The Estepona City Council settles a debt of nearly 3 million euros for the Fire Station
The payment, inherited from the socialist administration, closes a chapter of unpaid debts that lasted almost two decades and resulted in additional costs due to late payment interest.
The Estepona City Council settled last April a debt of nearly 3 million euros, resulting from unpaid bills related to the construction of the city's Fire Station. The debt, accumulated between 2008 and 2011 during the socialist administration, was legally claimed by the construction company. This payment closes a chapter that lasted almost two decades and has meant a significant extra cost for the municipality.
The inherited debt
In 2005, the Estepona City Council awarded the construction of the Fire Station for a total of 3,153,716 euros. However, in the following years, payments were insufficient, leaving a large part of the debt unpaid. Between 2005 and 2007, the socialist government paid only 53% of the certified amounts, that is, 1,605,293 euros. From 2008 onwards, payments stopped completely, and between 2008 and 2011 not a single euro of the debt was paid, accumulating an outstanding balance of 1,202,412 euros.
In 2020, the case went to court, which ordered the City Council to pay that principal amount plus 1,306,395 euros in late payment interest. The ruling forced the City Council to pay the debt, which became a serious burden on municipal finances.
When the current government team, led by Mayor José María García Urbano, took over the management of the municipality, they found an inherited debt exceeding 2.8 million euros. Faced with this situation, the City Council tried to include the debt in the Supplier Payment Plan that the PP government had launched to ease the financial situation of municipalities. However, only part of the debt could be paid, a total of 346,010 euros, because the construction company had transferred much of the debt to the bank, which prevented it from meeting the plan’s requirements.
Despite the difficulties, this first payment allowed the Fire Station facilities to be opened, which until then had remained closed. The rest of the debt, including both principal and interest, continued through the courts.
To cover the remaining 2.8 million euros, the City Council negotiated a payment plan extending until 2025. The principal of the debt was paid between 2021 and 2022. As for the interest, which represented a significant extra cost, it was paid in 12 quarterly installments of 108,866 euros, with the last of these installments settled in April 2025.
The deputy mayor of Finance, Ana Vilaseca, emphasized the seriousness of the socialist administration's management, criticizing that only half of the project was paid for and the rest remained unpaid for years. “This is another example of what should not happen in public administration: financial mismanagement, lack of foresight, and irresponsibility in handling public funds,” Vilaseca stated.
According to the councilor, the late payment interest, which increased the total cost of the project by 45%, clearly reflects the mistakes made during the socialist mandate. “What should have been completed years ago was finally paid for almost two decades later, which has meant an additional burden on the municipal coffers,” she concluded.