My recollections

For the benefit of those who could not attend the meeting on Sunday, these were the main points as I recall them.

The mayor told us he had read my item about the party on Saturday night. He said that the law in relation to fireworks allows them to be set off during fiestas and at other times, with permission, before 11:30 at night. I am now told that the party last Saturday could well have been a wedding and in the exuberance of the celebrations someone may have gone beyond the normal times. I think we can forgive them for that and at the same time offer our best wishes to the happy couple.

In relation to the houses on the estate that have not been completed, the mayor said that this was a private matter between the company that built them or the bank that own them and the buyers. He welcomed any parties that had an interest in these houses to visit him at the town hall to discuss the matter privately. In other words, it was not an issue that he could discuss with us collectively.

The mayor told us that, if we were registered on the padron and had been registered to vote at the last elections then we should be OK for the election in May. However, if we wanted to check, we should go down to the Town Hall and speak to Javier before Tuesday.

With regards to the state of the road down into the town. the mayor said that once the houses on the land next to Avenida Europa are complete, there will be two access roads to Villas Andrea; one taking us down to the town and the other returning back.

With respect to the problem of dog fouling, the mayor said this was a matter for education rather that legislation. He added that the town had plans to install three new pipicans for dog owners to deposit waste into. One of these would be at Villas Andrea. However, as we all know, it is one thing to provide facilities to dispose of waste and another for dog owners to use them.

A further comment was made about graffiti. The mayor said that the town would impose heavy fines if they caught the perpetrators. He added hat the best and most cost effective solution was to paint over it which is in fact what has been done on the concrete blocks by the waste bins.

Moving on to the issue of cadastral values for our properties, the mayor said that Bigastro had requested a revision of values for 2013. He explained that Cadasre could only work on a few municipalities each year because of the complexity of the task.

When asked about the proposed aparthotel at La Pedrera, the mayor said that was no longer viable and therefore would not be built.

The issue of cars parking on the road above the park and the people leaving litter was raised. In response, the mayor said this was a problem in several parts of the town. He suggested that we should phone the local police who will come and move the people away. I dare say this would only have to happen a few times before the young people would get the message.

The mayor was very much aware that we pay a lot more for collection of waste than the people who live in the centre of the town. He said that the council had plans to revise the amounts so that we pay a little less and those in the centre a little more.

During a humorous moment, the mayor answered a question about respect for the one way system in the town. He said, that is was only natural for people to want to take the shortest route for a journey even if this meant going the wrong way on a one way system.

I apologise if I have missed any important points – as a former Deputy Headteacher used to say, “a sharp pencil is better than a blunt memory”. Unfortunately, I did not have a pencil with me yesterday!