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The mayor of San Javier has announced that no more residential tower blocks will be built in La Manga del Mar Menor, at least not in the stretch from kilometre 4 to kilometre 19 that falls within the municipality.

 

José Miguel Luengo confirmed that a modification to the area's planning regulations is under way that will remove the option of collective residential development on land that hasn't yet been built on, replacing it with hotels, tourist accommodation and complementary services, while also cutting overall building density by around 30%.

 

In practical terms, the change would reduce the total developable area from around 416,665 square metres, enough under current rules to accommodate approximately 4,000 new homes, down to 317,000 square metres reserved exclusively for tourism infrastructure. That's a reduction of roughly 100,000 square metres of potential urban development.

 

According to the mayor, La Manga already has more than 20,400 homes but only around 3,000 registered residents, with the vast majority of properties sitting empty for much of the year. He argued that continuing to build second homes that are only occupied during the summer months makes the area's already pronounced tourism seasonality even worse, and that what La Manga actually needs is more year-round economic activity, not more empty apartments.

 

With around 80% of La Manga already developed, the mayor said the remaining land simply can't afford to follow the same model.

 

He also pointed out that the shortage of hotel beds is limiting La Manga's appeal to major tour operators and that under the new approach, the area could eventually reach around 16,000 tourist places between hotels and apartments, including homes already used for holiday lets.

 

The proposal is backed by technical and legal reports, and Luengo said the council is confident it's protected against potential legal challenges from landowners.

 

He urged those with undeveloped residential plots to reconsider their plans in light of the direction of travel, describing La Manga as a uniquely valuable stretch of Mediterranean coastline that deserves a development model “that will improve the destination and generate activity throughout the year”.

 

For more local events, news and visiting information contact the tourist offices of San Javier (main contact number 661 572285) or go to the home page of San Javier Today.

 

Image: Enrique Freire via Wikipedia