CalpeNoticias EN

Friday, 11th:

-20:15 hours. Book presentation Fiestas de Moros y Cristianos in the Plaza Mayor.

-21:00. Musical groups Festival: UM Calp-Ifach, UM Primitiva de Castell de Castells and SM L'Illa de Benidorm in the Plaza Mayor.

-22:30 hours. Pep de La Tona, JazzWoman and DJ Serra concert in the main square.

Exhibition of works participating in the IX Outdoor Painting Competition. From 10 to 31 October in the Ajuntament Vell exhibition hall.

Photographic exhibition of the Foto Club Ifach on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the Casa de Cultura Jaume Pastor i Fluixà. From 4 to 31 October. Exhibition hall of the Casa de Cultura.

Photographic exhibition on the occasion of the Centenary of the Fishermen's Guild of Calp. In Plaza Colón, Plaza Constitución, Plaza Beato Sendra, Plaza Manuel Miró and in the port (next to the Fishermen's Guild).

Saturday, 12th:

Finals matches of the Valencian Basketball League organised by the Valencian Basketball Federation in the Domingo Crespo Pavilion.

Exhibition of works participating in the IX Outdoor Painting Competition. From 10 to 31 October in the exhibition hall of the Ajuntament Vell.

Photographic exhibition of the Foto Club Ifach on occasion of the 25th anniversary of the Casa de Cultura Jaume Pastor i Fluixà. From 4 to 31 October. Exhibition hall of the Casa de Cultura.

Photographic exhibition on occasion of the Centenary of the Fishermen's Guild of Calp. In Plaza Colón, Plaza Constitución, Plaza Beato Sendra, Plaza Manuel Miró and in the port (next to the Fishermen's Guild).

Sunday, 13th:

• Photographic exhibition on the occasion of the Centenary of the Fishermen's Guild of Calp. In Plaza Colón, Plaza Constitución, Plaza Beato Sendra, Plaza Manuel Miró and in the harbour (next to the Fishermen's Guild).

The plenary session of Calpe Town Council has initially approved the modification of several articles of the municipal traffic ordinance with time-limited parking regulations. The modification has a double objective: to adapt the ordinance to the current road safety regulations and to adapt the regulation to the new conditions and needs for the future tendering of the time-limited parking service contract.

Among the modifications introduced is the elimination of the so-called green zone (an administrative zone that was only payable in the morning), which will become a blue zone. This change is in response to a request from the Calpe Business Association itself, which asked for several streets in the green zone to be changed to blue to boost the commercial dynamism of certain areas of the municipality.

On the other hand, the extension and timetable of the orange zone (beach zone with effect only in summer) has been extended to a maximum of six hours and its duration has been extended from July and August to June to September.

The new ordinance enables the use of the app as a method of verifying payment and changes the effective date of residents ‘and traders’ cards to an annual period.

In addition, motorbikes and electric vehicles are no longer exempt from paying for the regulated parking service. The City Council establishes the possibility that in the new contract for the management of the public service, those who have the status of Resident or Trader and whose vehicle has the DGT's ‘zero emissions’ environmental badge will receive a discount, and it is expected that in the future contract the price of the service will be reduced for residents.

Other modifications to the ordinance relating to road safety refer to the speed of vehicles circulating in the town centre, prohibited parking places, the prohibition of parking on public roads for buses, the possibility of setting up parking areas for the exclusive use of pharmacies' emergency services, and areas for ambulances from private clinics and loading and unloading operations.

Another modification refers to the express prohibition of parking when the City Council has signalled its prohibition in this space 48 hours before. Until now, non-compliance with this prohibition did not entail the removal of the vehicle or a fine.

INCREASE IN THE WASTE TAX

The plenary session also approved the modification of the ordinance regulating the household waste collection charge. The updating of the waste tax is carried out in accordance with the new state law on waste - in application of a European directive - which requires that waste management in each town hall must not be loss-making, i.e., that the town halls must collect 100% of the cost of the service with the waste tax.

For the modification of the ordinance, an economic-financial study was carried out to analyse the costs of the service and set the fee considering criteria of economic capacity and waste generation. The distribution of the charge has been carried out by creating nine zones (based on the cadastral valuation)

.

In her speech, the mayoress, Ana Sala, stressed that ‘all the variables have been tried to ensure that the impact of this increase is as small as possible, we do not want to increase waste, but we are obliged to do so by European regulations. In any case, it is a provisional approval that will be in force for a year as we will work to create a new, better, more adjusted rate in which those who recycle the most pay less and those who pollute the most are penalised’.

The spokesman for Defendamos Calpe, Paco Quiles, said that ‘Europe is not asking us to raise the price, it says that those who generate more waste should pay more, you have not worked on this proposal. The method chosen is unfair because they focus on the economic capacity of the area where we live, but they forget about the generation of waste, they miss the objective of the law’.

Miguel Crespo, PP spokesman criticised the waste collection service ‘the way forward is to achieve a more efficient and economic service, it is a short cut by a government without ideas. We miss bonuses and the participation of the residents. This tax is not well worked out, it does not encourage recycling but punishes families. It is not possible to spend so much money on festivals, lights and concerts and then raise the tax in some areas almost double. It is a pure and simple tax increase that will bring in 2 million in revenue by 2025’.

The PSOE spokesman, Guillermo Sendra, said that ‘we know it is an unpopular measure, but to take political advantage of the government team for it is incredible, what are they doing in Benissa, Teulada, Elche or Alicante where the PP governs, all these towns are increasing the tax, some of them quadrupling or tripling it’.

The Compromís councillor and government spokesman, Ximo Perles, also declared that ‘this tax has nothing to do with the service contract, let's not forget that the waste contract is the result of the management of the popular party, we voted against it. The zoning is carried out by SUMA to apply different criteria, the average cadastral value and the number of people registered in each house’.

