The project to transform the Gesa building and its surroundings will reach the municipal plenary without the backing of PSOE, Més per Palma or Vox. Each group will defend its own alternative.
The upcoming plenary session of the Palma City Council will debate the future of the Gesa building and its surroundings, one of the most significant urban projects of the legislature. The PP government team will present its proposal, the winner of the ideas competition, but it will do so without the support of any opposition group, which has presented its own alternatives.
The Urbanism commission held this Monday highlighted the lack of consensus. The PP is the only party that supports the project as it is currently proposed, while PSOE, Més per Palma and Vox agree in rejecting it, albeit with different arguments and solutions.
PSOE proposes to halt the current process and open a period of genuine citizen participation with residents, heritage entities, professional colleges, and social agents. The socialists believe that an undertaking of this magnitude must prioritise the general interest, increase green areas, and respond to the needs of the city, rather than executing a closed project.
Més per Palma goes further and demands the outright annulment of the ideas competition and a fresh start. The party criticises that the winning project gives too much prominence to concrete over green areas. Their proposal involves creating a large coastal park connected to the Parc de la Mar, eliminating the new buildings planned next to Gesa, rethinking the underground parking, and allocating the building for public, cultural, and community uses, compatible with heritage conservation. They also demand that the minutes and votes of the competition jury be published.
Vox's stance differs from the previous ones. The party does not question the rehabilitation of the building, but rejects that it be financed with municipal resources. It advocates for an administrative concession to the private initiative to turn Gesa into an office building, build a parking facility with around 900 spaces, and establish a Mediterranean park on the surface. According to Vox, this model would allow for the revitalisation of the building at no cost to the City Council and allocate the planned funds to other needs of the city.
During the commission, the debate led to reproaches among the groups. Més per Palma described the government's proposal as a missed opportunity and reproached the PP for being left alone. Popular councillor Óscar Fidalgo responded that he does not accept lessons from the ecosovereignist formation and reminded them of previous governments' inability to make a decision on Gesa. Vox insisted that it does not oppose the transformation, but rather its financing. Podemos, for its part, criticised that the project misses the opportunity to turn the waterfront into a more liveable space for citizens.
With this scenario, the plenary next Thursday will debate four different models for one of Palma's most emblematic spaces: the government team's, which maintains the winning project of the ideas competition, and the three alternatives from the opposition, which only agree that the proposal must be modified before execution.
For the residents of Palma, the future of Gesa is a key issue as it affects the waterfront and the use of a very central public space. Depending on which model goes ahead, the city could gain more green areas, a coastal park, or an office building with parking. For now, the PP's project remains on the table, but its viability is uncertain without support.
The debate promises to be intense. The plenary session is scheduled for next Thursday, and a lengthy discussion is expected. The outcome will determine the course of one of the most important urban actions of the legislature in the Balearic capital.
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