"
In Salou you live very well, and this is also transmitted to tourists" because "
the actions designed to improve the lives of residents are also those that improve the experience of visitors." "
Here, in Salou, millions of euros are being invested in projects that strengthen sustainability and tourism competitiveness and, at the same time, improve the quality of life of residents."
With these words, the
Secretary of State for Tourism, Rosario Sánchez, and the
General Director of Tourism of the Generalitat, Cristina Lagé, have perfectly summarized the effort and ambition of the
City of Salou in the application of the
11 million euros obtained from the Next Generation Funds, of which they are already executed in the 90% of those in 2021 and 45% of those in 2023.
Both leaders, and
the delegate of the Spanish government in Tarragona, Elisabet Romero, have visited Salou to learn first hand how the multiple projects that the City Council has almost finished to make Salou a more sustainable and resilient municipality, more socially cohesive and, at the same time, more competitive from the tourist point of view are evolving.
The
mayor of Salou, Pere Granados, thanked the institutional support and the arrival of European funds, which "
for us and for the progress of the municipality are very important." He also stressed that the municipal government is "
fully aligned with the central government’s strategic lines of tourism development, and we work together to move towards a more sustainable model".
For Granados, these 11 million euros from the Next Generation funds “
help us to continue promoting the transformation that Salou needs to continue being a leading municipality and a tourist reference”.
What are the Next Generation?They are the funds of the European Union aimed at making Europe greener, more digital and more resilient to the changes and challenges of the future. In Spain, they are applied through the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan (PRTR) to promote transformations and structural reforms to make the transition to a more sustainable and efficient economy and society.
Next Generation in SalouThe application of Next Generation funds in Salou is being done, basically, through the Extraordinary Tourism Sustainability Plans in Destination 2021 and 2023, funded by the PRTR, and includes projects in the fields of environmental sustainability, energy transformation, digital transformation and tourism competitiveness.
The projects developed in Salou that have been financed with the Next Generation funds are:
- Renaturalization and green/blue restoration of parks, squares and public spaces, with action in 11 squares and urban spaces in which pedestrian space is gained, urban equipment is improved, and vegetation and trees of native species are implemented better adapted to the water and climatological needs of Salou. The performances include a sculptural or artistic element. Examples are the Plaza de la Provincia or the Plaza San Jorge, where the sculptural “A game of love” by the Cambrils artist David Callau has been installed. Other spaces included in the project are: Avinguda del Batlle Pere Molas, Plaza de Andalucía, Plaza de la Paz, Plaza de la Corona de Aragón, Plaza de Cala Crancs (Cap Salou), Plaza de la Sardana, Plaza de Lluís Braille, Manuel Albinyana Park and Pedreres Park. The total budget executed is 1.1 million euros.
- Management, stabilization, rehabilitation and environmental actions on the beaches: it proposes to apply specific solutions for each beach in Salou according to the differentiated needs of each one, with the aim of better facing climate change.
- The project of renaturalization and landscape and environmental restoration of spaces adjacent to the coast proposes to rehabilitate and recover green spaces of access and the direct environment of the beaches of Salou.
- The development of municipal hiking and cycling corridors aims to connect tourist resources through the rehabilitation of existing roads in the municipality for hiking and cycling.
- Reform of Carles Buïgas Avenue 2nd phase: undoubtedly one of the star and most ambitious projects of the Next Generation in Salou. This second phase has made it possible to complete the reform of the road to make its 1.3 km in length at a single level, designed for pedestrians, with more vegetation and urban furniture, with more sustainable LED lights and a large decorative “source” of stainless steel and LEDs that is undoubtedly a new element of tourist attraction. In addition, a large mural runs through the street showing the main tourist attractions of the municipality, and 16 medallions on the floor of the artists Teresa Felip and Ester Ferrando, review the main historical facts of Salou from antiquity to today. EUR 3.1 million has been invested in this important remodelling, of which EUR 3 million is financed by the European fund.
- Implementation of the bike lane: this action has allowed to integrate and give continuity to the bike lane circuits that were there but that were not communicated between them. Now, in addition, the bike lane is connected to the main access roads to other neighboring municipalities. The project, completely executed, has had a cost of 600,000 euros.
- Deterrent parking and electric vehicle chargers: fundamental aspects for a more sustainable mobility is the creation of deterrent parking in Salou and create new charging points for electric vehicles that complement the existing ones. These new points, in addition, will have a canopy with photovoltaic panels so that a good part of the energy that will be supplied will be green. As for the car parks, 3 more have been created, which allow to improve internal mobility in the municipality and meet the parking demands of neighbors and visitors. In total, these two projects represent an investment of 600,000 euros.
- Another project developed refers to the installation of photovoltaic panels in 10 municipal buildings to contribute to the energy transition of the municipality in favor of self-consumption thanks to the total power to install of 512.24 kWp.
- In this same line, the renovation and modernization of public lighting in the tourist areas of Salou is included, especially the current light points of the network of public lighting and power of LED plates, with telematic management connected to the electricity network, or autonomous luminaires, with supply by photovoltaic plate and with integrated internal battery.
- In the field of the digital transformation of Salou, one of the projects refers precisely to the management of mobility in the municipality to optimize traffic flows and facilitate the movement of vehicles and pedestrians. The award budget is 184,000 euros.
- The Open Data Salou Turístic project aims to promote an efficient management and exploitation of data to improve services to citizens and optimize resources. The amount of award of this action is 246,000 euros and has been made in two phases.
- Within the field of digital transformation, the project to create new digital content is one of the most attractive, since it creates digital content, in virtual reality and 3D, to offer an immersive experience to residents of Salou and visitors when it comes to knowing history, culture, society and the municipality as a whole. The project revolves around the creation of the Coastal Path Viewpoint Route and the Salou Smart Turistic (SST) platform. The award budget is 100,960 euros, 100,000 of which are financed by the Next Generation. This project has been carried out in two phases.
- Implementation of IP megaphones on the beaches of Salou: this project allows to replace the existing analogue megaphone on the beaches of Levante and Poniente with a digital one, more modern and efficient that, in addition, allows to extend this service to the rest of the beaches and coves of the municipality.
- Finally, the City of Salou has also developed a project to modernize the administration itself, through technological infrastructure. The aim is to create intelligent jobs available to public employees, which facilitate adaptation to the new reality of mobility at work, available in any circumstance, always connected and collaborative for greater efficiency and effectiveness.
In short, the Next Generation have allowed to execute a set of projects that modernize and advance Salou to better adapt it to the needs of its neighbors and the new demands of its visitors. A basic and necessary balance to face the future, and that is born from an
essential objective for Salou: environmental, economic and social sustainability.
Content sponsored by the City Council of Salou
