Surveys have been carried out on the land for the creation of a parking lot at this Roman villa
The Villa Fortunatus site is close to improving its situation , thanks to the work that has begun to create a parking lot that will allow vehicles to park for visits to this unique Roman villa.
Until now, private vehicles could not access the area and travel was only possible via collective bus transfers that had to stop on the shoulder of the road, a situation that posed a risk to people and road safety.
This week, technicians from the Cultural Heritage area of the Government of Aragon have carried out surveys of the land , to find out the condition of the surface where the construction work of the parking lot is expected to begin soon.
As Verónica Alíns, Fraga's tourism councilor, explained, this work was initiated following requests from the council to the General Directorate of Cultural Heritage of the regional government. The goal is to reopen Villa Fortunatus during this legislative term. To achieve this, Alíns emphasized the importance of working together with the Government of Aragon, promoting initiatives like this one and giving this historical and archaeological site the recognition it deserves.
Villa Fortunatus is a listed Site of Cultural Interest (BIC), part of the network of Roman villas in Hispania, and one of the most unique archaeological sites on the entire Iberian Peninsula. Promoting its restoration and reopening could provide a significant boost to tourism and attract visitors to the region . The creation of a parking area is essential to advancing this tourism promotion project for the area.
In November 2023, the mayor of Fraga, Ignacio Gramun, met with Gloria Pérez, Director General of Cultural Heritage for the Government of Aragon. At that time, this department of the Government of Aragon announced an investment of €47.000 for further improvements to the Roman archaeological site of Villa Fortunatus.
This investment is being realized throughout this year. In addition to the start of work to create a parking area, the sections of the roof that collapsed in 2018 and remained unreplaced for several years were repaired a few months ago . The polycarbonate panels, which were in a state of significant deterioration, have been replaced with more resistant and durable micro-perforated sheet metal. This addresses the damage and deterioration affecting the site's enclosure, thus improving the villa's preservation.
However, a comprehensive action and maintenance plan is still needed to prevent the degradation of this Cultural Heritage Site, for which joint work between administrations is essential.
