The Town Council has completed the remodelling works on the central avenida de España, in the sections between avenida Juan Carlos I and calle Delfín, and from there to the Estepona lighthouse, creating a large revitalised urban space for citizens and one of the best seafront promenades in Spain. The project has included the remodelling and linking of this road (the former N340) with the seafront promenade that runs through this area.

Estepona Town Council has completed the project for the comprehensive remodelling and pedestrianisation of avenida de España, turning this central road (the former N340) into a large landscaped pedestrian boulevard that opens the city to the sea and creates one of the best seafront promenades in Spain, stretching along a kilometre of urban coastline. Specifically, the areas between avenida Juan Carlos I and calle Delfín, as well as its extension from calle Delfín to the Estepona lighthouse. These two phases join the previous one carried out between calle Terraza and avenida Juan Carlos I.

Some 10,000 people attended the opening of this space. The mayor of Estepona, José María García Urbano, explained that this pioneering initiative places Estepona at the forefront of sustainable cities, which commit to quality of life, the well-being of citizens, the environment and ample space for pedestrians.

In this way, Estepona links its urban centre and the heart of its economic and social activity with the tourist appeal of the sea, with the resulting revitalisation of this whole strategic enclave of the municipality. Thus, the avenue becomes a place of transition between the city and the sea, with a more pleasant, calm and safe space, open to pedestrians and where nature predominates; in short, “one of the favourite places to enjoy the city”.

It also achieves a concept of a modern city open to the sea, which has another fundamental axis in the remodelled town centre. In this regard, it should be remembered that in this area, over the last decade, a network of more than 130 streets has been created, with all their infrastructure renewed and beautified, creating the powerful hub of urban revitalisation represented by the municipal initiative ‘Estepona, Garden of the Costa del Sol’.

The mayor stressed that with this new strategic project, Estepona continues to advance towards a modern, dynamic, attractive city that generates jobs and wealth; placing itself at the forefront of sustainable urban planning and building on the city model promoted over the last decade, which has proved to be successful urban planning, with empathy and acceptance from the public.

The project has also included the remodelling of the seafront promenade that runs through these sections, as well as the replacement of the sewerage networks, which have been improved with a new foul and storm water collector in line with the city’s Sewerage Master Plan, and new water supply, natural gas, street lighting and irrigation networks, which have also been renovated.

This work has involved demolishing the existing surface to create a wide pedestrian boulevard surrounded by planters. Although the pavement is intended mainly for pedestrians, it also has markers for a cycle lane that runs continuously from the Port area to the La Cala area and that will also allow road traffic for emergency vehicles. In the design of the paving, special emphasis is placed on removing architectural barriers to foster an inclusive city.

Mirador del Carmen

This great pedestrian boulevard culminates in the Mirador del Carmen, a socio-cultural facility for public use that houses a large vertical library and study spaces, a music conservatoire, an auditorium for cultural events, a major exhibition hall, which opens with some fifty pieces from the Carmen Thyssen collection, and a viewing tower that becomes a significant attraction for visitors, as it is a lookout from which to enjoy impressive views of the Mediterranean and the maritime essence of the city.