The municipal corporation of Armilla has intensified its healthcare demands, unanimously approving a motion urging the Junta de Andalucía to promptly begin the construction of the long-awaited Health Center. This agreement not only formalizes the institutional demand but also offers strong support to citizen initiatives and the neighborhood platform that has been fighting for this essential infrastructure for years.
“"We are no longer talking about promises; we are talking about facts. All we want to know is when the works will begin."
Since 2019, the council has maintained numerous contacts with regional health officials, without any tangible progress being made. Despite the land for the new center being ceded in 2020, the project still lacks budgetary allocation and a defined execution timeline.
The approved motion demands that the Junta include a specific budget item in its next budgets for the drafting of the project and the execution of works on the plot on Barcelona Street. It also requires the presentation, within a maximum of six months, of an official timeline detailing dates, funding, and comprehensive planning.
A crucial aspect of the agreement is the defense of the current emergency service. The plenary session has categorically rejected any possibility of relocation to other municipalities in the metropolitan area, an option that, according to the government team, has been suggested in previous meetings. The current health center, inaugurated in 1998, serves more than 27,000 users in primary care and covers a population exceeding 150,000 inhabitants when including emergency services and nearby municipalities, highlighting the urgent need for new infrastructure.
The recent tender for the new health center in Alhendín, with an investment exceeding seven million euros, has intensified the discontent in Armilla. While the council acknowledges the importance of improving the healthcare network in the metropolitan area, they consider it unjustifiable that their project remains blocked. The government team insists that it has already complied with all administrative requirements and is not willing to continue negotiating without concrete results.
