Residents of the urbanization “Nueva Sierra de Madrid” or “Nueva Sierra de Altomira”, as it is also called, will demonstrate again this Saturday, November 30 at the civic center of Albalate de Zorita (Guadalajara), tomorrow at 9 a.m. in the morning. .
This will coincide with the celebration of the ordinary meeting of owners convened by the urban planning entity that manages this private urbanization. According to the residents themselves, it has around 5,600 plots, of which more than 1,600 are built.
The history of protests goes back over time and has gotten worse over the past three years. Construction of the complex began in the 70s of the 20th century, but many plots of land are still undeveloped. Additionally, complaints about the lack of infrastructure maintenance are constant.
However, the latest budget for 2025 which has just been proposed by the person responsible for urbanization, the Urban Conservation Collaborating Entity (EUCC), is the straw that breaks the camel’s back. For next year, a spending figure of more than 2.9 million euros is presented.
The reason for the high budget is the inclusion of “extraordinary expenses” which are around 800,000 euros. The largest amount will be used to build a clean point for urbanization. It will cost 400,000 euros. Then, to use it, residents will have to pay a quarterly fee of two euros and an additional 52.57 euros for garbage collection per quarter in 2025.
“It is not necessary to have a clean place in the urbanization. There’s another one in town. And if it’s like that… It’s a very large area with a fence where the waste is thrown. If they give us this for 400,000 euros… I don’t understand. This makes no sense,” says residents’ spokesperson Diana Da Silva.
To this will be added an additional 370,150 euros of expenses to implement the so-called “Self-protection plan against forest fire risks” in the urbanization. “We looked at the budgets of companies that deal with these issues and we are amazed.”
From there, operating expenses, purchases, work carried out by other companies, the repayment of a bank loan and the salaries of development employees bring the budget to almost three million euros. Only the salaries, wages, social security and other “social expenses” of the workers of the entity that manages the urbanization amount to 614,000 euros per year.
“We are outraged, they continue to call assemblies and we still do not know how many neighbors will pay for all this, between how many owners the expense is distributed, we do not understand if the majority owner Mar de Castilla, having many properties , applies discounts of 70%.. We go blind, we pay blind. “No one answers us.”
He denounces the “lack of transparency” and calls for the role that the Town Hall, which is part of the Governing Council of the managing entity, must play. “It’s not an urbanization problem,” neighbors say, because “New Sierra has been urban land for many years.”
We are outraged, they continue to call meetings and we still do not know how many neighbors will pay for all this, between how many owners the expense is distributed, we do not understand if the majority owner Mar de Castilla, having many properties , applies reductions of 70%… We go blind, we pay blind. Nobody answers us
Diane Silva
— Neighbor of urbanization
They argue that “this is a serious social problem, also urban” and that the entire area “had to already be urbanized, with public and private green spaces, with municipal services and benefits, to which each Spaniard and every “Spaniard” complies.
They accuse the municipal council of avoiding its responsibilities. “Instead of demanding that the urban developer complete it and fulfill its municipal obligations, it continues its inexplicable behavior, protecting what results in a multi-million dollar urban and consumer fraud. »
They believe that the municipal council “leaves citizens completely defenseless, abandoned to the arbitrariness of private companies, which the administration should control,” they elaborate in their complaint.
Neighbors tried to quash the appeal by appealing to the city council. “The City Hall does not have the power to suspend said assembly,” responded the Consistory, which also reported having held a meeting with the Municipal Assistance Service of the Provincial Delegation of Guadalajara. “Their recommendations have been forwarded to the Entity so that it can make the decision it deems appropriate.”
Since 1992, the community of owners of the urbanization has been managed by a collaborative urban conservation entity (EUCC). The presidency is held by the company Mar de Castilla SA which, according to residents, holds the majority of votes.
She owns most of the land and that, neighbors say, “allows her to take control of the entity” and decide on spending. It also acts as a marketer for the numerous plots of land still for sale via its website.
