Marbella Social Hub: A New Innovation Center Yet to Open
The new Marbella Social Hub, located in Trapiche Norte, was announced to be open by the City Council this Friday. However, the truth is that it is not yet operational as a regulation to govern its use is still in the works. It has been a year since the building’s refurbishment works were completed.
False Announcement of the Social Hub’s Operation
The mayor held a press conference this morning, supposedly to announce that the ‘Social Hub’ Innovation Center is already operational. This is not the case, as it was acknowledged during the event that it will still take “a month or a month and a half” because a regulation is needed to govern its use. In the meantime, potential entrepreneurs “can come and see it,” said Muñoz.
Building Remodeling and Broken Promises
A year ago, the building’s remodeling was completed, which in 2017, Mayor Ángeles Muñoz promised to relocate the Traffic offices to. The residents of Santa Marta, where the current offices are located, welcomed the idea to free up parking in their neighborhood, but once again it was another lie. In 2021, the mayor changed her mind and announced that the building was no longer suitable for the Traffic departments, which remain in the same place.
Marbella Social Hub: A Year After the Remodeling
On March 28, 2023, the mayor visited the building and announced the end of the remodeling works. She said that in April, the furniture would be brought in and it would open. It has taken a year, with various disputes between delegations, for the center to still not be up and running.
Facilities for Entrepreneurs
The facilities can accommodate up to 80 entrepreneurs in its various spaces at no cost, with technical and logistical advice from the Economic Development and SMEs delegation. It will complement the business incubators in Plaza de los Naranjos and San Pedro Alcántara. The building consists of two floors, divided into different rooms; on the first floor, in addition to the training classrooms, there are podcast recording spaces, video game training, 3D printing, and coworking spaces. In the highest part of the building, there is an open workspace for coworking, an office, and a cafeteria. A total of 600,000 euros have been invested, 80% of which are European funds, plus another 150,000 euros in furniture and technological equipment.
Initial Plans for the Building
In September 2017, Ángeles Muñoz announced that the Civil Guard was going to move its Traffic offices from San Antonio Street to this building in Trapiche Norte, at the confluence of Florida Avenue and Paco Ostos Street. She assured that the City Council was going to cede it for this purpose in what she herself defined as “an ideal location” next to the highway. She later changed her mind and now, a year after the works were completed, this Social Hub has been launched.
