Marbella will have its first senior residence in June with a hundred places available.

The construction of the senior residence at Trapiche del Prado, the first public facilities of this kind, will be completed in June with the aim of opening in the second half of the year, offering nearly a hundred places. The information was provided by the mayor of Marbella, Ángeles Muñoz, during a visit to the site alongside the Minister of Social Inclusion, Youth, Families, and Equality, Loles López, where more details about what will be, in Muñoz's words, "an emblematic project for Marbella" were shared.

The City Council took on "the challenge" of carrying out the work with its own resources and with the collaboration of the Andalusian Regional Government, which contributes 2.8 million euros to an action estimated at 9.3 million. Added to the already completed rehabilitation of the old Trapiche del Prado, a 17th-century building listed as a Cultural Heritage Site, which has been restored as an interpretation center, and the equipment of both facilities, the total expenditure will be around 15 million euros. The City Council is already working "in parallel" on the specifications for the contracting of both the equipment and the management of the residence. The mayor assured that the "will" of the municipal government is to "reserve a portion" of the places for seniors from Marbella "without resources," whose cost would be assumed by the City Council, and to arrange others with the Regional Government.

The rehabilitation of the historic building, the construction of the residence, and the equipment of both facilities, which will open simultaneously, will involve an investment of about 15 million euros

The residence is built on a plot of 12,114 square meters donated by the Mateo Álvarez family, in the northern part of the municipality, and has a built area of nearly 6,000 square meters, in addition to extensive landscaped areas. In the first phase, the center will have 78 residential places, "although the goal is to reach a hundred, once the works are received," the mayor pointed out.

The mayor confirmed that the historic building and the residence will open their doors simultaneously. "We wanted both projects to coexist and complement each other, so that the residence can make use of spaces in the Trapiche, such as reading rooms, leisure areas, and common areas, which are also open to the community," she argued.

A dream and a commitment

The Minister of Social Inclusion congratulated the City Council for making "the dream of Marbella having a public residence a reality" and framed this initiative "in the unprecedented commitment of the Andalusian Government in this area," with a program of 134 million euros that is allowing the development of nearly a hundred construction or renovation projects of residences and day centers for the elderly and disabled throughout Andalusia. In the case of the province of Malaga, she specified that 11 million euros are allocated for ten projects, including that of Trapiche del Prado.

The minister highlighted "the historic effort being made by the Regional Government in the area of dependency, with record numbers both in the number of beneficiaries and benefits, the reduction of waiting times, and the creation of new places." In this regard, she recalled that Andalusia currently finances 71% of the dependency system, compared to 29% by the central government, for which she called for equitable funding of 50%.