The Boadilla del Monte City Council has on its desk the documentation to authorize – or not – a mega party organized by the influencer María Pombo in the Palace of the Infante Don Luisbuilt in the 18th century and declared a National Monument and a Site of Cultural Interest. The event, produced by Wasting Timewill take place on September 14 on the second terrace of the Palace and will include, in addition to the main stage, a zone of food truckssales outlets, a drinks bar, toilets, among other elements for the 7,500 people expected to attend the concerts. Municipal sources have confirmed that “on a technical level” the promoters have already submitted all the documentation. “Now it is time to study it and assess whether anything is missing and whether everything complies with the regulations,” added the City Council, which has owned the Palace since 1998.
However, organizations such as Ecologists in Action and the Friends of Boadilla del Monte Palace association are opposed to the event. “The palace does not seem to be the most appropriate place for it, since it is a monumental complex from the 18th century, with its gardens and surroundings, protected and declared a Site of Cultural Interest, and whose recovery and rehabilitation is costing the public coffers a lot of money,” says the association founded in 2002 and which advocates for the conservation of the Palace. In 2013, the restoration of the Palace began, in which More than 11 million euros have been invested from funds from Boadilla del Monte City Council, the Community of Madrid and the Government of Spain. “We think it is quite risky to jeopardise this with such a massive event,” say the Friends of the Palace.
Ecologists in Action, for its part, fear the impact that the festival may have on the fauna that has become established in the gardens of the Palace and on the Boadilla mountain. “It is a forest area of great natural value, with a predominance of holm oak accompanied by gall oak and ash and crossed by several streams,” describes Ecologists and details that species such as the common buzzard, the black kite, the red kite, the common goshawk and the eagle owl live on the mountain. “The noise produced by both the musical performances and by the attendees and by the traffic will be another problem that will cause significant inconvenience to the neighbours who are located closest to the place of celebration of the event and to the fauna,” fears Ecologists who, like the Friends of the Palace, consider that a monumental historical complex is not the place for an event of this type.
Although the promoters do not yet have the authorization, they are promoting the event in a big way on social networks. “The first party organized in a palace,” the promoter celebrated. Suavefest in an Instagram post on July 18. That same day, they announced that 74% of the general area tickets were sold, as well as 67% of the front row seats and 52% of the VIP tickets. To date, the cost of tickets ranges from 39 euros to 70 euros and VIP passes go up to 500 euros.
What matters most is what happens closer to home. To make sure you don’t miss anything, subscribe.
KEEP READING
Municipal sources say that the historic gardens will not be affected, because the event is planned for the second terrace, which is separated by a wall. However, the Friends of the Palace warn that according to the event map, “the entrances are planned through the gardens, so they would be exposed to thousands of people, which would be difficult to control.” Municipal sources respond that, in any case, until the complete project presented by the promoters is studied “it is impossible to indicate the specific measures that the promoters propose and those that we can demand.”
The City Council has also attacked those who have criticised the holding of the festival. “We think the opinion of Ecologistas en Acción, or other associations, is very respectable, but they have nothing to say about the Palace and the events it hosts. If there is a Palace to be preserved, it is not because Ecologistas en Acción has ever given the City Council a penny for its restoration,” respond municipal sources who assure that a “false controversy” has been created to “hide” other problems such as those of “Pedro Sánchez and his wife with the justice system.” “The problem is not María Pombo, it is Zapatero, Sánchez, Begoña, Puigdemont and Maduro. No matter how much pressure we receive from the extreme left, or from the sad, censorious and inquisitorial left, the festival will go ahead if it complies with the law,” say sources from the City Council.
Subscribe here to our newsletter about Madrid, published every Tuesday and Friday.
#Controversy #Boadilla #mega #party #influencer #María #Pombo #calling #Palace #Infante #Don #Luis