Mallorca: Grace period for Real Club Náutico Palma and its harbour facilities

The dispute over the moorings of the Real Club Náutico in Palma de Mallorca ended surprisingly unpleasantly for the sailing club after an appointment with the responsible harbour authority, the Autoridad Portuaria de Baleares (APB): it refused to grant the long-established sailing club the long-term marina licence it had hoped for. Instead, it granted a "temporary usage permit" for just three years and topped it off with an immediate 30 per cent increase in the price of moorings. The association decided to agree to this. Otherwise it would have been threatened with immediate eviction from the mooring area it was using.

There has long been a dispute over the concession of the harbour, which is not managed by the island government but by authorities on the Spanish mainland. Due to a change in the law, the marina, which was managed by the Royal Yacht Club for many years, should have been granted a licence in 2004 instead of the previously valid service contract. This licence was not issued for years. Now the APB wants to put the harbour up for lease to the highest bidder. The club is protesting, arguing that it is performing a social function as a youth training centre and regatta organiser. If the licence is actually refused, the club intends to take legal action against the APB's jurisdiction.

Authority failed to convert the contract

The background to the dispute is somewhat complicated: Until 2003, the club had a service contract with the port authority for the use of the public harbour area. However, a legal reform in Spain meant that these agreements expired in 2003, after which the existing contract should have been converted into a concession, as was customary for new harbours thereafter. However, the state harbour administration in Madrid obviously failed to do this. Operations continued as usual for many years. But then came the shock for the association. In the middle of last year, the port authorities refused to grant the club a licence. In the worst case scenario, there was even the threat of losing the harbour, which would then be put out to tender for a new concession.

In July, the club had already informed its members and berth holders in a letter that it would appeal to the Supreme Court of the Balearic Islands if the application for a licence was rejected by the APB.

Other yacht clubs also affected

Club Náutico in Ibiza Town has similar problems. This is why the members of the Association of Balearic Yacht Clubs (ACNB) met here last year and sent out the message: if you attack one of us, you attack us all. Their association sees the attack on the clubs as harbour operators primarily in the fact that APB simply awards concessions to the highest bidder. Regardless of whether they have experience in the harbour business or not. The social role of the associations, their roots in society and the education of children and young people would also not play a role.

"We offer more than just a boat parking space," says ACNB President Antoni Estades. "This must be taken into account when awarding a licence. If a solution is not found soon, sports like sailing will no longer have a place in cities whose harbours depend on the state, and that means the loss of an important social and historical heritage."

It is unacceptable that clubs in the jurisdiction of the Autonomous Community of the Balearic Islands and PortIB can easily extend their licence for 30 years or more and those in state ports are treated completely differently. This speaks of "ignorance and a lack of sensitivity on the part of the state towards social sailing". At the time, the clubs demanded the immediate transfer of recreational nautical powers to the Autonomous Community of the Balearic Islands in accordance with the Spanish Constitution and the Statute of Autonomy. There has been no reaction to the current decision.

Collaboration: Martin Muth

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