Portal de Murcia
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| Today a symbolic act was held at the Murcia City Council to denounce the municipal abandonment due to the effects of the health crisis by Covid -19 | The hoteliers of Murcia today handed over the keys to their establishments to the mayor of the municipality, José Ballesta, on Friday, May 29.
With this symbolic act, organized by the Federation of Hospitality and Tourism Entrepreneurs of the Region of Murcia (HOSTEMUR), the intention was to denounce the municipal abandonment of the sector due to the effects of the health crisis caused by Covid-19. If yesterday the hoteliers met to show their demands with the delegate of the Government in the Region of Murcia, José Vélez, today they intended to do so with the mayor of Murcia.
But Ballesta has not given himself to receive them, which for employers has been a missed opportunity to demonstrate that the sector, one of the engines of the city, really cares.
"When we entered phase 1 the City Council was quick to assure that it was going to look to the last centimeter to expand our terraces, with municipal technicians on the street measuring in the establishments.
But at the moment of truth it has made the most restrictive interpretation of all Spain of the norm and has put the rope around our necks ", complains the president of HOSTEMUR, Jesús Jiménez. And it is that the hospitality industry, with the interpretation so restrictive that the City Council is making for the expansion of terraces and the absence of aid measures, has before it a dark future.
"Throughout the Region, the City Councils are turning to their hoteliers and Murcia, which should be the emblem because it has the largest number of establishments, it looks the other way.
Municipalities such as Cartagena, Archena or Fortuna have taken great measures to support the hospitality, but here -for example- they are denying all requests for the expansion of terraces ", explains Jiménez. Passivity and lack of forcefulness About 3,000 establishments in Murcia that, given what they call passivity and lack of forcefulness of the City Council in the face of the complicated situation, many economic problems are facing that may lead to its closure.
"It is not a matter of colors, it is a matter of political will.
The City Council as an institution is the one that must provide a solution to its neighbors," they point out from HOSTEMUR, where they also remember that in Spain the most restrictive measures in hospitality have been taken: the capacity reduction and the minimum distance of 2 meters, when in other European countries it is only 1 or 1.5 meters. A municipal attitude that is not surprising in the sector either, which has always been met with an uncooperative attitude from the Murcia City Council.
"Historically, we have had many problems, with issues such as night tables, terraces, seats, noise ...
We have encountered so many obstacles on our way that we remember that last year we made the first lockout in history," says Jiménez. The hoteliers in the capital have held several meetings with municipal representatives "not with the mayor, whom we have been waiting for more than a year" - but the solutions do not come.
"We need help because we are on the verge of collapse.
Business is unfeasible with the current measures and we need our City Council, which this year defended the gastronomic capitalism resting on our shoulders, to get wet," claim the hoteliers.
Source: Agencias
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