The first meeting of the year of the Port-City Commission ended with a disagreement between the two institutions that, if not redirected, could lead to the suspension of the Santa Cruz Carnival In the month of June. And it is that the refusal of the Port Authority to cede the land where the Christmas Concert is held For Fiestas to set up the Carnival stage, it means, in practice, leaving the capital without adequate space to host the party’s contests and galas, and respecting the security measures that the current health situation entails.
“We are tremendously surprised by the refusal by the president of the Port Authority (Carlos González) to the possibility of celebrating the Carnival in the port area. Without a doubt, this is a hard setback for the city, since it puts the celebration of Carnival at risk.” This was stated to DIARIO DE AVISOS by the Councilor for Fiestas, Alfonso Cabello, after knowing the position adopted by the Port of the capital during the meeting.
The mayor, who was still perplexed by the resounding refusal of the Port, asked the institution to “reconsider”. “We ask the president to assess the link between the Port and the city, one in which both must be developed jointly,” added the councilman.
“It makes no sense -he continued- that the port, for the celebration of the Christmas Concert, blocks that space for 45 days, and now has this degree of reluctance to block it for 60 days for the celebration of a Carnival, which would generate a significant impact economic in the whole area.
Cabello defended that this impact would be even greater by being able to expand the capacity initially planned since it is held abroad, which “would allow a greater movement of people and consumption.”
The City Council, as detailed by the mayor of Fiestas, brought a report to the meeting, prepared by the technicians of the General Directorate of Security, in which three different spaces were valued for the possible celebration of the Carnival abroad. “Although the three had the requirements in square meters, the only viable space was the surroundings of the port space where the Christmas Concert is held.”
The others were the Parque Marítimo car park and the esplanade next to the Via Litoral where the Juan Luis Guerra concert took place. “These other two spaces, apart from increasing the budget, largely condition security aspects.”
Cabello insisted on asking the Port Authority to reconsider its refusal due to the damage it would have for the city.
The reasons for the port
From the Port Authority it was explained, also at the end of the meeting, that “the Port of Santa Cruz will not be able to assume the celebration of the so-called Official Carnival in the port esplanade proposed by the City Council of the capital, as it is a plot in which they carry out port operations and whose availability is a priority for this use”.
For the Port, “the occupation of said plot would last for practically two months, a period unaffordable by the port entity that must guarantee the provision of services in the Los Llanos dock.”
“The proposal of the City Council of Santa Cruz de Tenerife -continued explaining the Port- was not known in detail until this afternoon (yesterday), during the course of the Port-City Commission, a meeting in which the representatives of the Corporation announced for the first time its proposal for a celebration, with certain and immovable conditioning factors, unknown until then and not agreed upon by the Ports of Tenerife and which have been revealed in principle as unacceptable”.
The Port Authority proposes to explore all the possibilities of other venues more appropriate for the celebration, “such as the Fairgrounds and the esplanade attached to the Plaza de España, even if this means a resizing of the stage or a readjustment of the dates of celebration”.
“This proposal to occupy the port for 60 days for 12 continuous events completely departs from the agreement that had been reached with the City Council to hold specific musical acts in the port area in a number not exceeding three a year”, concludes the Port Authority.
As for the rest of the issues that were on the agenda, according to the Port, they were dealt with normally and with common positions on both sides.
carnival poster
The Autonomous Organization of Festivities and Recreational Activities (Oafar) is complicated by everything related to the Carnival. The last of the inconveniences, before the possibility of the party being suspended, which would be the definitive complication, has arisen with the advertising poster. On Sunday, the popular vote for the ten finalist works ended, in which apparently the poster called Carnival 2222 was the most voted. However, the announcement has not been made because other authors have contested the vote.
The main reason for the challenge is that the winner was advertised on social networks and in the media, eliminating the factor of anonymity, and taking into account that it is by popular vote, the author recognized for his professional activity in another field, may have contributed to his followers voting en masse for his work. Until the appeals presented are resolved, the winner of the Carnival Poster will not be officially announced.
