Las Playas

Work started yesterday on what is being described as a "commercial city" to serve the 200,00 winter residents and the 450,000 summer residents on the Orihuela coast.

“Las Playas” will occupy 152,000 square metres of which 84,000 will be the commercial centre itself.

The plan is said to be unique for Spain being modelled on similar projects in the USA. It will be set out like a city with streets on which will be located the shops. There will be a supermarket of 10,000 square metres along with gymnasiums, sports centres, a multicinema and a 2,500 square metre hotel.

The project, which will provide direct work for 2,000 people and 3,000 more indirectly, should be complete by 2011.

Let’s hope they have got it right because many of the commercial centres we have visited in this area are virtual deserts during the week and only come alive on Saturdays. There are only so many places that people want to go shopping to.

Pete comments: I'm a bit wary of these developments having seen Liverpool One. As shopping centres go it's all very nice but all it has done has move the retail centre of the City. This means that 'old' town will surely soon die.

Pete is right. Opening a new commercial centre won’t create new customers;  it will take business away from others. The number of customers and the amount they have to spend remains the same.

The reasoning in this case is, that although the Orihuela Costa has plenty of supermarkets, it doesn’t have a major shopping centre at the moment hence the need to build one. I suppose the hope is that the economic situation will have improved by the time Las Plays is opened and that people will have more money in their pockets to spend.