The mayor of Icod de los Vinos, Francis Gonzalez (CC)highlights the promotional importance of Ciudad del Drago saying goodbye to the year 2022 with two nationally prestigious recognitions such as the Magical Town of Spain Award 2023from the Network of Magical Towns of Spain, and the Award for the Best Cultural Town of the Canary Islandsgiven by Iberian press. Awards that, in his opinion, are “an encouragement to continue working in the same line of promotion and dissemination of Icod of the Wines as one of the most important and visited tourist attractions of the Archipelago”.
«Be the Magic Town of Spain in 2023 It is a source of great pride and satisfaction, after a year of integration into this group of highly relevant peoples from all over the country, which has seen that Icod of the Wines it deserves this award for its authenticity, heritage, tourist relevance and traditions, as well as for the drive, commitment and dynamics raised even in times of pandemic. It has not been easy, but we have not stopped, “stresses the president.
These awards are, in González’s opinion, “an incentive to continue with the promotion strategy of our town; of natural emblem of the Canary Islandswhich is our dragon tree, and each and every one of the attractions of our town: historical, religious and cultural heritage, commerce, gastronomy, nature, cultural revitalization, traditions… Issues that make us a very relevant tourist destination» .
“We battle for culture”
González acknowledges that “if we had already been excited by the news that we are the Magic Town of Spain, we have also become the Best Cultural Town of the Canary Islandsaccording to the group Iberian press. For us, culture is an instrument for economic revitalization and social encounter, but also an element that takes care of people’s mental health. That is why we value this recognition so much, which we believe it values the attitude we had towards culture in such difficult moments of the pandemic, in which we did not give up. We struggle to maintain cultural activity and celebrate life. And we continue to do so.”
For the Icodense mayor, “everything adds up”, so that “it is very important that this cultural attraction is also added to all our resources. Icod is like an iceberg. He is well known for the millennial dragonAlthough it hides enormous potential in many other aspects, such as the Cueva del Viento, the largest complex labyrinthine volcanic tube in the world; our heritage; our festivals and traditions; our trade, or our four emblematic hotels in the town, the rural tourism houses or the holiday homes ».
The Dragon Park
The tourist importance of Icod is clear with the collection of the dragon parkwhich in the first nine months of this year 2022 had already equaled the average annual turnover in times prior to the Covid-19. There is also interest from investors in acquiring real estate in the town to “rehabilitate and convert them into tourist accommodation or restaurants.”
One pending issue is to finish the underground floor of the visitor center of the dragon park and endow this emblematic property with exhibitions and facilities that enhance the local appeal. The latest works are already underway. What is still pending is the financing of this museum endowment, valued at around 2.8 million euros, according to the initial estimate. «We must turn it into a unique building to Icod de los Vinos, Tenerife and the Canary Islands. And we hope that the Cabildo de Tenerife, the Government of the Canary Islands and the Government of Spain will get involved », he emphasizes.
Francis Gonzalez is confident that this spectacular underground space can become a multipurpose center that can house permanent exhibitions dedicated to Icod of the Cavesthe Cueva del Viento, the aboriginal world and the Millenary Drago, and “also function as a small auditorium with a system of retractable seats.”
The local government is working to increase the area that can be visited in the Cueva del Viento
Icod will receive the Magic Town of Spain 2023 award at the next edition of the International Tourism Fair (Fitur), in Madrid, where the Ciudad del Drago will present its commitment to augmented virtual reality to publicize such emblematic traditions as dragging the tables of San Andres. “Our idea is to advance in this line and incorporate, thanks to this technology, the existing theories on the origin of this tradition”, he advances. In addition, spaces are sought that can be used to locate new resources of tourist interest, “such as an installation dedicated to the great fire that Icod de los Vinos suffered in 1798 and which led to the disappearance of the old Town Hall and the convent of Las Bernardas. An opportunity to discover what Icod was like».
Simultaneous visits
The Government of Icodena is working so that the Cabildo de Tenerife, with the support of other administrations, works to expand the area that can be visited the cave of the wind. González points out that “now you can only visit 200 meters, in very small groups. However, we understand that we have one of the most powerful natural resources in the Canary Islands, with 17 kilometers surveyed, and it is necessary that visits can be made simultaneously in different sections.
For the development of the eco-neighborhood project “we have prepared everything with state funding, but we are still waiting for the Canarian Government and the Cabildo look for a solution to locate the natural purification pond in the surroundings of the insular ring, which would solve problems of discharges into the subsoil. We will continue insisting”, advances González, who also sees it necessary for the Cabildo to prepare the Special Plan for the Cueva del Viento.
local power
González demands more powers for local power, more economic resources and a better technical and administrative structure that allows the development of all the necessary policies for the development of the municipalities. In his opinion, “the true democratic revolution that Spain needs is to give more power to the local administrationthat we have technical and administrative structures, with an adequate economic endowment, capable of responding to the needs of the residents ».
Record figures in aid
Francis González underlines that at the end of the year his government has been able to carry out “everything planned” in educational, sports and socio-cultural infrastructures, “although there is still much to be done in the medium and long term.” The Icodense mayor stresses that the socio-cultural centers “have been tidying up and being transformed into buildings with more energy efficiency”, and two sports fields have been covered and a sports center has been converted “into a five-a-side soccer field.” In the 2023 budgets, “which are being closed for approval in January”, “an increase of 1.5 million euros is expected, reaching almost 26 million”. These accounts will allow the mandate to close with record figures in school aid, some 650,000 euros, and in extraordinary aid to companies and the self-employed, worth 2.5 million euros. González is also confident that the year 2023 “brings the possibility of definitive approval of the General Planning Plan (PGO)”. In addition, the incorporation of a secretary and an auditor, both nationally qualified, will allow the City Council “to work much faster.”
