Town Hall explains the promotion, sustainability and support policies for local business to the Tourism Council

Tuesday 17th January 2023
Mike Smith

Xàbia Council has met with the Economic Development and Tourism Council, a consultative body through which the town hall channels the participation of the different sectors involved in the local economy, especially those related to tourism.

The session began with a report from the councilor for Economic Development, Ximo Segarra, who detailed the economic and fiscal measures approved for this year, such as the general suspension of the rubbish tax and the opening license in addition to the reduction of 17% in the IBI property tax.

He also spoke about the two subsidized shopping voucher campaigns, with which purchases in small local businesses have been encouraged as opposed to online shopping or large stores. Across the two campaigns, businesses in Xàbia have benefited from income of more than 270,000 euros with results that have encouraged his department to work on a third campaign for this spring.

The councillor added that, since the beginning of the pandemic, the Xàbia Council has not only prioritized its social action but also support for the business fabric and self-employed workers, with up to six lines of funding – including those that were launched with other administrations such as the provincial council – for a total of 4.3 million euros and other aid measures such as the suspension of the occupation rate for the hospitality industry and the opening of new businesses. Segarra aded that Xàbia is one of the towns in which more companies have been created in recent years; 100 in 2022 and a total of 375 since 2018.

Overall, he explained, the economic measures together with those of social support, employment plans, tax reductions and suspensions of rates that are included in the Recuperem Xàbia initiative have led to a mobilization of municipal resources that has exceeded 20 million euros.

The other block of the local council was dedicated to tourism policies and the responsible councillor, Toni Miragall, began by reporting the new criteria established to obtain blue flags, which place special emphasis on and follow-up on environmental management activities.

Miragall stressed the important work carried out by Xàbia in this matter, from the installation of buoys to mark out bathing areas or to protect sea caves and points of special environmental richness, to those that facilitate the practice of diving or anchoring without damaging the posidonia.

The councillor also highlighted the system of maritime surveillance and awareness of anchoring that is carried out from a boat and the improvements in the vehicle access control systems to the Portitxol and Granadella coves, which this year have covered from June to October, with the improvement of asphalt, signaling and road painting or the pedestrianization of Calle Tio Catalá as well as the implementation of schedules agreed with the 18 water sports companies (snorkeling, diving and kayaking) to avoid saturating the slipways and the approval of self-protection plans for the coves to improve their protocols against emergencies or fires.

Other actions of the coastal management plan that Miragall outlined were the improvement of parking for Cala Blanca, the extension of access control hours to Cova Tallada and the forecast for this summer of the regulation of parking and public transport network to the coves.

Mayor José Chulvi took advantage of the meeting to explain the promotion of the municipality at the Madrid tourism fair, FITUR next week and to which Xàbia will attend under the umbrella of the Costa Blanca.

Chulvi expressed that, in line with the tourism policies of recent years, the town will focus its message on the idea that Xàbia is much more than its beaches and attractive 365 days a year. That is why it will take the brand “Xàbia en Viu” that brings together all the musical festivals of the year and the different cultural cycles with which -in addition to a first-rate natural destination- Xàbia reaffirms itself as a place where every weekend of the year there is always something interesting to do.