Ideal cinema in Alicante stands out as unique within the Valencian Community. This is the claim advanced by the Recover the Ideal platform after evaluating the Alicante building against other cinemas across Valencia and the broader Spanish inventory of theaters.
The purchase fiasco of the former Ideal cinema tightens budget pressures for the Generalitat in Alicante Province
This document, compiled under the Cultural Heritage Institute, as part of the 20th Century National Heritage Conservation Plan, supports the notion of the Alicante “Ideal” as a best-preserved example of Valencian cinema architecture.
Salvem l’Ideal has expanded the documentation available on file after this research to enable Ideal’s cataloging. The site’s designation as a Cultural Interest Asset already exceeds 700 pages.
Unique features
Among the arguments presented by the platform, the cinema is described as outperforming other local venues in urban representation within Valencian homes since the Ideal in Alicante, characterized by a 35-meter facade.
The venue also offers greater capacity within the community. Among those counted in the aforementioned inventory, it accommodates about 1,500 seats and is one of seven sites with two original amphitheaters.
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In this sense, Salvem l’Ideal backs the documentation and comparative studies conducted by the platform. The initiative argues that such heritage should be inherited by culture: citizens deserve a task that should be handled by a technical professional, and the Ministry should be the primary interested party to reveal the historical and cultural values.
Arguments of the file
Apart from innovations introduced after the comparative study, the platform contends that the reasons proposed so far are sufficient to safeguard the cinema’s preservation.
Salvem l’Ideal emphasizes that the property remains intact as the last monumental cinema in the center of Alicante and the architect Juan Vicente Santafé y Arellano’s final and most representative work.
Salvem l’Ideal emphasizes that the property remains intact as the last monumental cinema in the center of Alicante and the architect Juan Vicente Santafé y Arellano’s final and most representative work. (Citation: Salvem l’Ideal)
Salvem l’Ideal urges the Consell to fulfill its commitment to purchase the old cinema building
The group notes that the site endured during Civil War bombings and served as a temporary women’s prison in Alicante, while expressing concern that it was illegally dumped while still under protective measures.
From the group’s view, this sequence represents a case of alleged improper payments favoring real estate speculation carried out with alleged immunity from the Alicante City Council and the Generalitat Valenciana.