Malaga Fair introduces new ordinance: access rules, street drinking, and schedules

The Málaga Fair will arrive full of new features. The Official Gazette of the Province of Málaga published this Wednesday the new ordinance on the festival in the capital, which includes numerous innovations regarding the organization of the event and the rules of coexistence that must be complied with during the celebration.

The new ordinance generally prohibits the consumption of alcoholic beverages both in the Historic Center and in the Real de Cortijo de Torres, although it leaves open the possibility of authorizing some specific areas. It also prohibits hospitality businesses from selling alcohol for consumption outside the premises and its presence in street stalls.

The innovative regulation will also give the booths the power to determine the right of admission. In this way, they can prohibit access with beach attire, such as swimsuits or flip-flops; or with sports attire, such as sports shorts and sneakers.

With the aim of making the festival safer, all booths must display visible signs that say "space free of sexist violence", in addition to the capacity, and a specific indication that entry to the booth is free, with no possibility of requiring payment for entry or prior consumption.

Also in an attempt to ensure the rest of the neighbors as much as possible, it determines that the volume of musical emissions "must be moderate, in consideration of the activity of the adjacent facilities". In no case - it points out - may it exceed the decibels established in the Regulation for Protection against Acoustic Pollution in Andalusia.

This ordinance has also included a new type of booth: alcohol-free youth, where healthier leisure will be promoted. Access to all the booths on the premises must be free and free of charge, "any charge or requiring an invitation, offer or prior promotion, consumption or pass to access or return is prohibited".

Regarding minors, the ordinance determines that minors under 16 years old may not access the booths located in the youth area, unless they attend live performances and "only during the time they last".

Regarding horsemen, the City Council plans to reduce the duration of stay on the streets of the Real. The parade of horses and carriages can be held from 12 to 19:30, with the aim that by 20:00 everything is completely clean.

Regarding the schedule, the booths must remain open every day of the celebration from 14:00, being able to end their daily activity between 2:00 and 6:00, except on holidays and the eve of holidays, when they can extend the schedule until 7:00. The booths in the Youth area will end their activity every day at 7:00. In contrast, the document does not specify the start and end times of the fair in the Center, something that must be set annually by the Local Government Board.

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One of the most controversial aspects of the new ordinance is that the possibility of turning the booths into fixed ones, as was included in the 2018 regulation, has been eliminated. This issue has generated enormous concern in the Federation of Peñas, which has always defended the permanent use of the site.