The demolition of several surf schools and businesses in Dar Bouazza aroused great consternation, widely expressed on social networks. The ” Darbists Were surprised to see their little escape space, razed to the ground by local authorities, very early on the morning of Wednesday March 17th.
The latter had the green light to destroy any construction ” illegal »On the maritime domain, namely the beach of Dar Bouazza, located in the province of Nouaceur (CS region), in particular the small taverns along the coast and most of which did not have an authorization, according to our sources. However, the private beaches were spared by this shaving session. One wonders why !
” On Monday March 15, the authorities came to see us to tell us to empty the premises. On Wednesday, they demolished everything. We didn’t even have time to put our things and equipment away“, Says Aziz, surf coach and owner of a club in Dar Bouazza.
Reason for this sudden decision? Our interlocutor does not know. ” Our premises are built on the maritime domain, because we offer nautical services. This is perfectly normal. We had an authorization from the commune of Dar Bouazza the first time we wanted to settle. Then, we submitted our file to the maritime domain which acknowledged receipt. Since then, we have been working in peace and without the slightest problem, to guarantee our families a life of descending income from this passion.“, Confides this surf lover.
“During all these years, we have been able to create a community of surfers on a national and international scale, particularly Dar Bouazza, who come to surf here every weekend. We have created champions nationally and internationally. And we are proud of it, but at the same time disappointed that this dynamic has been interrupted by the last decision ”, continues Aziz who opened the doors of his surf school in 2019. Another surf school not far from his was also demolished, although it has existed for more than 20 years, he confides.
What are the authorities saying?
” The decision comes from the prefecture of Casablanca“, Declared to the owners of the surf schools, the circle chief who came in person to supervise the operation of shaving. ” He told us that he had the authorization to demolish any structure built on the maritime domain, whether it had an authorization or not.“, Deplores our interlocutor.
What about villas and private beaches?
” They have not been touched although they take up a lot of space on the beaches“, Aziz tells us, noting that the owners of these villas and beaches have” permissions on a specific footage but take much more than they are allowed“.
” If we compare what we offer as a service, and what they offer (alcohol and catering), I think water sport is more important and more interesting. Healthier too. It is a sport that must be helped and encouraged. Today, and with the demolition of the surf schools in Dar Bouazza, I feel sorry for the parents, who brought their children back to us every weekend. I wonder where they are going to take them for this weekend. The children of Dar Bouazza spent most of their time surfing since there is only the sea here. I find it a shame what happened, for us and for them“, He tells us with despair.
For this surf school owner, the prefecture of Casablanca made the mistake of sending the authorities to demolish without notifying those concerned in advance and giving them prior notice. According to him, the competent authorities could have met with them and asked them to dismantle their huts to clean the beach and remove any structure, pending the issuance of another building permit and place them elsewhere.
” But all this was not done“, Aziz says. Faced with this situation, the bosses of the six impacted surf schools intend to meet soon and seize the prefecture to try to find a way out. ” Either they issue us an authorization to reopen to resume our surfing activity, which has just been relaunched recently, or they find us another alternative“, Considers our interlocutor before concluding that several associations have approached them and offered them help, in particular by placing their lawyers at their disposal if necessary.
