After a six-year wait to be declared a saturated zone, residents of Honduras Square and El Cedro, neighboring districts and the epicenter of university nightlife, are demanding more forceful measures for acoustic control. The area has a ratio of entertainment venues and restaurants per thousand inhabitants similar to that of Benidorm, with approximately twenty establishments.
“"If they intend to apply the same restrictions here, if we are declared a saturated zone, we will go back to court. It is too weak."
Residents' concern intensifies with the upcoming approval of the ZAS for the Russafa neighborhood, as they fear that the measures applied will be insufficient. Previously, the Supreme Court ratified a ruling by the High Court of Justice of the Valencian Community that rejected declaring Honduras and El Cedro as ZAS, based on erroneous acoustic measurements by the previous municipal government.
Since February, sound level measurements are being repeated with devices distributed at different points in the neighborhood, and not just one, as happened in the previous measurement. Currently, there are five sound level meters distributed around Honduras Square, El Cedro, and adjacent streets, which will change location every 70 days during the year the measurements will last. However, residents express concern about not yet having received the results of these new measurements.
Residents do not want half-hearted measures regarding acoustic restrictions or opening hours. They believe that reducing the operating hours of nightclubs or terraces is not the definitive solution to the problem. In addition to the noise, the physical and mental exhaustion of residents is exacerbated by fights and vandalism that often accompany nightlife, including attacks on vehicles and incidents such as the one that occurred on April 19.
The inhabitants of the neighborhood are so accustomed to these situations that they no longer record the brawls, which have become their daily bread. They resort to the police, who always respond, but they consider a deterrent reinforcement necessary, especially with the arrival of good weather, when disturbances tend to worsen. Meanwhile, they await acoustic results that will bring them the much-desired rest.
