Yes, it does sound like your local town hall have an efficient system in place. Torremolinos are not too bad - when I put in an application for some minor works last year, I got my permission within a couple of weeks. I had to go separately to the highways dept. for permission to put a skip on the road. That was granted within a couple of days. Not too much hassle really.
It's evident from this discussion that each town hall can have it's own way of doing things, so the important thing is to be absolutely clear what that system is in your specific area. I saw a TV program a week or two ago featuring a poor couple who had put in a planning application at their town hall to build a large extension, and received an official looking document with town hall stamps and signatures on, which they took to be their permission. It turned out it was merely the confirmation of the application. They had gone ahead and built the extension, only to find later that their application had been rejected and they had to tear it down.
So, my advice is, unless you are 100% confident that you know the rules and regs and know what you are doing, rather than find out the hard way, it's better to seek professional advice first.