Babilonia residents vow to fight demolitions as Guardamar mayor welcomes court ruling

Guardamar mayor José Luis Sáez has welcomed a Constitutional Court ruling that strikes down parts of the Valencian Coastal Law that could have protected homes on Babilonia beach. Residents say they will continue to defend their properties, while the regional government says it will explore other ways to preserve traditional coastal settlements.

Sáez (PSOE) said the ruling could allow the Ministry for Ecological Transition to act on a decision that has been pending for years. He recalled that the homes’ coastal concessions expired in 2018 and were not renewed by the then Popular Party government, under Environment Minister Isabel García Tejerina.

The mayor said Guardamar Council had urged the Coastal Authority to resolve the situation. If the homes were to remain, owners should be allowed to repair them and improve the area, he said. If the decision was to reclaim the land and demolish the buildings, that should be carried out.

Sáez said the dispute had been awaiting court decisions for “practically eight or nine years”. He also pointed to studies by the state research centre CEDEX, which found that the houses interfere with the natural movement of sand between the beach and dune system. The studies also warned that coastal erosion threatened the homes and their occupants.

The Babilonia Beach Residents’ Association strongly opposes demolition. Its spokesperson, Manuel López, said residents were unhappy with what they see as the government’s continued efforts to evict them and remove homes they consider part of Guardamar’s history. The association wants to study the full court ruling before deciding its next steps.

Around 60 single-storey homes face a final demolition order issued in May 2025. Many are used seasonally, although some are residents’ main homes. Owners have argued for years that erosion was worsened by a breakwater built at the mouth of the Segura River during flood-protection works in the 1990s. They say it diverts sediment northwards instead of allowing it to replenish Babilonia beach.

Residents also accuse the State of failing to protect the beach while preventing them from carrying out repairs and coastal defences. Some homes have been damaged or collapsed after storms, including Gloria in 2020 and the recent passage of Storm Adam. The authorities have cited the erosion and the risks to residents as reasons for refusing to renew the concessions.

The Valencian regional government says the court ruling does not rule out protecting traditional coastal settlements, but limits the use of certain provisions in regional law. President Juanfran Pérez Llorca said coastal protection is a state responsibility and that other legal mechanisms may be available. The regional government has not yet set out what action it will take in Babilonia’s case.

The ruling does not itself issue a new demolition order. The decisions on the expired concessions were already final and had been awaiting execution. Meanwhile, the Socialist Party in the Valencian parliament argues the regional law tried to intervene in a matter reserved for the State and has accused the regional government of raising residents’ hopes.

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