Vox and abstention from PSOE, the award of the project and works for the ‘Benidorm Open Arena’ to the Temporary Union of Companies (UTE) formed by Gestaser-Urdecon-Plaza de Toros. The submitted bid was for 13,870,000 euros. This project is part of the EDIL Plan and the FEDER funds for the 2021-2027 period.
The spokesperson for the local government, Lourdes Caselles, detailed the reasons for the joint tender of the project and works, recommended by technical reports due to "relevant technical uncertainty" in structural rehabilitation, "not fully defined pathologies," and the need for "indissoluble coordination" between the construction method and the project. Joint contracting, according to Caselles, improves efficiency, optimizes deadlines, and reduces economic risks, ensuring structural safety.
The contract, co-financed at 60% by the European Union, includes three projects: ‘Arena Live’ to renovate the Bullring as a multifunctional cultural space and de-seasonalize tourism; ‘Arena Joven’ to create a polyvalent youth center; and ‘Arena Encuentro’ to remove urban barriers and improve connectivity with the Els Tolls neighborhood. "It is not a political project, it is a necessity for Benidorm," Caselles stated.
Caselles congratulated the three submitted proposals, highlighting that despite having the same technical score, the UTE Gestaser-Urdecon-Plaza de Toros was awarded the contract for offering a 7.53% price improvement, compared to the 2% of the other bid. An expenditure of 2,707,110.56 euros has been approved for this year's work, with the projection of executing 30% of the works by the end of March to access a larger subsidy.
It was also approved, with votes from PP and Vox and abstention from PSOE, to allow access to the expediente information for an excluded bidding company. According to Caselles, they will be granted access to the expediente with municipal technicians, but no copy will be provided due to data protection, and the suspension of the procedure is denied as it does not meet the legal requirements.
“"The socialist spokesperson, Cristina Escoda, warned of the possibility of losing European funds due to the PP's management, recalling the loss of over two million euros from EDUSI funds and the compensation to the previous contractor. "The reform of the bullring is the great failure of the Popular Party's management," she remarked."
Escoda warned of the "serious legal risks" of rejecting the excluded company's suspension request, as a favorable resolution from the Central Administrative Court of Contractual Appeals (TACRC) could paralyze the procedure and incur a one-million-euro compensation. She compared the situation to "a fright or death" and recalled that the TACRC had already overturned the tender documents for the waste contract.
Finally, the PSOE criticized the attitude of the mayor and his spokesperson, accusing them of trying to divert attention to avoid acknowledging the "extreme gravity" of the financial and administrative situation, and stating that the mayor spent more time "hiding his deficiencies" than moderating the session.
