Two months after the introduction of the new “hippie” market along the front of the Cabo Roig strip, the Councillor for Markets, Ángel Luis Muñoz, says that “the objective of improving the safety, attractiveness and legalisation of stalls is being achieved”.
The market opened “with some scepticism from the restaurateurs, but we have seen how little by little the difficulties arising from mixing activities have been overcome.” He said that “We can say that the reception by residents and associations has been very positive, as they have been demanding it’s legalisation for many years.”
The councillor also said that many of the vendors who usually carried out their work in the area, the so-called manteros (looky looky men), are now up to date and registered with Social Security so they are able to carry out their activities legally.
Muñoz added that “in addition to complying with the legal requirements, visitors are now able to enjoy a pleasant and safe space in which to spend time and their leisure hours consolidating the area as place to visit on the coast.”
Muñoz stressed that “there is still a lot of work to be done. We have to work on improving the image of some positions that have not been able to adapt to the demands due to lack of time and resources, since the authorisation process was carried out in record time,” but he added that “vendors are happy. They are aware that it is a newly created market and that we still have improvements to make, but it has been a great step forward by the Orihuela Council”.
“Hippies Aguamarina”, as the market is called, is made up of 15 stalls, tables, chairs and lighting with the opening hours from Monday to Sunday, 7 p.m. to midnight, and will be in operation until 15 September.