The councillor of Defendamos Calpe Juan Manuel del Pino said, ‘people should know that we pay almost two million euros to the Mare Consortium for the recycling plant in Campello, let's be aware that recycling is expensive, but there are costs that have to be assumed’.

STUDENT TRANSPORT SUBSIDY BASES

Today's plenary session also approved the rules governing the granting of aid for the transport of students studying outside Calpe. These rules have had to be modified after receiving a report from the Conselleria that indicated the duplication with the aid already granted by the Generalitat to high school students outside the municipality of origin.

Thus, it has been established that students studying intermediate and higher vocational training, professional and higher artistic education, university studies, master's and doctorate degrees and distance university education in centres outside the municipality will be able to benefit from this aid.

It is expected to be able to call and resolve the granting of these aids before the end of the year. The grants have a budget of €150,000.

Calpe will celebrate the 9th of October,

Valencian Community Day, tomorrow with a special programme to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Jaume Pastor i Fluixà Award.

In the morning, the Old Town will host various events such as different ‘Carretons’ outings, simultaneous street performances, traditional games and children's workshops, the inauguration of the sculpture ‘Ensoñación’ by Maggie Poulariani and the preparation of a giant paella in the Plaza del Mosquit.

In the evening at 19:15 there will be an itinerant performance by Masters Ballet accompanied by the Colla de Xirimiters del Carellot with a route from Plaça Colón to Plaça Mayor where, at the end of the performance, the institutional act of the XXX Jaume Pastor i Fluixà -9 d' Octubre Award and Medals of the Town will be held.

The Jaume Pastor i Fluixà - 9 d'Octubre Prize is awarded this year to the Fundació Comunitat Valenciana MARQ and Marq Museo Arqueológico Alicante for their contribution to the recovery and conservation of the archaeological sites of Banys de la Reina and the medieval Pobla d'Ifac.

In addition, several entities and personalities of the municipality will be recognised in their different modalities:

- Citizen Merit: Juan Santos who has been Justice of the Peace until last May after a career of more than 25 years in the Justice of the Peace, first as a substitute judge and since 2011 as a full judge.

- Tourism merit: Jaume Masó: He has been working in the tourism sector for more than 50 years, more than 20 years as commercial director of the Unitursa group, a position from which he has contributed to the opening of new tourist markets for Calpe and consequently to the growth of tourism in the town. He is a reference in the promotion of tourism in Calpe.

- Sporting merit: Jozef Metelka. Slovak cyclist who trains and lives in Calpe for long periods of the year, winner of three medals at the Paralympic Games in Rio, another three in Tokyo and a gold medal at the Paris Games. He is also 15 times world champion.

- Business merit: Pepa Pérez. She is a reference in the world of aesthetics and beauty in Calpe. She opened the first beauty salon in Calpe in 1968 and years later opened Pepa Pérez Esthétic Center in its current location in Plaza Constitución. Brides, festival girls, ladies, Moors and Christians, generations of Calpe inhabitants have passed through her salon. Her professionalism, her work ethic and her search for excellence make her worthy of this recognition.

- Cultural Merit: Marga López. A native teacher from Novelda, she arrived in Calpe as a teacher at the Azorín School in 1983. After a few years teaching in the infant stage, she became a teacher of the second stage, being the Valencian teacher for all the pupils in this stage as she was the only teacher with a degree in Valencian. She was the founder of the association Natura Serpis in the early 1980s. She retired in 2011 after teaching generations of Calpe citizens.

- Premi Jove: Silke Ribes. Currently a student at the Real Conservatorio Superior de Música de Madrid, she has trained with outstanding teachers and in 2020 received the scholarship of the Curtis Summerfest in Philadelphia, a training programme offered by this high-performance institute, considered the best conservatory in the USA, as well as having won numerous awards despite her youth.

- Corbata de la Vila: Cofradía Virgen de los Dolores. In the 1990s, a tradition was established whereby the 18 year olds of the current year's Festivities Commission carried the image of Our Lady of Sorrows in the Good Friday procession. This is a recent custom but full of meaning as all the boys and girls of the Festivities Commission are involved in weeks of rehearsals in order to carry the image of the Dolorosa. In addition, the work of the women in charge of dressing the Virgin throughout history is also recognised.

These awards recognise the work of individuals, groups and institutions that have worked for the municipality from different fields and bear the name of the late Calpe historian Jaume Pastor i Fluixà. The event will begin with the reading of an institutional manifesto.

The local government will bring the modification of the ordinance regulating the rate for household waste collection to tomorrow's plenary session after withdrawing it from last September's plenary session when an arithmetical and material error was detected in the calculation of the rate.

The updating of the waste tax is carried out in accordance with the new state law on waste - in application of a European directive - which requires that waste management in each town council must not be loss-making, i.e. that the town councils must collect 100% of the cost of the service through the waste tax.

For the modification of the ordinance, an economic-financial study was carried out to analyse the costs of the service and set the fee taking into account criteria of economic capacity and waste generation. The distribution of the fee has been carried out by creating nine zones (based on the cadastral valuation).

The tax rate in each of the zones is as follows:

Zone 1-Pou Roig: 162,03€.

Zone 2-Diseminados: 223,98€.

Zone 3-Casco/Ensanche: 223,06€.

Zone 4-Mascarat: 171,84€.

Zone 5-Urbanisations: 235,15€.

Zone 6-Manzanera 257,14€.

Zone 7-Coastal Port: 176,85€.

Zone 8-Coastal: 177,17€.

Zone 9-Salinas 185,33€.

All commercial or industrial premises are exempt from the tax and a 95% discount is established for the family unit whose components, declarer and spouse, are pensioners or retired people, the discount must be requested with the corresponding accreditation.

