Modification of the Vélez-Málaga General Urban Development Plan to eliminate Urban Conservation Entities: towards a new model of urban management

The Vélez-Málaga Town Council initially approved a specific modification of the General Urban Development Plan (PGOU, its Spanish acronym), published in the official gazette BOPMA No. 217 of 13 November 2025, which eliminates the obligation to establish Urban Conservation Entities (EUC, its Spanish acronym) in 23 residential sectors of the municipality. This decision represents a profound change in the urban land management model and in the distribution of costs between owners and the local administration.

Traditionally, the establishment of EUCs has been required in many urban developments, set up so that owners would assume responsibility for the maintenance of infrastructure such as roads, lighting and green areas. In many cases, these entities were set up on an indefinite basis, generating ongoing financial burdens for residents even decades after the urbanisation works had been completed.

This model has often been challenged in the contentious-administrative jurisdiction. In recent years, the High Court of Justice of Andalusia (TSJA, its Spanish acronym) has ruled that EUCs cannot be indefinite, but must only exist while the local council is not in a position to accept the works and take direct responsibility for their maintenance.

This change is part of a growing trend in Andalusian urban planning, in which both the courts and the public have promoted a more balanced model that is consistent with current legislation (Law 7/2021, of 1 December, on promoting the sustainability of the territory of Andalusia, and its implementing regulations), which reinforces municipal responsibility for the management of urban public services.

Along the same lines, the city of Málaga is also promoting a review of the EUC model, following a ruling by the TSJA (High Court of Justice of Andalusia) recognising the possibility of the City Council gradually taking over the management of these collaborating entities, as they are not of an indefinite nature. The debate aims to ensure that public urban services are finally and definitively taken over by the municipal administration, freeing residents from ongoing financial burdens that sometimes go beyond the mere maintenance of the urbanisation.