According to the statutes, the entity was created “for the conservation” of the urbanization in accordance with the PERI (its own Special Interior Reform Plan) to create and maintain common services and distribute expenses. The neighbors claim that “in no case is it mentioned that the entity – and therefore neighboring property owners – must pay for what was missing and remains to be developed.” They feel that their money is helping to pay for what is not theirs.
In May 2023, several residents of the urbanization ran in the municipal elections under the acronym GRIAL, Independent Group of Albalate. The bid was led by Diana Da Silva herself and they got two advisors.
They thought that this way they could have access to more information and make a difference. So far, no results. The advisors complain of being “in the dark”, of not having information and of even being warned “two or three days before the plenary sessions”. His proposal to open a commission for monitoring and transparency of what is happening in urbanization was rejected.
In May this year, they demonstrated in front of the town hall to denounce what they described as “urban planning fraud”. They still have no answers. Nor is there one by the department of the Government of Castile-La Mancha responsible for urban planning in the autonomous community. Discussions took place with the Ministry of Development, but without progress in practice.
The case is currently before the courts. The neighbors presented their case to the Guadalajara courts. For a year, says Diana Da Silva, they have been waiting for the municipality to send the requested documents to the court.
A municipal council with deputy mayor, without secretary or architect
At the same time, the situation within the municipality itself is complex. Mayor Julio Villalba is on sick leave. He is replaced in office by councilor Maribel Ortiz. In addition, for six months, they have found themselves without an Intervention Secretariat and without a municipal architect.
The acting mayor assures, in a conversation with elDiarioclm.es, that it is “a private project that the municipality has not received because the work is not finished”. It also guarantees that municipal obligations are limited to town planning: issuing building permits and collecting the IBI. “Now that we don’t have an architect, the Provincial Delegation of Guadalajara is helping us. “He’s the one who grants licenses.”
Then, he emphasizes that its role is that of a “control body”, a sort of intermediary between the managing entity and the neighbors. “The work is ending, but there are 100 kilometers of road remaining,” he specifies. “It is the second largest urbanization in Europe. It’s not easy. Currently they are following the Self-Protection Plan required by the Council of Castile-La Mancha, but everything that is done, the neighbors paralyze it.
Paradoxically, the current mayor herself owns properties in this urbanization. “Everything they report must be fought with the managing entity,” he assures, to reject that the Town Hall has ignored it. “I suggest that we pay more attention to the asphalt and the cleaning of ditches, but it is a private urbanization,” he insists.
The development was poorly executed from the start and has had problems for over 50 years. It costs a lot to fix it and small steps are taken. Work is underway to legalize everything, but we cannot solve the problem in two months. We addressed the Junta de Castilla-La Mancha
Maribel Ortiz
— deputy mayor
“The Town Hall does not have the means, we are a town of 1,200 inhabitants. We cannot verify votes at the neighborhood assembly. “That’s what the courts are for.” At this stage, he recognizes that the Town Hall did not send the courts the information requested by the neighbors to initiate legal proceedings. “We will send it, but we have been without a secretary for five months. They have already won a case against the entity, but they have not carried out the sentence,” says Maribel Ortiz.
“Urbanization was poorly done from the start and has had problems for more than 50 years. It costs a lot to resolve it and small measures are taken,” explains the deputy mayor. “Work is underway to legalize everything, but we cannot solve the problem in two months. » He assures that “all this is a waste”, starting with the Special Internal Reform Plan for urbanization “which is poorly done” and on this last aspect he points to the Ministry of Development. “We have addressed the Junta de Castilla-La Mancha to resolve the problem.”
He denies the lack of municipal transparency. “This government team provides information, but we have a soulless city council. They don’t let us work to solve it. I hope this can be done soon because it puts people and urbanization at odds.
This media contacted the urban planning entity to obtain its version, but it has not been possible to obtain it until now.