The Mayoress of Calp, Ana Sala, has sent a letter to the residents in which she explains that the Law 7/2022 of 8 April on waste and contaminated soils for a circular economy, obliges all member states of the European Union to improve waste management and to legislate so that those who pollute the most pay the most, so that the tax collected by the municipalities for the collection and treatment of solid urban waste is not in deficit.

Sala states in the letter that ‘We local councils are obliged to modify our by-laws in order to balance the fee collected and bring it into line with the real cost of the service. This council, like the rest of the councils in Spain, is obliged to update the rate, which can only be upwards, given the current collection deficit that we currently have for this concept due to the consequent increase in costs, which amounts to more than two and a half million euros.

In the last four years the tax burden on the people of Calpe has been maintained and even reduced. In 2019 the IBI was reduced by 5%, in 2022, the capital gains tax for inheritances was reduced to 95%, since 2021 the council does not charge tax for opening businesses and activities, nor for transfers or transfers of activities, thus facilitating the establishment of freelancers and companies.

We are committed, every year, to increase the amount allocated to subsidies, reaching a total amount of 600,000 euros in the 2024 budget. This is the philosophy of this government team, to do more with less, but at this time and, with regard to the waste tax, we have no alternative but to approve this provisional modification of the ordinance that makes the tax more expensive, being aware of what it means for everyone.

We have worked on the criteria and parameters so that the impact on the pockets of our citizens is as minimal as possible, assuming the commitment, once the provisional modification has been approved in order to comply with the law, to study it in depth so that the definitive ordinance is as fair as possible, taking into account the effort in the management and treatment of each waste product, giving bonuses and rewarding those who pollute less and therefore pay less’.

Calpe Town Council, through the Tourism Planning Department, plans to carry out advertising campaigns to promote itself as an inclusive tourist destination as well as talks and training courses to raise awareness among local tourism companies and citizens of the importance of the town being an accessible tourist destination adapted to people with all types of functional diversity.

For this reason, Calpe Town Council has now put these services out to tender with a base budget of 30,000 euros. This is the second tender to be launched as part of a wider project to consolidate inclusive tourism as part of the Tourism Sustainability Plan for Destinations (PSTD) which has the support of the Valencian Regional Ministry of Tourism - Turisme Comunitat Valenciana - and the Secretary of State for Tourism within the framework of the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan (PRTR) financed by the European Union - Next Generation.

The aim of this contract is, on the one hand, to launch dissemination campaigns in both general and tourist online and offline media, as well as on municipal social networks in order to publicise the town as an accessible holiday destination. These campaigns will also be carried out in outdoor media such as mupis or by means of signage on means of transport, among others.

 They will be carried out in Calpe's main tourist issuing markets both nationally and internationally. This is the case of the Valencian Community and the autonomous communities of Madrid, Castilla La Mancha, Castilla y León, Aragón, Navarra, La Rioja and the Basque Country. And abroad, France, Germany, Benelux and Scandinavian countries (Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Finland), countries that also have low-cost connections with Alicante and Valencia airports. Tour operators and travel agents from the international tourism sector with a major presence on the Costa Blanca will also be the target audience for this campaign.

On the other hand, training activities will be carried out among local tourism companies and agents to develop adapted tourism products and services and thus position Calpe as an inclusive tourist destination for everyone. Awareness-raising campaigns aimed at citizens will also be carried out to raise awareness of the accessibility offered by Calpe, the need to respect parking spaces reserved for people with disabilities or activities such as ‘roll-play’ in the street through which citizens must perform everyday activities through the prism of a person with accessibility needs, among others.

Through the project for the consolidation of inclusive tourism included in the Tourism Sustainability Plan for Destinations, Calpe Town Council has already put out to tender the acquisition of adapted vehicles and equipment in order to allow people with some kind of functional diversity to improve their experience when visiting the municipality. And within this same project, the installation of a lift in the Museu de la Senyoreta, among other actions, is planned for the near future.

‘We want Calpe to be an inclusive municipality and that its resources, therefore, are available to all people, without exception; through this new contract we want to make known to tourists and visitors that Calpe is open to receive all people as well as to continue training our businessmen about the need to continue betting on inclusive tourism and to the citizens, the importance of becoming a municipality without barriers’, said the Councillor for Tourism Planning, Mireia Ripoll.

The Department of Tourism has attended this week the IV TURESPAÑA Convention convened in this edition under the slogan ‘Everything changes again: emerging technologies for a new tourism model’. The Turespaña Convention, held this year in Tenerife, is an annual event conceived as a space for the public and private tourism sector to meet, to exchange information and best practices and to reflect together on the development of tourism in Spain, its destinations and companies.

Calpe's tourism team took the opportunity to discuss the latest developments and trends in the sector and also held working meetings with tourism councils abroad.

In addition to outlining different collaborations with those responsible for the promotion of Spain as a tourist destination in the world, the design of the calendar of fairs for 2025 and the annual operational plan within the marketing strategy has begun.

The heads of the department took advantage of the networking event to improve coordination with both the Costa Blanca Tourist Board and the Generalitat de Catalunya's Tourism Board. In this sense, it is planned to reinforce promotional activities in Germany and Belgium, maintain the presence in strategic fairs with more prominence of Calpe, as well as an expansion into new emerging markets.

Calpe is currently focusing on a commitment to de-seasonalisation and sustainable tourism. In this sense, the councillor for tourism promotion, Marco Bittner, pointed out that ‘we have taken the opportunity to announce the new features for the coming season; the imminent opening of the Baños de la Reina archaeological site has become a differentiating factor as a cultural destination. Likewise, Calpe is already consolidating CalpePride as its own brand within the LGTBI offer of the Valencian Community. On the other hand, tourist attractions such as the architectural uniqueness of the Red Wall or the fact of being the municipality with the most Michelin stars per square metre in Spain are well received’.

