Street terraces

The Advisory Committee on Town Planning and the Environment rejects the terraces in car parks

The groups involved call for a unification of colours in the outdoor furniture of bars and cafes

Javea. Friday, 2nd March 2012.

Yesterday, the Advisory Committee on Town Planning and the Environment of Javea addressed the ordinance that will regulate the occupation of the streets, currently under review. At the meeting, various spokesmen for business, caterers and neighbourhood associations, political groups and other professional sectors expressed their views on the limits they believe should be set on the terraces with chairs and tables in the streets and squares, that make them compatible with the right to the use of public spaces that all citizens are entitled to. One of the main conclusions drawn from the session is that all the groups involved in the Advisory Committee are against the authorization of tables and chairs that occupy the streets or parking spaces. These terraces, known popularly as “corralitos" or "pens", have proliferated in recent months, especially in areas near the beaches. It was also pointed out yesterday that have no consistency and provide an overall negative and disorderly image. Some tables are mounted directly on the floor; some on platforms; some are surrounded by potted plants and others surrounded by fences. Add to this the problem of reducing the chances of finding parking in the commercial and entertainment areas.
As a result, it was agreed to ask the Local Council to authorise terraces only in pedestrian streets, plazas and pavements. In all cases the terraces should not exceed 50% of the pavement (with a limit of 6 meters) and at least 1.80 meters to allow pedestrians to pass comfortably. Tables and chairs will be removed at night and, at the request of the establishment owners, may be left stacked in specific points in front of the business, provided they do not interfere in any festivity or social event.
Another conclusion drawn from the monographic session on street occupation was the need to regulate the style of the furniture that is installed in public places, banning the use tables and chairs containing advertising, and seeking greater harmony in colours, preferably white or natural wood colour; bamboo, wicker or white, blue or maroon canvas.

Hours and Sanctions
Licenses for terraces should be requested for the entire year, not to exceed the opening hours of the authorised activity on the premises, whether it is a café, restaurant or pub, and not to exceed the limits of the area they have applied to occupy. In this regard, the Town Hall intends to mark the boundaries of each terrace with a small plate on the floor in order to facilitate the compliance controls made by the local police. With regards to sanctions, the Regional Government was circulated a memorandum insisting on the need to toughen these to ensure compliance with the ordinance. They further suggest that, in addition to monetary fines, that many times do not pose a serious threat to restaurateurs, the Local Council should reserve the right to withdraw the license or temporarily close the terrace.
Both the chairman of the board, Pere Sapena, and the Councillor in charge of Street Occupation, Paco Torres, also present, have taken the demands of the citizens on board and incorporated them into the draft ordinance. According to Sapena, the amended ordinance will be further debated at the next meeting of the Advisory Committee before it is taken to the Full Local Council.
Other matters to be discussed in the upcoming meeting of the Advisory Committee for Planning on Thursday 15th March will be part of the planning regulations and the Patfor (Territorial Forestry Action Plan of the Valencian Community). As always, the sessions are open to all those interested.

Unless otherwise stated, the content of this page is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 License