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The implementation of a large area of an international food distribution chain in the city is practically a reality. This was confirmed by questions from THE OPINION this Tuesday the mayor, Diego José Mateos Molina, who has been surprised because the negotiations, which have been carried out for months, “have been developed in a very discreet way”, as he himself has recognized. It is a chain of supermarkets with more than 11,200 establishments in thirty countries and which already has a supermarket in the municipality. The place chosen for its implantation is the site of the old San Antonio electrical substation that was dismantled years ago.
The special characteristics of the place were taken into account by the international group to choose precisely that plot. “Lorca is a strategic place at the moment. Communication is exceptional with the Velez and Almanzora region through the A-7. The construction of the San Antonio underpass will further improve communications by removing the retentions that were occurring. And through the RM-11 there is a direct connection with Águilas and Pulpí ”, explained Mateos.
The opening of this large area will be a shock for the city. “There is no doubt. It will help us to recover the regional capital, as well as a series of projects in which we are working to regain the importance we had as a shopping city ”, added the mayor. Work is being done on the progress of the project whose detailed study could be approved next September. It must also have a report from the Segura Hydrographic Confederation. There is no date for the laying of the first stone, although these types of establishments are built in record time, so if everything goes well it is not ruled out that it could be in operation in not long time.
The La Viña-San Antonio area has gained prominence in recent years for hosting several medium-sized food establishments. To them, there are up to three fast food. The earthquake almost completely destroyed the La Viña neighborhood, which was almost entirely renovated. The old buildings without parking and lift, were replaced by others with the latest technology, which has led many young people to choose the place as their residence. But in addition, communications between La Viña and San Antonio will improve substantially with the construction of the subway, which will allow convenient access to the San Juan Bosco secondary school and the San Antonio Sports Complex.
The new large area will therefore have almost direct access to the A-7 which will put it just a few minutes from towns such as Puerto Lumbreras, Vélez Rubio, Vélez Blanco, María, Chirivel, Totana, Aledo, Álhama de Murcia and Mazarrón , but also a step away from cities such as Vera, Garrucha, Pulpí and Albox.
The efforts of the current municipal government have been essential to achieve unraveling the problems that the site occupied by the old San Antonio substation has been engulfed for years. In that area, a housing complex was planned to be developed that the economic crisis and the earthquake paralyzed. Now those old projects could be resumed with the expected boom in the construction sector, as admitted by Mateos, who has highlighted the “importance” that the “implementation” of economic activities such as the opening of a new surface entails for the city . “They create jobs and attract the public to the city, which is essential to recover our economy that has been so damaged during the pandemic situation in which we have been plunged for more than a year,” he concluded.
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