Francisco Asis López, the municipal archivist of Marbella, has announced his retirement in February 2024 after serving for 37 years. López, who is currently working on a website to house thousands of historical documents, expressed mixed feelings about his departure. He acknowledged that his retirement marks the end of a significant chapter in his life, but also noted that there are still goals he has not achieved.
López expressed disappointment with the lack of growth opportunities within the archival department. He noted that when he joined in 1987, the role required knowledge of archiving, but it has since been reduced to a purely administrative position. He also lamented the lack of personnel and administrative hierarchy in the department.
Marbella’s archives are distributed across four municipal offices, with the town hall office being barely noticeable. López likened their situation to a field hospital. He also noted that some of the older records, dating back to the 15th century, have not been well-maintained, although more recent documents have been better preserved.
López highlighted the growth of the town, as reflected in the documents preserved up to 2013. He described the volume of files, particularly those stored in the Calle Portada building, as impressive. The remaining files are split between the management archives and the archives in the Horizonte building.