Just as last year the Convention dealt with an incipient current of tourism-phobia, this year the Mayor of Barcelona addressed important issues such as tourist housing and the lack of permanent housing. This is an issue of concern to the sector and is being addressed with public and private solutions. There was also debate on the tourist tax, EC air legislation and, above all, the impact of digitalisation in tackling the sector's problems.

Several panels highlighted the strategic and cross-cutting importance that tourism offers; this season's data in Calpe (breaking the 90% barrier) confirms this. The Calpe team came out reinforced in that the strategic plan of Calpe follows the Department is in harmony with the trends exposed in this convention.

This convention has been a valuable opportunity for Calpe to reaffirm its position as a first-class tourist destination, committed to innovation, sustainability and quality in its tourist offer.

Friday, 4th:

• 18 to 1 h - Craft markets. Calle Alemania (Arenal-Bol beach) and Plaza Mediterráneo (Fossa beach).

• 20 h - Start of Oktoberfesters. In the marquee of the Parc de la Creativitat.
• Photographic exhibition of the Foto Club Ifach on occasion of the 25th anniversary of the Casa de Cultura Jaume Pastor i Fluixà. From 4 to 31 October. Exhibition hall of the Casa de Cultura.
• Photographic exhibition on the occasion of the Centenary of the Fishermen's Guild of Calp. In Plaza Colón, Plaza Constitución, Plaza Beato Sendra, Plaza Manuel Miró and in the port (next to the Fishermen's Guild).

Saturday, 5th:

• Guided tours of the old town, free of charge. Registration required at the tourist offices 96 583 69 20 / 96 583 85 32.
• Open air painting competition in the Old Town from 9 am.
• Bird Day, from 10 a.m. to 12 noon, guided tour of Las Salinas to discover the species that live there.
• From 10 a.m. onwards. Oktoberfesters. In the marquee of the Parc de la Creativitat.
• Performance of ‘La comedia de las mentiras’, by Taules Teatre, organised by the Asociación de personas con discapacidad de Calpe, at 8 pm in the Auditorium. All proceeds will be used to organise new leisure activities and different workshops.
• From 6 p.m. to 1 a.m. - Craft markets. Calle Alemania (Arenal-Bol beach) and Plaza Mediterráneo (La Fossa beach).
• Photographic exhibition on the occasion of the Centenary of the Fishermen's Guild of Calp. In Plaza Colón, Plaza Constitución, Plaza Beato Sendra, Plaza Manuel Miró and in the port (next to the Fishermen's Guild).

Sunday, 6th:

• From 10 am. Oktoberfesters. In the marquee in the Parc de la Creativitat.
• 12 noon in the Plaza Colón, training and police review with presentation of diplomas and decorations to the Local Police.
• From 6 p.m. to 1 a.m. - Craft markets. Calle Alemania (Arenal-Bol beach) and Plaza Mediterráneo (La Fossa beach).

• Photographic exhibition on occasion of the Centenary of the Fishermen's Guild of Calp. In Plaza Colón, Plaza Constitución, Plaza Beato Sendra, Plaza Manuel Miró and in the port (next to the Fishermen's Guild)

Calpe has registered a decrease in the number of crimes of 9.8 percent in the months of July, August, and September, compared to the same period last year. These figures were announced at the Calpe Local Security Board meeting at the Town Hall, which was also attended by the Government sub-delegate in Alicante, Juan Antonio Nieves, the Mayoress of Calpe, Ana Sala, together with the Councillor for Public Safety, Guillermo Sendra, and representatives of the Local Police, National Police and Regional Police.

The Calpe company of the Alicante Command of the Civil Guard has reported that the figures recorded in this third quarter represent a change in trend compared to those relating to the first six months of the year in which the number of crimes increased compared to the same period last year by an average of 19 percent. In July, however, crime fell by 4.2 percent, in August by 6.28 percent and in September by 18.9 percent compared to the same months in 2023.

Likewise, because of these figures, the percentage change in the accumulated crime rate (which measures the increase or decrease in crimes recorded from 1 January to the corresponding month, in relation to the same period of the previous year) has been falling since June. That month saw an increase in the number of crimes detected in Calpe from January to June of 19.14% compared to the same period last year. And in September this figure has fallen to 6.90 percent, 14 points less.

‘Although we still have an increase of 6.90 percent of crimes in the accumulated year in relation to 2023, we are optimistic about the figures as they have been progressively reduced, clearly indicating a change in trend,’ said the councillor for Public Safety, Guillermo Sendra.

At the same time, there has been a 6.8 percent decrease in thefts in Calpe, and an increase in the number of arrests of 19.94 percent. And it has been stressed that 96% of residents and visitors say they feel safe in Calpe, according to data from the DTI surveys conducted at tourist information points.

On the other hand, the Intendant of the Local Police, Juan Antonio Sánchez, has highlighted that from January to September, the municipal agents have conducted 17,760 actions, compared to the 17,200 conducted in 2023. In addition, the municipal staff has increased by 14 new officers, which has doubled the number of patrols during the summer months.

The mayoress of Calpe, Ana Sala, thanked the work of the security forces in the fight against crime and stressed that the City Council is making an ‘unprecedented investment in the Local Police.’ ‘We are making a significant effort to ensure that the local police force works with all possible resources, such as new vehicles and two drones,’ and she announced the acquisition of four new motorbikes and a boat, as well as new walkie talkies, among other materials.

Addressing the security forces present, the sub-delegate of the government, Juan Antonio Nieves, said: ‘The cooperation and collaboration has been seen to be good among the security forces in Calpe and that is thanks to the work you do; you are what make it possible for citizens to have that subjective perception of security; I thank you and I encourage you to continue cooperating’.

