The hostel comes under the IBJove government department (Balearic Islands youth); this is for the maintenance side of things. It is the Council of Mallorca that organises the summer camps, and the Council reports having received 2,498 registrations for this summer – 636 more than in 2023.
Antoni Fuster is the councillor for the presidency. He says that the increase in applications demonstrates the “strengthening of these emblematic camps and the enthusiasm of young people”. He adds that the number of registrations may well increase next year; the Council is considering an expansion. Fantastic. But there is one slight issue. The hostel has been closed since 2019.
Over recent summers, therefore, the summer camps have all been camps in the sense of camping. It is probably fair to assume that the kids don’t mind being in tents. However, this isn’t really the point. There is a hostel that’s not being used and which accommodated over 20,000 in summers prior to 2019.
It was in fact open in 2019 but was closed in July that year because of safety concerns. The then minister of social affairs, Fina Santiago, said that there would be a “temporary closure” of the rooms until 2021. The kitchen and dining-room could still be used, which was just as well for the 1,667 children with reservations who were now having to be accommodated in tents.
In April 2019, the government’s architecture directorate advised immediate action and closure. This was because there was only one emergency staircase, when regulations required two, and because the front of the building needed renovating due to concerns that parts of it might start falling off. There was a third issue – a lift was necessary. The work would cost around one million euros, the minister noting that certain procedures would have to be pursued, such as amendment to Alcudia town hall approvals; the town hall was the licence-issuing body, as with any building work.
Not all the children booked for the camps were moved, as there was already provision for and use of tents. There were 210 places in tents. The government had to find 21 more tents, and the Army was asked to help out.
The pandemic did of course cause a delay, but nevertheless it wasn’t until August 2022 that a contract was awarded. By now, the work was for partial renovation of the hostel. The cost had doubled from Santiago’s 2019 estimate; it was up to 2.2 million euros. The work started in January 2023. Three months later, the construction company filed for bankruptcy. The plan was then for the work to have been finished this summer. However, there was a new government, and it has now decided that the project drafted by the previous administration wasn’t sufficient. Instead of partial renovation, there needs to be comprehensive renovation.
With new people at IBJove, the conclusion was that the previous project didn’t fully comply with current regulations. A more ambitious one was required in order to sort out “all the existing deficiencies”. The department has tendered the drafting of this comprehensive project, the cost of which – 490,000 euros – is roughly half of what Santiago said would be the total cost back in 2019. And what will the total cost now be of doing the work, excluding the drafting? Around 10.7 million euros. When will the hostel finally reopen? The government hasn’t given a specific date.
All those additional tents continue to come in handy.
