Torrox Costa – The groundbreaking ceremony!
17 January 1973 – Building permit and start of the project.
November 6, 1973 – The groundbreaking ceremony for the first high-rise building.
May 4, 1974 – Final planning permission for the entire project is granted by the General Directorate of Urbanism in Madrid.
On the cover picture you can see the basic planning.
Instead of a beach promenade, a beach road and a marina were planned.
A golf course should attract more buyers.
These are the numbers – that’s how it started.
After five years, as of 31.12.1978, half of the Centro International Torrox was completed
and disillusionment spread.
Because as it was promised, it didn’t go that fast.
Many things were not as they were used to at home.
There was no supermarket, no furniture stores, no hardware stores.
No one spoke “German” or “English”.
Infrastructure – was not available and did not get going.
Bau Hoffman founded the marketing company “Terrasol”.
The glossy brochures lured customers to Spain.
Stewart Granger (Old Shurehand from Karl May) was put on horseback for the project Rancho Verde.
At first, marketing took place entirely from Germany.
Air travel was organized, the “customers” were picked up directly at the airport.
Model apartments were visited.
Anyone who bought an apartment was reimbursed the fare for one person.
(after all, a flight used to cost around 400 to 500 DM)
From then on it went blow after blow:
Real estate agents opened their office on site.
It was not only the pensioners who came and bought a winter home.
Butchers, bakers, hairdressers, cooks, restaurateurs and craftsmen settled here.
The first German supermarket opened.
A furniture store sold “complete home furnishings”.
Within 48 hours , an apartment with beds,
Table & chairs, dishes, linen and even pictures on the walls.
What a brilliant idea,
which, however, also explains why the “old” holiday apartments all look the same.
Soon everything was in German hands. You suddenly felt like you were “at home”.
Here are the brochures, prices, offers, etc.
That’s how it was then, that’s how it began, back in 1973.
