Mijas Advances €32.8 Million Gran Parque Project in Las Lagunas Construction teams in Mijas make key strides on the Costa del Sol's largest public green space, spanning 350,000 square metres. Diggers and dumper trucks have turned a stretch of scrubland on the edge of Las Lagunas into one of the busiest building sites on the coast. Mijas Town Council is pressing ahead with the €32.8 million construction of what officials describe as the largest municipal park anywhere on the Costa del Sol, a 350,000 square metre scheme that ranks among the biggest public recreational investments seen in Andalusia in recent years. The scale alone sets it apart from the pocket parks and roundabout gardens that typically pass for green infrastructure in fast-growing coastal towns. For a municipality that has added thousands of homes to its inland districts over the past decade, often faster than the amenities to serve them, this is a deliberate attempt to catch up. A Vast Recreational Haven for Inland Families The site sits between Las Lagunas and the El Hipódromo area, a part of Mijas that has absorbed much of the town's residential expansion without gaining the parks and open spaces that usually accompany it. The plans call for a navigable lake as the centrepiece, flanked by open-air amphitheatres, multi-sport courts and several kilometres of shaded running tracks. Planting is already under way, with hundreds of mature olive trees, stone pines and other drought-tolerant Mediterranean species going into the ground. That choice of flora is not cosmetic. With Andalusia still working through periodic water restrictions, councils across the province have had to rethink how public green spaces are irrigated and maintained, and species that can survive long dry spells without constant watering are now the default rather than the exception. Residents of Mijas Costa, both Spanish families and the large international community that has settled in the area, have pushed for proper communal green space for years, arguing that construction has consistently outpaced leisure provision. The finished park is meant to answer that complaint directly, with skate parks, children's adventure playgrounds and designated areas for dogs all included in the design. The intention is for it to function as a genuine daily gathering point rather than a space people visit occasionally. Infrastructure Linking Coastal Neighbourhoods The works extend well beyond the park boundary itself. Road and access improvements form part of the contract, along with cycle paths designed to connect directly into existing residential areas across Las Lagunas and towards the boundary with Fuengirola. Town planning officials have framed the project as more than a leisure facility, describing it as a civic link that ties inland suburban neighbourhoods into the main transport routes along the coast. That connectivity matters in a part of Mijas where getting around without a car has historically been difficult. Better cycle and pedestrian links between Las Lagunas and neighbouring areas could make a tangible difference for residents who currently rely on buses or private vehicles for short local journeys. Economic Knock-On Effects and Property Interest Businesses around Camino de Campanales and the surrounding streets are already positioning themselves for the change. Bars, cafés and other hospitality venues in the vicinity expect higher footfall once the park starts drawing visitors from across Mijas and beyond, a pattern seen in other Spanish towns where large municipal parks have become anchors for local commerce. There are signs the project is also feeding into the property market. Interest in Las Lagunas has been building steadily as the area adds this kind of large-scale civic investment to its appeal, something prospective buyers and agents alike tend to notice when a neighbourhood gains a flagship public amenity rather than another block of flats. For anyone weighing up a purchase in the area, specialists such as Marbella New Homes have been tracking how projects of this size influence buyer demand in the surrounding streets. Delivery Timelines and Phased Access According to municipal technical directors, the bulk earthworks and the hydraulic drainage network, the unglamorous but essential groundwork that determines whether a park like this will actually cope with heavy rain or summer heat, are progressing on schedule. Town hall planners say the handover will happen in phases rather than all at once, meaning some landscaped walking circuits and open areas should be accessible to nearby communities before the entire 350,000 square metre site is finished. For residents who have waited years for proper green space in this part of Mijas, that phased opening will be the first real test of whether the finished product matches the ambition behind the €32.8 million price tag.