The building was promoted and built by a company participated by 50% by the City Hall, with the goal of installing business offices in Sitges. The original intention of the initiative was correct, but the process was erratic from the start, both in development and in its subsequent management. Such statements can be highlighted by the fact that no company from Sitges or from outside chose the building to install their operations, among other factors, because the prices offered by the company were much higher those offered by the market (at that time Real Estate had not collapsed yet as in recent months).
Back in the day, the groups that integrate the current government of the New Majority, back then in the opposition, denounced the relocation of most municipal facilities in the Sitges Reference building just because they did not find any company interested in installing their offices there. Such relocation was carried out under erroneous terms and dismalling economic conditions for the already floundering municipal finances.
And the City Hall, as a result of this decision, had to assume an absurd and overly exaggerated monthly payment. This decision, taken by the previous municipal government, was the last drop in an endless a chain of planning errors (a flagrant demonstration that the goal of Sitges Reference was never achieved and was a total failure) and a disaster in economic terms (as it meant that the City Council had to pay rent for their own property). Worst of all is that now we're paying the consequences.
As soon as we could access all information through the municipal company acting as holding company, Sitges Model XXI SA, we could perceive that the confusion did not stop there. The financial audit conducted a few months ago to know in detail the state of municipal finances, their procedures and external reports, detected a budget deviation of 2.3 million Euros in the construction of this building, and a 40% surcharge on the rental agreement signed between the sponsoring company and the city for the employment of space. For these reasons and others that show the disastrous consequences of this operation, the Board of the municipal company Sitges Model XXI SA adopted at its last meeting the decision to submit the project to the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor.
The Governing Body has kept and maintained throughout this process, an attitude of institutional loyalty and respect for justice in their proceedings. We will not use this issue in a partisan way (if this had been our intention, the process of complaint would have been different), but obviously we will be consistent with our policy of a rational and responsible use of public money.
The most obvious contrast in comparison with the policy of irrational spending undertaken by the previous Socialist Government was made patent yesterday, with the transfer of the Citizen’s Service Office (OAC) to Carrer Nou, to a building owned by the City Hall that will allow us to save an unnecessary expense.
