Ibiza’s tourist flagship, Es Parador, soon to become a reality?

01/06/2018

What Es Parador is

In 2008 the town hall of Ibiza Town under the then leadership of Mayor Lourdes Costa granted permission to build a hotel on the topmost point of the castle of Ibiza Town.

The cost estimate was around 11 million euros. Turespaña, a state-owned company that is subordinate to the Ministry of Economy, Tourism, Information and Communication Technology, was responsible for this project. Put simply, Turespaña markets Spain as a holiday destination.

The construction of a state-run hotel (“Parador”) in the middle of the fortified town of Ibiza already met with general criticism at that time, since the old town of Dalt Vila, along with the Puig des Molins, Sa Caleta and the seagrass meadows between Ibiza and Formentera, became UNESCO world cultural and natural heritage sites in 1999.

A hotel with 72 rooms, offices, utility rooms, two swimming pools and underground parking was planned. The construction area would be 8,575 square meters, of which 6,186 square meters of usable space, spread over four floors.

The history of the process

After construction began in 2009, the remains of a Phoenician settlement from the end of the seventh and early sixth centuries BC were found, including some remains of Punic houses and a temple from the Roman era meaning the construction work had to be stopped.

After the excavations were finished, the city administration was faced with the task of finding a solution for the construction of a hotel on listed, historical cultural treasures: the remains should simply be integrated into the hotel building.

At the beginning of May, the city council approved the now newly developed concept, which until recently was publicly displayed in the town hall of Ibiza Town. In six months the urban development committee “Ciotupha” (Comisión Insular para la Ordenación del Territorio, Urbanismo y Patrimonio Histórico y Artístico) will decide on the final building permit. The current cost estimate is 21,149,843.59 euros, almost twice as it was at the beginning.

Last year, the renowned Ibizan architect Salvador Roig resigned as a member of the Ciotupha Commission due to the drastic changes that the project will bring to the world heritage. The incumbent socialist mayor of Ibiza Town, Rafa Ruiz, is now urging the relevant authorities to hurry as construction is scheduled to resume in 2019.