Gender-based violence

The meeting also addressed the cases of gender violence, which currently in Calpe reach the figure of 93 active cases. Of these, three are at considerable risk and 31 at medium risk, which are managed by the Guardia Civil. There are also 42 at low risk and 16 at no appreciable risk, which in this case are managed by the Local Police. And it was noted that the Gender Violence and Minors Unit of the Local Police of Calpe has conducted a total of 674 actions, 193 more than in the same period last year.

On the other hand, the problem of illegal street vending and the need for coordination between the different security forces to deal with it was also discussed. This summer the Local Police have conducted 90 actions and confiscated material valued at 70,000 euros.

Everything is ready for the Oktoberfest, the Beer Festival organised by the 2025 Festival Committee, currently Prefesters, which kicks off this Friday in the marquee set up in the Parc de la Creativitat. The first keg will be tapped at 8 p.m. on Friday 4 October to kick off the festival, which will last until 8 October.

As well as beer, the Oktoberfest will be serving German and Spanish food at popular prices, and there will be live music and children's activities. As well as the beer, another of the big attractions of this event is the live music. On the 4th, the German music group Don Ewaldo & Magenta and the DJs Raúl C. and Javi Más are scheduled to perform.

On 5 October the day will begin with the installation of inflatables for children from 11 a.m. and the preparation of a giant pella. From 13:30 to 14:30 the children's rock band Ramonets will perform. In the afternoon there will be performances by Xaranga La Motora, Memphis and Don Ewaldo & Magenta. In the evening La Gran Babylon and Xaranga Los Mataos are scheduled to perform.

On Sunday 6th October at 10 a.m. there will be a motorcycle and classic car rally, at 10:30 a.m. there will be a popular lunch and throughout the day Don Ewaldo & Magenta, Los Astrolabios and DJ Jota & Friends will perform. On Tuesday 8th the party will start again at 8 pm with the performance of Don Ewaldo & Magenta and at 11 pm Fiesta Remember ‘El templo de la música’ with Paco García KKO and Xavi Plastik.

This initiative, managed by the prefesters to raise funds for the 2025 patron saint festivities, consists of a beer festival taking advantage of the tradition that has existed in the town in this type of event for more than 30 years.

‘With the Oktoberfest we kick off the most festive month of the town and at the same time it allows the festival goers to raise money for the upcoming festivities,’ said Ana Sala. For her part, the councillor for Fiestas, Mariola Mulet, highlighted the work of the prefesteros in organising this event, which brings back the traditional Oktoberfest.

World Mental Health Day is celebrated on 10 October, and to mark the occasion the Department of Social Welfare has organised various activities under the slogan ‘Calpe, with mental health’. This campaign aims to give visibility and raise awareness of how important it is to take care of our mental health and to know the resources that exist in the municipality.

The Social Welfare Department of has produced an informative guide that defines and explains the resources available in the municipality of Calpe in terms of mental health. The guide covers social and educational resources as well as employment and associative resources. This leaflet will be distributed at each of the commemorative events to be held from today until 10 October.

Throughout the ten days of the campaign, several infographics related to mental health that invite reflection and prevention will be launched on the City Council's social networks. In addition, until 7 October, the façade of the Town Hall, the Casa Nova and various roundabouts will be lit up in green, as green is the colour that symbolises mental health.

Another action is the performance this

Thursday 3 October in the Auditorium of ‘Vesania’, a play by the company Producciones Contrahecho. The play depicts a space in which four people, ostracised from society because they are considered mentally ill, try to survive and reflect on a world that no longer exists for them. Their life, in this place halfway between a mental sanatorium and limbo, is a metaphor for the ruin and civilisation already lost. Admission is free until full capacity is reached.

The programme includes two sports days of basketball and football for the users of the Maite Boronat Occupational Centre. And on 10 October, World Mental Health Day, the institutional manifesto on Mental Health will be read out in the Plaza Miguel Roselló. This event will feature the batucada of the Maite Boronat Occupational Centre.

The Councillor for Social Policy, Itziar Doval, explains that ‘The idea from the outset is to equate physical health with mental health to have resources to help improve it. There is a clear objective with these celebrations and that is to give visibility and raise awareness of the importance of mental health in our society. There are many factors that can damage our state of wellbeing and affect our mental health, because we are extremely vulnerable. We can all, at some point, feel overwhelmed by circumstances. Insecurity, fear, bereavement, illness. The truth is that there are situations that we do not know how to manage alone and it is essential to ask for help in time.

The organising Committee of the National Amateur Theatre Contest ‘Antonio Ferrer el Cartero’ has already selected the three plays that will be performed this year, which reaches its 12th edition and will take place every Sunday from 3 to 24 November.

A total of 112 plays have been submitted from all over Spain and the selected ones are: ‘La habitación del niño’ by Carpe Diem Teatro, from Tomelloso (Ciudad Real), which will open the event on 3 November, ‘Cuando no ves la luz’ by Twister Teatro, from Rivas Vaciamadrid (Madrid), which will perform on 10 November and finally ‘El trastero’ by Amigos del Teatro from Castellón, which will perform this play on 17 November.

The awards ceremony is scheduled for 24 November. And on that day, as the culmination of the competition, there will be a performance of ‘Coplas del alma’ with Emilio Gutiérrez Caba, in which the renowned Spanish actor will take a journey through the great authors of Spanish poetry from the 16th century to the present day, such as San Juan de la Cruz, Santa Teresa de Jesús, Federico García Lorca, Antonio Machado and Miguel Hernández. He will be accompanied by José Manuel Cuenca on the piano and the baritone Luis Santana who will sing songs of the period.

The event will be held at 18.30 in the municipal auditorium and admission will be free. A total of 7,500 euros in prizes will be awarded: 3,500 euros for the best show and 2,000 euros for each of the other two groups selected as finalists. There will also be prizes for best direction, best leading performance and best supporting performance.

