The TSJC dismissed the final appeal filed by the Bellver de Cerdanya Town Council to legalize the controversial illegal chalet known as Ca l’Alay. The construction, started without a license in 2019 by Joan Porta, former Culture councilor and son of former mayor Xavier Porta, was attempted to be justified as a rehabilitation of an old farmhouse, even though only eight stones from the original building were used, according to the ruling.
It is not possible to reconstruct upon a constructive non-existence. For construction to be possible, what had been built must exist.
This urban planning controversy generated strong debate in the region, leading to the formation of the environmental group SOS Pirineus. The social and judicial pressure ultimately led to the departure of the Porta family from the council in April 2022, with Laia Serra, from Endavant Cerdanya, taking over the mayoralty.
The legal maneuver, activated by the council in 2020, consisted of modifying the catalog of farmhouses and rural houses in Bellver de Cerdanya to include Ca l’Alay and thus avoid the demolition order on non-developable land. This strategy has been consecutively dismantled by the Urban Planning Commission of Alt Pirineu i Aran and, finally, by the TSJC, costing the council a penalty of 3,000 € in legal fees.
“"We will not pressure in one direction or another. We will try to do things well, be cautious, and not cause harm to the town council. We hope that Urban Planning or Anti-Fraud will tell us what we need to do."
