The COVID-19 monitoring commission, in which the councilors of the government team, the spokespersons of the opposition groups and different municipal technicians participate, has met virtually this week.
At the meeting, the Health Councilor, Cristina Morera, has reported the health information of the city, based on the data made public by the Ministry of Health. Morera has indicated that we are in a fluctuating situation, with rises and falls of infections, and that today we remain on the alert, "That is not serious, but we cannot lower our guard".
During the meeting, he became aware of the measures taken by the City Council after the resolution of the Ministry of Health last Friday, among which the closure of the city's playgrounds stands out.
Economic measures
Regarding tax measures and aid to self-employed, hoteliers and businesses in the city, the councilor of the Treasury, Paco Roselló, has reported that currently the 165 applications submitted to the self-employed aid line are being evaluated, which has a budget of 191.250 euros (120.000 contributed by the Alicante Provincial Council and 70.000 by the Dénia City Council). The Treasury Department calculates that in the next few days they will have resolved the files of this type of aid, the final amount of which could be 165.953 euros. Roselló has explained that "The forecast for 2021 is to wait for the aid line of the Provincial Council and complement it and increase it with a municipal contribution as has been done in 2020".
Regarding the aid to the payment of the public road occupancy rate and garbage destined to shops and hoteliers, he has reported that in the coming weeks the 132 applications submitted with an initial aid budget of € 746.450,00 will be evaluated. These grants are intended to pay 100% of the public road occupancy rate to employers who comply with the public road occupancy ordinance.
According to the 2020 aid bases, "The maximum amount of 100% will be assigned to those who have maintained at least 60% of the staff, allocating the aid proportionally to the percentage of occupation recovery prior to the pandemic". Roselló has reported that for 2021, the City Council plans to maintain these 100% aid for the payment of the public road occupancy rate and that, in the coming weeks, the recovery percentages of linked jobs will be worked on with the sector to help to lower them, if necessary, to adapt them to the current situation.
Likewise, the councilor has commented on other measures to help the sector, such as the liquidation of the canon of beach bars that the Governing Board approved today. In this settlement, the 25% reduction for occupancy made by Costas has been applied and the employers have only paid for the days they have been active.
The opposition groups have asked the government to simplify the bases of economic aid in the next year.
Social helps
Regarding the social measures adopted at this time and those planned, the Councilor for Social Welfare, Cristina Morera, has reported the spending on social matters during the confinement and the new normal.
In social emergency aid, around 1.900 applications have been received from April to October of this year and a total budget of 525.000 euros has been allocated, an amount that considerably exceeds the 230.000 euros initially budgeted in the 2020 accounts for this item.
The expenditure in fixed cash for cash payments of accommodation expenses, medicine purchases or occasional purchases in the supermarket exceeds 9.000 euros in the referred period from April to October. About 60.000 euros have been spent on supermarket vouchers that are given for the acquisition of basic necessities in supermarkets with which the City Council has agreed. Morera has also highlighted the importance of hiring more staff to Social Services to meet the demand, with a budget of 62.690 euros. Specifically, two social workers were hired, a lawyer and an assistant in the Home Help Service.
Likewise, aid has been created for schooling for boys and girls from 0 to 3 years old, currently in the application submission period; Aid has been called for the payment of expenses related to the habitual residence and, in addition, more than 28.000 euros have been processed for aid to the payment of energy supply (electricity and water) from the Generalitat and 71.000 euros to the payment of rents between the Department and City Hall.
The councilor has informed the members of the commission that they are currently working on the draft of the Social Services budget for 2021, in which items such as emergency aid will be reinforced compared to previous years.
Occupancy plan and other economic reactivation measures
Regarding the occupation policies, fundamental in this context of crisis, the Councilor for Economic Services, Paco Roselló, recalled that the 2020 Municipal Occupation Plan is currently in execution, which has seen the item increased from 100.000 to 300.000 euros.
The City Council of Dénia has obtained during 2020 the amount of 475.253,87 euros in subsidies from Labora for the hiring of different groups of unemployed people.
The forecast for 2021 is to continue with the hiring of unemployed people with the grant of 250.000 euros received from the ECOVID program of the Generalitat Valenciana. With this grant, from January to June 2020, unemployed people of at least 30 years old, who have lost their jobs as a result of the situation derived from COVID-19, will be hired because they carry out information and prevention tasks as COVID auxiliaries.
In addition, the City Council of Dénia will develop the II Occupation Plan with an item of 300.000 euros.
On the other hand, some of the proposals of the opposition groups on economic reactivation will be worked on at the occupation table on 23 November.
Roselló has also stressed the importance of the Smart City Master Plan, which is currently being worked on. A project "That will make the city attractive for entrepreneurs". Likewise, for Roselló the work that is being done to bring universities closer to the city is very important, because this "Brings talent together and, therefore, brings entrepreneurs together and, as a result, reactivates the local economy".
councilwoman Sandra Gertrudix He spoke of another fundamental pillar of the local economy, commerce, recalling that the city's Commerce Plan will be finalized at the end of the month. The virtual showcase is also working, another initiative to promote local commerce.
Face to Christmas, and therefore to encourage purchases, the department organizes the Christmas decoration contest in shop windows, the bases of which have just come out; is also working on organizing a Christmas market for December 5 and 6 and will reinforce these actions with an advertising campaign.