The National Amateur Theatre Contest ‘Antonio Ferrer el Cartero’ was born in 2012 with the aim of paying tribute to amateur theatre and its tradition in Calpe, as well as to the Antonio Ferrer “El cartero” (The postman) from Calpe, alma mater of the local scene, and undoubtedly, one of the actors with the greatest personality that this land has given.

The Júcar Hydrographic Confederation has authorised the Town Hall to carry out the urbanisation project works to adapt the municipal plot located behind the Silene Nursery School so that the Regional Ministry can install the provisional modules of the second secondary school until the definitive works are completed.

A few months ago, the Town Council approved the transfer of a municipal plot of more than 30,000m2 located just behind the Silene Infant School in Ifac so that the Regional Ministry can install prefabricated classrooms there for the students of the overcrowded centres and the complete new IES. The Consistory will invest €3,200,000 from its surplus cash for the clearing, urbanisation and adaptation of the land that will house the section.

The urbanisation works will be carried out on two plots of land of around 6,900 metres each, which will house classrooms for an infant and primary school and classrooms for the second secondary school. In addition, access roads with pavements, a parking area and a landscaped green area will be built, occupying a total surface area of 33,600 m2. Drinking water supply and sewage disposal will be provided by the municipal water mains. The authorisation includes the fencing of the plot.

This procedure has been carried out urgently, in fact the CHJ has only taken a few days to grant its authorisation after the presentation of the municipal project. This means that the tendering procedure for the works can begin this week, with a completion period of four months. Once the works have been completed and the classrooms have been installed, the 160 students who started the course in the Casa de Cultura will move to the new facilities.

Parallel to this process, the tendering process for the definitive works of the second Institute continues, with a base budget of 14.899.419,51€. The architects Pablo Peñín Llobell and Miguel San Juan, drew up the basic and execution project for the new institute in October 2023 and the construction project was approved in December 2023. Last July, the Public Procurement Platform announced the tender for the works contract, and in August the only bid submitted was opened, which is currently being studied. The government team believes that the works could be awarded by the end of 2024 and the works executed by the end of 2026.

The mayoress Ana Sala has declared that ‘we meet the demand of the educational community and while the second institute is being built, we offer the Conselleria the space to locate the provisional section, we cannot go faster, we have streamlined all the procedures so that Calp has the necessary educational infrastructure’.

Calpe Town Hall has already begun preparations for the Fira de Nadal now in its tenth year, which is back with many new features. This year the fair will be held in the Plaza Mayor square and not in the streets of the old town as before, but the main novelty is that instead of concentrating on the December long weekend, this year the fair will be held throughout every weekend in December.

The main objective of the X Fira de Nadal 2024 is to promote the business and associative fabric of Calpe, as well as providing an additional attraction for tourists visiting our town and encouraging the active participation of the inhabitants of Calpe in the promotion and consolidation of local businesses and associations.

The modifications introduced this year aim to offer the opportunity to participate to a greater number of companies and associations, while expanding the activities that, on occasion of the Christmas holidays, are organised by the Town Hall to promote local commerce.

From Monday 30th September until 25th October, the registration period will be open for associations, traders, service companies in general and hotel and catering businesses in the municipality interested in participating in the X Fira de Nadal (Christmas Fair). The registration process will be carried out at the Town Hall's electronic headquarters and Creama Calpe will provide information and answer any queries that may arise.

The Fair, organised by the Departments of Economic Promotion, Creama-Calpe, Citizen Participation, Revitalisation of the Old Town and Culture, will provide a free stall or stand where local traders, restaurateurs and associations can exhibit and sell their own products and manufactured goods.

The X Fira de Nadal will be held on 5, 6, 7, 8, 13, 14, 15, 20, 21, 22, 27, 28 and 29 December 2024, organised in two shifts: the first shift (from 5 to 8 December and from 13 to 15 December) will be aimed mainly at trade and service companies and non-profit associations. The second shift (from 20 to 22 December and from 27 to 29 December) will be aimed primarily at companies in the hospitality sector.

Depending on the number of participants and organisational needs, some participants may be allowed to take part in another round of dates in addition to the one corresponding to their business classification, if they so request in their registration.

This event is an opportunity to enjoy the Christmas atmosphere as well as to collaborate with numerous local charitable and festive associations. The Fair is rounded off with numerous leisure and entertainment activities, with musical performances, parades and concerts, dance performances, workshops, exhibitions, etc.

Last July the City Council approved in plenary session the rules governing grants and aid for the promotion of cultural and / or artistic training. This is the first time that cultural training has been given financial incentives, as is already the case with sports training.

The subsidies are intended for public or private entities, associations and foundations of music, dance or plastic and performing arts or any other cultural activity carried out in Calpe, to finance the expenses derived from cultural training.

To explain and clarify doubts related to the recent publication of the rules for the granting of aid a few days ago an information session was held in the plenary hall. The credit available for these grants will correspond to the budget allocated by the Town Council for the year, which in this edition amounts to €200,000. The subsidies will be distributed among the beneficiary entities proportionally up to 75% of the eligible expenditure of each entity, always within the limit of the budget credit.

The aim is to subsidise any type of organisation that has taken on cultural training as its own activity. The aforementioned subsidy must have an impact either on the quality and quantity of the services provided by the entity or on the reduction of the fee paid by the student of the entity.

The subsidies must be allocated to the expenses borne by the cultural organisation and may in no case, alone or in conjunction with other subsidies, exceed the cost of the activity to be carried out by the beneficiary. Eligible activities include: the hiring of teachers, their salaries and additional technical staff, supplies, rental of rehearsal spaces or payment of fees for the use of municipal spaces, non-inventoriable material, such as sheet music, management, consultancy and administration costs, cleaning, the percentage of tuition assumed by the beneficiary entity or teaching materials, among others.

The Councillor for Culture, Guillermo Sendra, pointed out the importance of these grants to promote cultural activity in Calpe, and stated that ‘all information regarding the rules for granting these grants is available on the notice board of Calpe Town Hall for more detailed consultation’.

