Four projects aim to give a new life to the Mijas racetrack

It covers 380,000 square meters in Mijas Costa, featuring two sand tracks of 1,700 and 1,600 meters in length and 25 meters in width, two more for jumping, 320 boxes for horses, an athletics track with a football field, a residence for athletes, and space to accommodate everything it once had: bars, restaurants, a veterinary clinic, a playroom... These are some of the details that summarize the dimensions—and the possibilities—of the Costa del Sol Racecourse, facilities inaugurated in 1999 after an initial investment of 12 million euros. They once hosted the highest prize of Spanish horse racing and ended up as a resounding failure, certified with a creditors' contest and even an investigative commission within the Mijas City Council.

The facilities have sparked the interest of investors to the point that the Mijas City Council already has four projects in hand to revitalize the Costa del Sol Racecourse, as confirmed by municipal sources to SUR. The Council is open to receiving further proposals. The project that wins the bid will be decided in a public tender process that the City Council intends to launch for the exploitation of the facilities in the coming months.

The world of horse racing will once again be the protagonist in a complex that will integrate sports and leisure activities

The City Council's idea for the future of the facilities is that "the world of horse racing will once again be the protagonist," but it also advances that the new path for the complex also involves "integrating sports and leisure activities." All this considering that the possibility of having a hotel establishment already fits with what was once the Costa del Sol Racecourse with its residence for athletes.

The question that still needs to be answered is what percentage of use the sports facilities will have, although the Council does not contemplate that it will be below 50 percent, without ruling out that it could be close to its entirety. However, the sports disciplines it may host need not be the same as those currently in place.

The City Council begins the process to overcome the last hurdle: expropriating six premises registered in the name of individuals

Investors will have to crunch numbers in their projects to achieve profitability, considering that the City Council will receive an annual fee for the exploitation of the racecourse, which will be added to the investment that the awardee must assume to execute their project. Just getting what is already there up to standard has a cost of 3.5 million euros, according to calculations made by the current municipal government.

The penultimate step

For the exploitation of the facilities to go out to tender, the Mijas City Council must resolve a last hurdle. In the Property Registry, six 100 square meter premises corresponding to the area of bars and shops that the racecourse had are registered in the name of individuals. The City Council has already initiated the expropriation process and when it is completed, it will have free rein to start the procedure for the concession of the facilities as it will already have 100 percent of the facilities in its possession.

The venue continues to operate today with an equine therapy service, a municipal gym, an athletics track, and a jumping school

The turning point that has made possible the new scenario that a racecourse, which was meant to be the crown jewel of sports tourism, faces came last December 1, when the Universal General Assembly of the municipal society that managed the racecourse, Recursos Turísticos de Mijas SA, composed of the 25 councilors of the Corporation, agreed on the dissolution, so that the facilities have become the property of the City Council. Previously, in 2020, Unicaja Banco transferred at zero cost the shares of the municipal company it owned, just under 8 percent. Today, the only asset that Recursos Turísticos de Mijas retains, according to the City Council, are "some furniture and objects of little value," which the appointed liquidator has begun to take charge of to end the story of this company.

For now, the venue continues to operate normally. In addition to the horse racing tracks and the buildings dedicated to stables, the racecourse has an equine therapy service, a municipal gym, and an athletics track. The Samuel Oliva jumping school also continues, which is now used by both professional and amateur riders.