Costa Blanca
Elche is seeking tender for an additional 22,000 plants, shrubs, and flowers from 150 different species

The Parks and Gardens brigades of the Elche City Council can take comfort in the fact that the service they have been providing has been gradually outsourced. A new contract that is presently being tendered, which is similar to the one that was already signed in 2024, guarantees them “extra” work. This year, the municipal government plans to acquire over 22,000 flowers, plants, and shrubbery of up to 150 distinct species to enhance the city’s aesthetic appeal, a practice that has been a defining characteristic of Pablo Ruz since his appointment as Mayor in June 2023. More than €88,000 will be allocated from public funding for this purpose.
Last year, a contract was awarded to a company in Valladolid in June, with a value of just over €82,600. In February of last year, a decision was made to acquire additional flowers, plants, and shrubbery, totalling just over €8,000. This was due to the fact that there were no additional plants to be planted and the contract was set to expire in June. In other words, they completed the entire year’s worth of plantings in just eight months, but they believed it was worthwhile to acquire additional plants.
Complaint filed by the PSOE
The Ruz administration has acquired additional flowers in addition to this one. Councillor Patricia Macià has lodged a complaint alleging that the PSOE (Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party) submitted €60,000 in purchases from nurseries to the Anti-Corruption Office in 2024 without a contract. In December 2023, the Socialists also discovered an additional €40,000 in purchases that were dispersed across flower and plant enterprises.
This new contract is anticipated to be implemented in June. However, it is not the sole ornamental plant initiative for 2025. The newspaper reported that another contract is being negotiated with a company to oversee the maintenance of all gardening and replacements in the Municipal Park. This is similar to the work being conducted on the Ronda Sur for the Elx Oasis project, which includes grass meadows.
Mayor Ruz disregards the opposition’s criticism, particularly that of Socialist spokesperson Héctor Díez, concerning the expenditures on flowers and their maintenance. In a plenary session, Díez denounced the payment of nocturnal overtime to water plants, which he regards as a “waste of public funds.” The governing team did not contest the accusation. It is possible that they intend to maintain this policy.
“Significant pressure”
What is the reason for the increased demand for plants? In accordance with the contract document, “it is due to the ornamental necessity to enhance the city’s living conditions.” These plants are subjected to a significant amount of stress in the urban environment, as they are constantly plagued by pests and diseases, as well as vandalism, accidents, and damage from trenching or other construction activities. This leads to a relatively high mortality rate among these plants, necessitating the implementation of campaigns to replace shrub species and floral plants in order to preserve the municipal plant heritage.
The City Council is not economising on plants and will acquire a diverse array of species, including shrubs, bushes, and subshrubs, climbers, ground cover plants, perennial plants, roses, seasonal flowers, and native plants for revegetation. With the exception of herbaceous plants and seasonal floral plants, which will be guaranteed for one month, a six-month guarantee is required. The plants must be delivered to the Municipal Nursery in a state of readiness for planting; in reality, the contract stipulates that transport conditions must be maintained to prevent dehydration. When would you like to plant them?
Fifteen days
The City Council specifies a five-day deadline for the delivery of the material if it is accessible at the company’s facilities, or a 15-day deadline if it is not. The technicians are requesting the ability to inspect the nurseries themselves in order to verify the quality of the material they are receiving. Additionally, they are requesting the ability to divide deliveries according to the municipal program’s forecasts. For instance, this involves associating a particular flower or plant with a particular season. This would be the case for the chrysanthemums in the vicinity of All Saints’ Day.
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Costa Blanca
Sticky Vicky’s daughter quits mum’s iconic Benidorm show

Adhesive the stage act has been sensationally abandoned by Vicky’s daughter, who has followed in her late mother’s footsteps, thereby leaving behind her family’s Benidorm legacy.
The unexpected decision was made after María Gadea Aragón assumed responsibility for the adult-themed magic performances following the passing of her mother, Victoria María Aragón Gadea, in 2023 at the age of 80.
María, who had been employing her mother’s stage identity in the well-known Spanish resort, has now discontinued her performances after a decade on stage.
María performed frequently at venues including the Palladium, Zodiaco, and Rockerfellers, as well as Benidorm which is a popular destination for British expatriates and vacationers.
Des Bellamy-Wright, an employee at the Benidorm Palladium, verified that María is no longer employed in the lively Spanish city. Des stated, “Sticky Vicky is no longer operational in Benidorm.” The ‘Carmen Snake – Sticky Show’ is a similarly entertaining program that is broadcast every night at 12:45 a.m. “
The official reason for Maria’s retirement was not disclosed, and her final performance was in November 2024.
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Costa Blanca
Elche’s H&M shop closing

