Do fifteen years They acquired a house in the Arroyovereda urbanization. A promotion of 200 houses in the town of Arroyo de la Encomienda in Valladolidhalf of which were for sale and the rest for rent. A paddle tennis court, swimming pool and playground were some of the amenities of this neighborhood community that, for two years, says it has been going through a trial.
A few Around fifty apartments were “squatted” by “conflicting” people and “tension” reigns in the atmosphere. Fed up with the “unbearable” situation they are suffering; with “destroyed”, “waste in common areas”, “illegal connections” and, often, arguments, and although they say they feel “fear”, those affected decided this Monday to protest.
“We are not protected”denounced Carlos, one of the owners of the building, during a rally that brought together more than a hundred people in the municipal square, including residents of the Arroyovereda buildings and those who came to show their support.
“Contradictory”
Once the construction company that had promoted the development went bankrupt, many of the empty apartments passed into Sareb’s hands and that’s when the problems started. Last year, when the owners started to raise their voices against this situation, they were around 80 squatted dwellings and today, nearly 50 of them are still in the same situation.
“They don’t listen to us,” Carlos explained. “Neither the City Hall nor Sareb,” he stressed, and that’s why they decided to take to the streets and show their boredom. “They are not vulnerable people”many people concerned have said, but that it is an “organisation” tasked with “warning” and ensuring that empty houses “do not fall into the hands of squatters”.
They are, moreover, “conflicting” peoplesaid Javier, another of the owners of one of the houses in the urbanization who decided to leave due to lack of solutions. “I have the possibility to leave, but many people do not,” he said.It was a wonderful place fifteen years ago, But when I have to discuss everything, even putting my car in the garage doesn’t compensate me,” he said.
And meanwhile, those who live in the community They can’t use the pool -they decided to close it last summer due to the damage and the costs they had to bear- nor the rest of the facilities that caught their attention in 2009.
“We decided to come to Arroyo for the tranquility and for this type of construction,” but right now Coexistence is “very difficult” in Arroyovereda, Carlos said. In addition to some Community spending has “skyrocketed” because persons residing in the community “do not contribute illegally” to either the dues or the contributions.
For Adrián, also the owner of one of the houses and affected by the situation, It’s “impossible to sell” and you won’t budgeand before “real estate market prices.” “The atmosphere is not good,” he lamented, and he agrees with Alberto González, the building’s administrator. “There is fear and insecurity” insisted, because the neighbors feel “intimidated and watched” by the “passivity” of Sareb, which is a “semi-public body” and “He doesn’t have the agility to solve anything.”
The building with several squatted dwellings in Arroyo de la Encomienda (Valladolid)
If you add to that “the current legislation that protects these squats”What is happening is that this situation, “uncomfortable” for those who live there “and pay their mortgage”, is “drag[ing]on over time”, he insisted.
They also request the intervention of the The municipal council as an “intermediary”which is being done, as highlighted by the mayor of the municipality, Sarbelio Fernández. Present at the demonstration, he assured that the council “does what he can within the scope of his powers” and filed a complaint against the “passivity” of the central government in these cases.
“We are with the neighbors,” he said at a demonstration that included banners such as “Stream, squatted territory”, “We are the most vulnerable” or “Who helps us?” Furthermore, sources from Sareb have assured that they have already filed 44 “civil and criminal” complaintsexcept for people who have squatted their homes, once it has been proven that They are “conflicting.”
In the 16 empty floors of their property, they claim to have implemented “security measures.” In addition, they have signed a social rental with a “vulnerable” family who participates in “social support” – a mandatory condition for Sareb to grant this type of rental – and they are studying, with the town hall, “one by one” another fifteen cases of this type.
“We are working hard on this issue. and we regret the complicated situation for the neighbors,” they said, after recalling that the legal procedures and their deadlines “do not depend” on Sareb. They also stressed that in the case of apartments that have a rental contract with the former owner, these were “subrogated” and are legal tenants.
