Prosecutors tasked with fighting corruption in the region began a formal review of a project tied to a fire station site, an inquiry that has stretched since last spring. The initiative centers on Seneca Square and the planned Water Intelligence Center, a component of the Alicante Future initiative, often described as part of the Blue Economy hub. The investigative work, which included technical assessments and jurisdictional reviews, was formally reported to the Public Ministry in mid-October. The municipal socialist bloc, led by Ana Barceló, along with deputy speaker Trini Amorós, have already been summoned to testify as part of the probe.
The complaint alleges that the Barcala administration may have ignored standard urban planning procedures. It claims the city allocated a municipal area for administrative use that appears in the General Plan of Urban Ordnance as teaching facilities, potentially contravening established guidelines.
According to documents accompanying the complaint, Briones and Romero consulted their hierarchical supervisors, including the department head Alejandro Luzón, who turned the matter over to the Special Prosecutor’s Office for Combating Corruption and Organized Crime. This step was taken to determine whether the investigation would be led by their department, or if colleagues from the provincial prosecutor’s office should handle it, under the direction of Jorge Rabasa.
Luzón appeared to view the PSOE’s allegations as within his department’s remit. The inquiry ties together several entities with a stake in the project, including the Local Development Agency and other city-backed bodies. The boardroom, through various delegations, also involves Mari Carmen, a member of the national parliament representing Alicante Waters. The Spanish city’s mixed-ownership company is 50% city-owned, with the mayor serving as president.
Ground floor allocation
The Local Agency, a unit linked to the City Council, requested Heritage in March 2022 to assign the ground floor of the former Fire Station at 21 Italia Street in Seneca Square for the Water Intelligence Center (WIC). The WIC is a Hydraqua project with a budget of around half a million euros, aimed at studying technologies to improve the management of the urban water cycle.
The request was approved at the end of January this year, when the Government team deemed the ground floor of the property the ideal site for the Blue Economy Center within the CIA and Alicante Futura, covering security, emergencies, and civil protection services.
Before the mission proceeded, the CIA’s organizer sought a construction permit and a mandatory-use compliance report, which the Work Control Technical Department evaluated as not available in that moment. The complaint notes two withdrawals from the company’s side: an urban planning report and a license application. Subsequently, the building was transferred to the Local Agency.
Shortly afterward, a decree accepted the withdrawal of the license for the works that had begun. By mid-April, it was decided that certain tasks would proceed without explicit permission, because they were promoted through secondment by the City Council.
Before approaching the prosecutor’s office, the PSOE urged the Barcala administration to halt the work and pressed the City Council to pursue a specific change in the PGOU to reclassify the plot’s use. The city’s mayor publicly called on the socialists to bring the matter before the court and seek appropriate action.