Friday, 27th:

• 16h - International Tourism Day - Guided tour ‘Seafaring tourism’. Departure from the Casa de Cultura in the tourist train. Prior registration required at the tourist offices 96 583 69 20/ 96 583 85 32 or turismo@ajcalpe.es.
• From 6 p.m. to 1 a.m. - Craft markets. Calle Alemania (Arenal-Bol beach) and Plaza Mediterráneo (La Fossa beach).
• 20 h - Theatre: ‘Els Villalonga’. Auditorium. Free admission.
• Exhibition ‘Coast’ by Erin de Burka. Exhibition Hall of the Casa de Cultura. Until 30 September.
• Exhibition ‘Augmented Reality’ by Pedro Santos. Exhibition Hall of the Ajuntament Vell. Until 30th September.
• Photographic exhibition on occasion of the Centenary of the Calpe Fishermen's Guild. In Plaza Colón, Plaza Constitución, Plaza Beato Sendra, Plaza Manuel Miró and in the port (next to the Fishermen's Guild).

Saturday, 28th:

• 10 h - International Tourism Day - Visit to the old town and Bofill buildings. Departure from the Casa de Cultura in the tourist train. Prior registration compulsory at the tourist offices 96 583 69 20/ 96 583 85 32 or turismo@ajcalpe.es.
• 17 h - International Tourism Day - Visit Peñón de Ifach and salt marshes at sunset. Departure from the Casa de Cultura in the tourist train. Prior registration required at the tourist offices 96 583 69 20/ 96 583 85 32 or turismo@ajcalpe.es.
• From 6 p.m. to 1 a.m. - Craft markets. Calle Alemania (Arenal-Bol beach) and Plaza Mediterráneo (La Fossa beach).
• 19 h - XXI Musical Exchange Concert Campaign. With performances by the Orquesta de Pols i Púa de Meliana and Ensemble Ifach (from the Escola Calpina de Corda). Saló Blau.
• Exhibition ‘Coast’ by Erin de Burka. Exhibition Hall of the Casa de Cultura. Until 30 September.
• Exhibition ‘Augmented Reality’ by Pedro Santos. Exhibition Hall of the Ajuntament Vell. Until 30th September.
• Photographic exhibition on occasion of the Centenary of the Calpe Fishermen's Guild. In Plaza Colón, Plaza Constitución, Plaza Beato Sendra, Plaza Manuel Miró and in the port (next to the Fishermen's Guild).

Sunday, 29th:

• From 18 to 1 h - Craft markets. Calle Alemania (Arenal-Bol beach) and Plaza Mediterráneo (La Fossa beach).

• Photographic exhibition on the occasion of the Centenary of the Calpe Fishermen's Guild. In Plaza Colón, Plaza Constitución, Plaza Beato Sendra, Plaza Manuel Miró and in the port (next to the Fishermen's Guild).

The NGO ‘Visió Sense Fronteres’ from Calpe coordinated by Isabel Signes returns this week to Kenya to undertake a new campaign for the prevention and treatment of blindness. This NGO has been visiting Kenya since 2011 at least once a year with the aim of performing cataract surgeries and sometimes with the aim of training ophthalmological staff in the area.

On this occasion the medical team made up of four ophthalmologists, three nurses, two optometrists and a volunteer will travel to the province of Samburu in the north of the country. The delegation has the collaboration of the Ma Math Charitable Trust Kenya and the Office of the Women's Representative in Government.

The project coordinator Isabel Signes will travel to the area from this Friday as she is invited as a lecturer by Mmust University in Kakamega and will take the opportunity to finalise the preparations. The expedition will leave next week, as it is planned to carry out surgical interventions between 7 and 11 October at the Kisima Health Centre. As in previous editions, Calp Town Council collaborates with Visió Sense Fronteres in its solidarity actions.

Visió Sense Fronteres is an association declared of public utility that works for the prevention of blindness in two of its most important causes, cataracts and uncorrected refractive error. Today, 300 associates and benefactors permanently support and finance Visió Sense Fronteres. The Visió Sense Fronteres team consists of more than 40 volunteers. In its 25 years of life, the NGO has assisted more than 101,150 people, performed 8,353 cataract surgeries and donated more than 35,400 glasses.  

With the slogan ‘Let's make our town grow’, Calpe Town Council is launching a campaign to promote census registration and data updating. To this end, the Town Register Department will be distributing from next Monday at the Citizen's Advice Bureau a piece of paper with a QR code explaining the obligation of every person to register on the census in the town where they live.

It also provides information on the documentation required to register on the census or to update data in the event of a change of address, as well as the procedure for carrying out these formalities. It also indicates how Spanish citizens should proceed in the event of moving to another municipality or country. The QR also provides information on the advantages, aid and programmes available to those who are registered on the census.

The paper support on which all this information appears contains the seeds of a plant inside. When the paper is submerged and placed in a pot, a plant sprouts. The idea is to establish a parallelism between the campaign slogan ‘Let's make our town grow’ and the growth of the plant contained in the information paper.

Last December the National Institute of Statistics notified the Town Council that the figure for the municipality, resulting from the revision of the municipal census as of 1 January 2023, is 25,854 inhabitants. This represents an increase of 1,758 new inhabitants since the last official figure. However, reaching this figure and avoiding the decline in the municipal census entails an intense task for the City Council.

In the last few years, the Municipal Census Department has implemented various actions to prevent population loss. One of the problems detected is the lack of information among citizens, who in many cases are convinced that they are already registered or are unaware of the need to renew the census if they are foreigners.

The Town Council estimates that hundreds of foreign residents are not registered with the INE because they have not renewed their registration in the municipal census, as by law EU residents registered in the Central Register of Foreigners or non-EU residents with long-term residence permits must renew their registration in the census every five years and the rest of foreigners every two years.

