Work has now started in San Pablo de Buceite on creating a plaza and parking zone in the Calle Real. By all accounts many of the residents oppose the development whilst the president of the local administration, Andrés Beffa, has promoted it and insists there is little or no opposition. The following open letter was sent by an English resident of San Pablo to Señor Beffa in June 2008 –and copied to the mayor of Jimena, Agaden and others without the courtesy of a reply. No surprise there then! The letter was sent in Spanish and addresses many of the "real" concerns of the people of San Pablo. I offer no comment but am happy to give it a wider airing.I am English but have had the good fortune to have lived in or around San Pablo since 1979 so I hope you will allow me to speak both as “spectator” and “player”.
I have a copy of the informe about Sr. de Bringa’s plans for Calle real before me. It seems to me that Sr. Bringa is not aware of our agricultural heritage, he seems to propose a creation which would do very well in Sotogrande or suburban Miami. The little “kit” fountains tan remingeldas are particularly hard to swallow. Everybody I have spoken to dislikes the plan, the shopkeepers are not looking forward to the disruption and nobody I have spoken to sees the necessity for it.
Everybody to whom I have spoken has his own personal plan for improvements in San Pablo - most involve the school - but I would like to present a couple of projects which I think a better long term use of public money. One of the plans uses a great deal less than the Calle Real plan and the other, a great deal more.
Unless I am very much mistaken household waste, including aguas fecales, from the South side of the village is sent directly into the Guadiaro; indeed until recently my own waste tipped out there. I am surprised that a village which still sends raw sewage into the river has 193.449,47 euros to spend upon cosmetics, I do very much hope I have got it wrong and misunderstand and that there is a depuradora somewhere of which I know nothing? Certainly the little flowerbeds in the centre of town could be rebuilt, but I am not alone in feeling that things need go no further; extra money we appear to have would surely be better spent on protection of our lovely surroundings, the health of our river and of our own. The Calle Real plan money could be saved up and put towards drainage.
Another project which I feel should take precedence over the Calle Real plan and could be undertaken this autumn. A double row of mixed trees - or even a small wood - could be planted to shield our eyes from the sad wound on the hillside between San P and Jimena, I speak of course of the so called Golf Alcornocales. Enough trees of a sufficient age could be purchased, planted, staked and irrigated for between 3 and 4 thousand euros, benefitting the wildlife greatly, helping to stop erosion and beautifying the general scene. We are extremely fortunate in San Pablo in that we can boast two eminent resident naturalists, Fede Sanchez and Martin Jacoby, I feel sure they would wish to advise on species.
San Pablo is such a lovely community, such friendliness and grace; even the children are charming! The Town Hall is so accessible and provides so much; the cultural organisation is particularly admirable. The Monday market is a delight. We love the wonderful new gymnastic toys along the entrance. The administration of the irrigation canal and the stream is very impressive; that dead sheep was removed in a matter of hours …. even the boy in his horrid black boombox car seems to have quietened down a bit! We do not need a great upheaval in the centre of town, I do not think that the grace and simplicity of the original plan for the village can be bettered.
Thank you very much indeed for taking the time to read this.
4 comments:
I suspect Sñr Beffa wants a San Pablo in his own image and likeness - and with this mess he'll achieve it.
San Pablo is still suffering under the Esteponization process that has also attacked Jimena (vide: a roundabout with deer and a funeral home sign, and the recent opening of an entirely unnecessary 'fountain'). The two PSOE bulldogs, Andrés Beffa and Fernando Gómez (both of whom also earn large salaries as enchufados at the Consorcio de Bomberos and the Mancomunidad de Municipios, respectively) are the same ones that prefer to appear in a photo in front of, say, an esteponazised 'real' street than a much more useful drainage system.
They and their party should be voted out of office at the next possible opportunity: they have been there for far too long and have come to the inevitable conclusion that they are God. (Just in case they don't get thrown out, I find myself in need of signing this anonymously, which I hate to do, but as a resident of Jimena for almost 20 years, I know their tactics all too well.)
I liked the San Pablo piece and imagined the letter had been written by Martin Jacoby until he was mentioned!
I agree with the suggestions on how this money could have been allocated differently, however most residents mentioned the school with good reason. Overcrowded and quite literally falling down,it does, to my mind, qualify as a good long term use of public money. Surely the education, safety and nurturing of the next generation should take precedence over the cosmetic appearance of an already attractive and truly local village.
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