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Date Published: 02/03/2022

ARCHIVED - We are in March. Why are the chiringuito beach bars in Cartagena still closed?

ARCHIVED ARTICLE

For yet another year, the beach bars along the Cartagena coast have not been given their permits on time

<span style='color:#780948'>ARCHIVED</span> - We are in March. Why are the chiringuito beach bars in Cartagena still closed?

As we move into March and with the imminent arrival of spring, this is normally the time when the chiringuito beach bars begin to open up in Cartagena and we can enjoy a nice beer and a tapa right on the seafront. But 2022 is different.

In the last two years, Cartagena’s beach bars have been subject to delays in their licences, a lack of permits, poorly drafted tenders, threats and missed deadlines.

As of Tuesday March 1, the companies running the bars should already have the right to set up their establishments on the beach, but the permission has not yet been granted. Many are demanding explanations, but few are forthcoming.

Last January the City Council of Cartagena opened the deadline for the submission of applications for the renewal of temporary facilities on the beaches. This is a legal procedure to confirm that the people who bid to open chiringuitos in the municipality and who were awarded the different lots for the 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024 seasons are still interested in occupying and operating the facilities.

But in order to comply with the procedure, the ‘Costas’ coastal authorities must also give its authorisation for bars to occupy space on the sandy beaches, and so far they just haven’t. So, why not?

History repeats itself

The Cartagena hospitality organisation Hostecar observed that “we are going back to the same mistakes as last year” when licences for beach bars still weren’t given even as late as May.

Back then, it was posited that a relative lack of applications to operate beach bars in the area was down to frequent reports of mud and seaweed accumulating on the beaches which can cause unpleasant odours and put customers off coming to the chiringuitos.

The opposition party MC Cartagena, meanwhile, has asked the local government whether they were late in asking Costas for confirmation of the authorisation, and if so, deems that “they have not done their job”.

Cristina Pérez, Cartagena’s Councillor for Tourism, explained that they are awaiting the approval of the Coastal Authority for the renewal: “It will be imminent, as they have confirmed to us.”

Ghost bars

The permits, once they are granted (assuming that they eventually are), also cover those establishments that were put out to tender last year but were left deserted and unused. “Once the permit is available, they can be awarded,” said Ms Pérez, who added that “there are businesspeople interested in operating some of them in the Mar Menor.”

These chiringuitos are located in Playa del Cavanna, Puerto Bello, Playas de Levante and Poniente de Islas Menores, Los Urrutias, two in Punta Brava and El Arenal de Los Nietos.

The City Council also deflected blame by making clear that whether or not there are companies interested in operating these beach bars that remained unopened, it is not their fault.

However, those chiringuitos that were left deserted last year have not been awarded licences by the Town Hall, so even if they do open this year, it will certainly not be in time for Easter as is customary.

Image 1: Wikimedia commons

Image 2: Archive

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