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Catalonia's parliament has continued to discuss plans for hard rock casinos more than a decade after the project was announced. Catalan news reports the parties have yet to reach an agreement on the matter.

The Hard Rock Casino project plans to build a casino hotel complex in Villasekawa Salu, Tarragona, near Port Aventura Amusement Park. However, the property has been a point of contention for over a decade and its development has been delayed.

The initial mega project would have had six theme parks covering a total of 445 hectares. Originally called Barcelona World, the project was eventually chosen by Hard Rock to downsize. The ongoing project includes a casino, two hotels, a large swimming pool, a shopping area, and a large conference center.

However, Hard Rock's project is still awaiting approval of a new urban development plan because the Catalan High Court struck down the first in 2020.

a conflict of opinion between political parties
Hard Rock's project has been fiercely debated by the parties of the Catalan parliament. The casino plan has the backing of the Socialist Party, the pro-independence Juntz, the far-right Vox, and the progressive Ciudadanos. Meanwhile, the pro-independence Esquerra Republicana, the far-right CUP, and the left-wing commune of Sumar are firmly opposed to the resort.

The commune of Sumar, for example, rejected the 2024 budget because it believed it would have advanced the hard rock project despite the government's different claims. As a result, Catalan President Pere Aragon was forced to call for snap elections on May 12.

Raquel Sans, a leading candidate for Eschera Republicana, accused her political opponents of using hard rock as an excuse to push their agenda and end the legislature. According to her, these people chose their own interests over the public interest.

Far-right Vox's Sergio Macian added that separatism continues to prevent Catalonia's economic development.

However, opponents of the project argue that it should be stopped because it is not completely legal. According to them, it would be unfair to work on the project. Others pointed out that the Hard Rock Casino Hotel would not be environmentally sustainable.

Because of this, opponents believe that Hard Rock will need to change before it gets planning permission.