Marivent Palace to open to the public, if only the gardens.

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The gardens of the Marivent Palace in Palma, the Royal Family’s summer residence, are expected to be open to the general public next year. A commission comprising the regional government and the Royal Household is currently working on this, the government’s spokesperson, Marc Pons, telling parliament today that the Royal Household is “willing” to opening up the gardens.

In responding to Podemos parliamentary member, Baltasar Picornell, Pons said that this measure was among the agreements for government that were signed up to by PSOE, Més and Podemos and added that King Felipe had last summer himself expressed his openness to the suggestion. The King had recommended that the proposal be studied in order to ensure that there were no pitfalls and that the best arrangement possible be considered with the government.

Pons noted that agreement was close to being finalised and that the Royal Household, through its “respect,” was making it possible for the project to open the gardens.

The minister for the presidency (Pons’ official title) observed that the palace is the property of the Balearic community but remains the residence for the head of state. If the Royal Family were to cease to use it, then it would revert to the original owner who had ceded it. He went on to say that everyone was interested in the palace continuing to be for the Balearic community and that the gardens should be open to the public. In speaking directly to Picornell, Pons suggested that “in 2016 you and I will be able to see the gardens of the Marivent”.

Picornell noted that the palace was originally ceded by the family of the painter Juan de Saridakis to the one-time provincial delegation in the Balearics with the idea that it should be a museum and that it subsequently passed to the management of the regional government, which had further ceded the palace to the Royal Family. He criticised the fact that the palace was for “the exclusive use of a Bourbon” for “fifteen days a year” and that its maintenance costs 1.3 million euros per annum. He stressed that the gardens being open was a demand from society, civil organisations and parties of the left.