Ermita Nuestra Señora de la Asunción, La Isla Bahía, Mazarrón

Church of La Isla, Ermita de la Isla Mazarrón

This attractive little hermitage is located on the beachside of the Playa de la Ermita, in Mazarrón.

It´s a little used hermitage, with just one mass a week, which takes place on Saturdays at 6pm.

The hermitage itself lies within the domain of what´s called DPMT, Dominio Público Marítimo Terrestre, which technically means that it´s too near to the beach to be legally permitted and should be demolished according to the Ley de Costas. 

However, in 2010, Plan E money was used to revitalise the area around the Cabezo de la Cebada, which included laying decking and creating viewpoints with decked walkways and the whole question of the church came up for review. 

The church actually has no legal paperwork, no title of occupancy for inhabiting this zone of public land, but to avoid having to demolish the building, the property registry and Town hall were asked to provide paperwork proving that the church had been in this position for more than 50 years, so it that it could be given a stay of execution, a 30 year lease from the date on which the Ley de Costas legislation was originally passed in 1988. 

The Bishop of Cartagena intervened to request that the church be permitted to remain in this location and be legalised. 

This grants the church the right to occupy this space until 2018, at which point it, along with all other buildings occupying these beachside locations,  are due for demolition.

Hopefully by the time this date also arrives, public awareness may prevent Costas carrying out the insane demolition of Spain´s historical seaside buildings automatically, permitting a case by case study of their historical merit before bringing in the bulldozers to demolish charming buildings like this, which only add character to the coast of Spain. 

The hermitage had come close to facing demolition on a previous occasion when the paseo marítimo was constructed and the hermitage was not included in the plans for the paseo due to it not possessing any legal paperwork.

At this point it was permitted to remain in place, although outbuildings and the porch of the church were demolished.

 Hours of Mass, Ermita Nuestra Señora de la Asunción, La Isla Bahía, Mazarrón

Saturday 6pm.

NB Mass is celebrated more frequently at other churches in the Mazarrón Municipality. 

Click for map, Playa de la Ermita