The foreign vote will be key in eight municipalities of Castellón

The province of Castellón has 15,586 foreign citizens registered to vote in the upcoming municipal elections on May 22. These foreign residents could be the key in eight municipalities where they represent over 10% of the total electorate.
Sant Jordi, a town in the Baix Maestrat with barely a thousand inhabitants, has the highest percentage of foreign voters in Castellón, with 27.7%, followed by the population of Els Ports de Todolella (200 inhabitants), with 15.3%, and Vall d’Alba (Plana Alta), with 14.9%. All three are small towns in the interior and are governed by the PP, with the mayors of the first population (Luis Tena) and third (Francisco Martinez) vice presidents of the Diputación de Castellón. The foreign vote also exceeds 10% of the electorate in Alcala de Xivert (14.6%), Oropesa (13.9%), Peniscola (14.1%), Benlloch (11%) and Pobla de Benifassà (10.1% .) Foreign nationals account for 9.8% of Santa Magdalena de Pulpis and 8.5% of Cabanes.
By regions, the Baix Maestrat has the highest percentage of foreign voters, with 5.8%, followed by Plana Alta with 5.4%, and Els Ports, with 4.6%. In the Plana Baixa represent only 2.2%, in Alto Mijares 2.9%, in Alto Palancia 2.3%, in l’Alt Maestrat 2.8% and in l Alcalatén l’´1.7% .

Alternative parking for Valencia airport

Getting on for three years ago I was due to fly out from Valencia and was looking for alternative parking around Manises because of the high parking fees charged by AENA. I spent a fair bit of time searching the Internet and looking in forums etc, but found nothing. So in the end I did park at the airport and it cost me around 120 euros for the 10 days. I don’t know how they can justify such charges as there are no facilities to speak of, the car is out in the open and you are still a fair walk away from the terminal. When I returned to my car it was covered in red saharan sand.

Since then I have made a point of using Reus Airport, where at first the parking was free but they have stated charging there since a proper covered car park was created. I have discovered recently that there is now some alternative car parking for Valencia Airport. Victoria Rent a Car offer parking http://www.victoria-parking.com/car-parking-valencia-airport/parking-valencia-airport.html and only this week Lavacolla, that started out in Santiago, have opened a branch in Valencia http://www.lavacolla.com/index.php The cost of parking for a week on the offical AENA car park works out around 76 euros whearas offsite the cost could be as low as 43 euros. I am due to fly out from Valencia in the near future and think I will be trying out this new service.

Submariners up scope

Villarreal targets Europa League glory after Twente thrashing

ROB TRAIN – Madrid – 08/04/2011

It’s been a pretty decent week for Portugal and Spain, in matters non-fiscal at least. The Iberian Peninsula might be teetering on the brink of monetary oblivion but its soccer teams are in a rich vein of form in both of Europe’s club competitions.

After Barcelona and Real Madrid had all but secured their places in a Champions League semifinal against each other with resounding triumphs earlier in the week, Villarreal, Benfica and Porto all took a bold step toward a possible all-Iberian last four in the Europa League.

Villarreal, which thrashed Dutch league leader FC Twente 5-1, will likely meet Porto in the semifinals after the freshly crowned Portuguese champion crushed Spartak Moscow by the same margin. “We still have the return leg but we have taken a big step forward,” said Villarreal coach Juan Carlos Garrido. “There is still another game in which we will clearly be favorite, but it still has to be played,” he added, echoing a sentiment reverberating around the peninsula.

Benfica added to a punishing evening for the Eredivisie by slotting four past PSV Eindhoven, with the Dutch giant pulling one back late on to give it a glimmer of hope for the return leg. Sporting Braga- whose European campaign started with a first appearance in the Champions League group stage and has led it to a first-ever European quarterfinal- still has some work to do after a 1-1 tie with Dynamo Kiev. But Braga will have home field advantage and Andriy Schevkenko’s absence through suspension working in its favor next week.

For Villarreal, a Champions League semifinalist in 2006, the Europa League represents a real chance to deliver a first piece of significant silverware to a club that, incredibly, has only spent a little over 10 years in Spain’s Primera División. “It’s the only thing we can win, we have to go for it,” said World Cup winner Joan Capdevila. “I really want to win something with Villarreal, although nothing is easy in Europe.”

Winning the Europa League would certainly be a great achievement for a team that plays in a town whose population would only fill its stadium twice. But on the domestic front Villarreal has important business afoot: a trip to Mestalla on Sunday for a Valencia region derby. Villarreal sits in fourth place, three points behind Valencia and nine ahead of its nearest challenger for the a place at Europe’s top table next season, Athletic Bilbao.

With The Lions to be thrown to Cristiano et al on Saturday, any number of points Villarreal can escape Mestalla with will likely widen that gap further.

via Submariners up scope · ELPAÍS.com in English.

Electoral Board suspends visits to Castellón airport

The Electoral Board has suspended visits to Castellón airport proposed by Castellón Provincial President, Carlos Fabra. This morning, the legal representative of PSPV to the Castellón Provincial Electoral Board, Juli Domingo, registered a complaint against these visits, which started today, and also called for banning the distribution of any prospectus for the facility. The president of Valencia, Francisco Camps, and Fabra inaugurated the facilities on March 25.

The Electoral Board has been quick to analyze the request of the Socialists and suspended the visits, as confirmed by sources in the High Court of Valencia. The Law on Elections prohibits from the announcement of the elections until the holding,  whatever act organised or financed, directly or indirectly, by the public authorities.  For the socialists, the organisation of such visits “violate” the prohibition in the the electoral law.

Domingo recalled that the forced opening of the airport that did not even have planes,  a fact that all the media in the country are ridiculing  has demonstrated the extent to which the PP is willing to cheat, and we want to send a message of reassurance to the citizens of Castellon in the sense that we will follow closely whatever anomaly to ensure that the electoral process proceeds with normality and within the law.

7,000 sign up on Facebook to a ‘rave’ at Castellon airport

About 7,000 Internet users had signed up on Facebook yesterday to a rave called from midnight on 24 April to midnight on 25th in the newly opened airport at Castellón. The call is justified by the assertion of the President of the Diputación de Castellón, Carlos Fabra, during the inauguration of the airport, when he said: “You can walk along the runway, which you would not be able to do if aircraft were taking off .” With this invitation, the promoters of the party encourage the citizens to seize the opportunity provided by Fabra and Francisco Camps to spend a joyous festive day in the facilities they have so kindly given us. We can have parties, barbecues, mobile disco, kite flying or eat Easter cake, those that have musical instruments can bring them, others can come to cheer, skaters , cyclists, families, ravers. All are welcome , we have an airport to enjoy.

 

The invitation on Facebook

Fabra’s words have misfired and he was visibly annoyed yesterday when asked about the statements of the President of Murcia, Ramón Luis Valcárcel, in which he said he is building an airport in the region  for aircraft and not not for walking. In response he said “I’ve also opened an airport with aircraft and you [reporters],say nonsense, not me,”