For this reason, the Town Hall has launched several campaigns, aimed at all citizens, foreign or not, resident in Calpe, to encourage them to register or renew their registration. Recently, the councillor responsible for the census, Paqui Solivelles, met with various foreign groups to inform them of the need to register and explain the procedure.

The Mayoress of Calpe, Ana Sala, and the Councillor for Residents, Marco Bittner, have held a meeting with the Deputy Delegate of the Government, Juan Antonio Nieves, to convey the need to strengthen the administrative services aimed at the foreign population of Calpe. Among them, they have requested that Calpe can host the itinerant service of the National Police to issue the Foreigner Identity Number (NIE), as well as the DNI service, which is issued in Calpe from time to time. The subdelegate has referred them to discuss this matter with the National Police, with whom a meeting is planned for the near future.

In this way, the aim is to prevent the foreign population living in Calpe from having to travel to obtain this document, which, once issued, allows them to request the digital certificate, in the case of Calpe, at the Citizen's Advice Bureau. And with the digital certificate they can carry out a large number of procedures.

Currently, 62% of Calpe's census population is made up of foreigners, so having a personalised service, with procedures such as the NIE, ‘would greatly promote the integration of these citizens, as well as improve their quality of life,’ explained the councillor for Residents, Marco Bittner.

During the meeting, the mayoress Ana Sala stressed the importance of offering administrative services that are adapted to the specific needs of the foreign population. ‘Calpe is a diverse and multicultural municipality, and it is essential that all our citizens, regardless of their origin, have access to adequate care to facilitate their integration and participation in local life,’ she said.

The Government Deputy Delegate of the, Juan Antonio Nieves, has informed them of resources to improve the attention to foreign citizens such as the existence of a program-contract of the Generalitat Valenciana that allows the City Council to hire a technician paid by the regional administration and that would be destined to these functions, something that the City Council is already studying to apply for.

Friday, 20th:

• From 18 to 1 h - Craft markets. Calle Alemania (Arenal-Bol beach) and Plaza Mediterráneo (Fossa beach).

• Presentation of the book ‘Peques detectives’ by Piedad Isabel Parra Garrido with illustrations by Laura Sofia Bittner Pozo. At 18:30 in the Saló Blau.

• Exhibition ‘Coast’ by Erin de Burka. Exhibition Hall of the Casa de Cultura. Until 30 September.

• Exhibition ‘Augmented Reality’ by Pedro Santos. Exhibition Hall of the Ajuntament Vell. Until 30th September.

• Photographic exhibition on occasion of the Centenary of the Calpe Fishermen's Guild. In Plaza Colón, Plaza Constitución, Plaza Beato Sendra, Plaza Manuel Miró and in the port (next to the Fishermen's Guild).
• Festivities in honour of Ntra. Sra. de la Merced. At 9 p.m. opening of the festive marquee in the parish church of La Merced and at 10 p.m. Nit de Coques and performance by Los Astrolabios.

Saturday, 21st:

• Festivities in honour of Ntra. Sra. de la Merced. At 18:15 procession and floral offering from the Plaza Mediterráni and mass. At 22:30 Musical performance by Los Anclas.

• From 18:00 to 1:00 - Craft markets. Calle Alemania (Arenal-Bol beach) and Plaza Mediterráneo (La Fossa beach).

• Exhibition ‘Coast’ by Erin de Burka. Exhibition Hall of the Casa de Cultura. Until 30 September.

• Exhibition ‘Augmented Reality’ by Pedro Santos. Exhibition Hall of the Ajuntament Vell. Until 30th September.

• Photographic exhibition on occasion of the Centenary of the CALPEEE Fishermen's Guild. In Plaza Colón, Plaza Constitución, Plaza Beato Sendra, Plaza Manuel Miró and in the port (next to the Fishermen's Guild).

Sunday,22nd:

• Peñón de Ifach Swimming Crossing. From Cantal Roig beach, departure at 8:30 am.

• Festivities in honour of Ntra. Sra. de la Merced.. At 10 a.m. Children's go-karts and performance by Xaranga Clau de Fa in Plaza Colón. At 11:45 a.m. Cycle tour from Plaza Colón to La Merced. At 12h. Mass, at 13:30h. Batucada Batugaria, at 2 p.m. giant paella enlivened by ‘El payo que canta’.

• From 6 p.m. to 1 a.m. - Craft markets. Calle Alemania (Arenal-Bol beach) and Plaza Mediterráneo (La Fossa beach).

• Photographic exhibition on occasion of the Centenary of the Calpe Fishermen's Guild. In Plaza Colón, Plaza Constitución, Plaza Beato Sendra, Plaza Manuel Miró and in the port (next to the Fishermen's Guild).

Next week the Club de Pilota Valenciana de Calpe will participate in the Belgian town of Montignies-lez-Lens in the final phase of the Champions League de Llarges. This is a competition that brings together the 12 best teams in Europe and will be played on 27th, 28th and 29th September.

Coinciding with this important sporting event, the International Promotion Department has launched a campaign to raise awareness of the municipality in the Belgian market, a very important outbound destination. Through various promotional activities, Tourism aims to raise awareness of Calpe's tourism offer, focused on wellbeing, sustainability and cultural richness.

The aim is to position Calpe as an attractive destination for those visitors who are looking for authentic and quality experiences, outside the high seasons.

In addition, new collaboration opportunities are being explored with Montignies lez Lens, to strengthen ties and promote cultural and sporting exchange. This collaboration opens the way for relations between the two towns with the aim of promoting cultural and sporting exchange, as well as exploring new opportunities for tourism development.

The participation of the Club de Pilota Valenciana de Calpe in this top-level competition has been the perfect excuse to showcase the charms of our town in Belgium.