The Swedish retail chain H&M announced in 2024 that it would be reducing the number of stores and employment it has in Spain due to “organisational, productive, and economic” reasons. Around 50 layoffs were the result of the closure of stores in the L’Aljub retail centres in Elche, Ociopía in Orihuela, and Habaneras in Torrevieja, which had consequences for the province of Alicante.
Additionally, these were the sole instances in the Valencian Community that were impacted. The Torrevieja store was the first to shut its doors in May 2024 since that time. The Orihuela store was subsequently closed on September 14th of the same year. Currently, the Elche store has shuttered its doors. The facility was closed to the public on March 14th, following its final day of operation on March 11th. It will be entirely shut down on March 22nd. Approximately 20 employees are being laid off at this Elche store. It is the final establishment in the province of Alicante that will not reopen, and the circumstances of the dismissal were negotiated in October. The employees have departed the company with an agreement as a result of these negotiations, according to Yolanda de la Casa, the general secretary of the CCOO Services Federation in Alicante.
The dismissal terms that were established following the October negotiations were 45 days until 2012 and 33 days until the present. A gratuity of 3,500 euros was granted for the first five years, 4,000 euros for the next ten years, and a maximum of 4,500 euros for the subsequent years.
Furthermore, three relocations have occurred among the 50 individuals who were laid off in the province, spanning Elche, Orihuela, and Torrevieja. Lely Fernández of UGT l’Alacantí-La Marina informed this newspaper that these were part-time employees from the Habaneras shopping centre in Torrevieja who were transferred to the La Zenia shopping centre, which continues to operate and is accessible.
H&M initiated 2024 by announcing the closure of 28 stores and approximately 588 collective redundancies. The figure was reduced to 521 reductions in a subsequent revision.
The Torrevieja store closed its doors to the public on May 17th, 2024, and the lease expired on May 24th, never to be reopened. Nevertheless, numerous employees at this establishment were granted the opportunity to relocate to other nearby stores that were still operational. In September 2024, Ociopía followed suit, and Elche followed suit in March 2025.
The H&M group operates over 100 stores and employs nearly 4,000 individuals in the country. This decision was made by the Scandinavian company in order to “adapt and perfect” its stores in a “changing” shopping environment for its consumers. Additionally, Spain would be responsible for 17% of the brand’s global closures, as indicated by the data that the company disclosed months ago when it presented its 2023 financial year.
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Costa Blanca
Man stole fire extinguishers to sell as scrap metal

A 20-year-old male is currently under investigation by the Guardia Civil for the purported theft of ten fire extinguishers. The fire extinguishers were discovered by Seprona officers during an inspection of a scrap metal establishment in Torrevieja. The store manager and the criminal are both the subject of an investigation.
The fire extinguishers, which were in near-new condition and completely charged, were discovered by the Servicio de Protección a la Naturaleza (Seprona) officers during the inspection. The investigation was initiated due to the fact that this material is “uncommon” in this form of business, as explained by sources from the Armed Forces.
Upon discovering the fire extinguishers, the officers enquired about the scrapyard manager’s documentation regarding the extinguishers’ arrival. The manager responded that he did not possess any proof of ownership. Additionally, he disclosed that a woman and her son had abandoned them there without his permission.
The company responsible for maintaining the fire extinguishers was identified by Seprona officers after they analysed the evidence and proof acquired. This verified that the extinguishers were located in a building in Torrevieja. The missing equipment was reported by the property manager of this community of proprietors shortly thereafter.
Fire extinguishers were recovered
Officers were permitted to confiscate the fire extinguishers and transport them to the Torrevieja Civil Guard barracks as a result of the formal complaint. Upon verification of their origin, they were returned to their legitimate owners.
The individuals implicated have been identified as a result of the operation. The 20-year-old man who is supposed to have stolen the fire extinguishers is being investigated for theft, while the 23-year-old proprietor of the scrap yard is being investigated for receiving stolen goods.
The Guardia Civil emphasises the necessity of reporting these types of incidents and reminds all individuals of the significance of doing so. In order to prevent the acquisition of stolen material, scrap metal dealers must establish rigorous controls, such as document checks on sellers and items received.
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