A hotel, a housing development, and a helicopter company vie for the Roca heliport in Marbella

Lexel Spain 2020 SLU, a company based at the iconic Marbella Club Hotel and chaired by the same individual who manages the hotel establishment on the Golden Mile; a helicopter company and the Community of Property Owners of the luxury Marbella Hill Club II development are the three offers that the Marbella City Council has on the table to acquire the heliport of Juan Antonio Roca, the Urban Planning advisor who ended up being the mastermind of the 'Malaya case' scandal. The City Council has put the heliport out to tender under a demanial concession regime.

The sector company has submitted a bid through a Temporary Union of Enterprises (UTE) formed by World Aviation and Helifan, two companies that share a single administrator. World Aviation offers airplane pilot courses at Malaga Airport and at the Cuatro Vientos aerodrome in Madrid, as well as helicopter courses. They also offer flight simulators and scenic helicopter rides in Seville and on the Costa del Sol, where they offer flights over "the golden beaches of Marbella, Puerto Banús, and Estepona" and views of "the majesty of Sierra Blanca and the infinite blue of the Mediterranean."

Marbella Hill Club is the exclusive development created in the 1970s by Prince Ferdinand von Bismark, great-grandson of the famous German chancellor and brother of Gunilla, from 50 single-family plots and which has grown over the years. In this gated and guarded area, one can find apartments, duplexes, and large villas. Marbella Hill Club II is located north of the first phase and closer to the heliport that was available to Juan Antonio Roca in Los Manchones Altos, in the Nagüeles area.

In the process of awarding

In order for it to function as an aeronavigation infrastructure, whoever wins the tender will need to obtain certification from the State Agency for Air Safety (AESA) that qualifies this space as a restricted-use heliport, because the Marbella City Council does not contract the operation, but simply the private use of the facilities. This is a plot of 13,812.50 square meters that includes a hangar, offices, a guardhouse, as well as a water tank and a transformation center, adding up to a built-up area of 4,868.79 square meters.

The awardee must obtain approval from the State Agency for Air Safety

The awarding process is currently in the phase of assessing the technical offers from the three bidders. The commitment to obtain AESA's approval constitutes 35 percent of the score with which the offers will be evaluated, while the suitability of the facilities represents 45 percent. The remaining 20 out of 100 evaluation points will be for the highest offered fee. The starting figure is 5,176 euros per month (excluding taxes); an amount based on an old lease contract made in 2011 by a judicial administrator.

The concession will last for four years, with the possibility of being extended annually for four more, which would provide the municipal coffers with a minimum net income of almost 497,000 euros over those eight years, amounting to 62,112 euros per year. Presumably, the bidders have made higher offers, but this detail will not be known until the technical evaluation of the three proposals aiming to acquire the heliport of the mastermind of the 'Malaya case' is carried out.