Halt to Tourist Apartments in Alicante: No New Licenses in Saturated Areas or Ground Floors of Commercial Streets

After nearly a year since the announcement of the moratorium on new tourist apartment licenses, the Alicante City Council has approved new regulations to curb the proliferation of tourist accommodations in the city. These regulations focus on the most saturated areas of the city and commercial streets.

The regulation will establish a maximum index of 0.187 places per inhabitant, with exceptions for three to five-star hotels, and will prohibit the establishment of tourist apartments on the ground floors of commercial streets and civic axes to "promote local commerce."

The regulation is articulated through the specific modification No. 52 of the PGOU, which has initiated the strategic environmental assessment process and the subsequent submission of the Draft and the Initial Strategic Document of the specific modification to the mandatory consultations with various bodies. This modification must be approved by the Plenary for the regulation to come into force.

To determine the urbanistically saturated areas, the council has chosen the census section as the unit, which will be reviewed annually. In these tensioned areas, new tourist places cannot be authorized, while in the rest, controls will be carried out to ensure that the maximum allowed threshold is not exceeded.

Regarding four and five-star hotels, these will not be affected by the established limit, regardless of the area where they are located. Meanwhile, three-star establishments will have a cap of 0.32 places per inhabitant when granting licenses for this type of accommodation. This exception responds "to the commitment to a model of tourist excellence that prioritizes quality over quantity, encouraging an accommodation offer that generates stable employment," highlighted the local council.

"The commitment to tourist excellence and diversification is key in this objective, attracting quality over quantity, thus reducing pressure on public space and promoting a regulated tourist activity that generates quality employment, repositioning the tourist brand towards a more sustainable model and promoting 3, 4, and 5-star hotels," highlighted the mayor, Luis Barcala, regarding the regulation.

Regarding the second major novelty, the Alicante City Council prohibits the implementation of tourist apartments on the ground floors of structural roads, commercial axes, and civic axes "to promote local commerce." This measure aims to protect the neighborhood trade network, "ensuring a model of proximity city, social cohesion, and urban continuity," explain from the City Council.

"The increase in tourist accommodation activities, especially on the ground floor, can displace traditional commercial activities, as the former usually present higher economic profitability," argues the council, which is concerned that the phenomenon may lead to the loss of the neighborhood's commercial fabric. For the local government, ground floors, for reasons of accessibility, visibility, and relationship with public space, should remain for commercial premises.

Finally, the new regulation implies that tourist establishments in residential buildings must have an independent and exclusive access and ensure that they do not interfere with the community life of other residents or share common spaces.

"Alicante is moving towards a model of neighborhood city, with sustainable urban tourism and seeking a balance between the daily life of residents and urban activity," highlighted the mayor of Alicante, Luis Barcala. The mayor insists that the aim is to attract visitors "but ensuring sustainability and without compromising the city model, access to housing, work, and public spaces."