The Tacoronte City Council can now eliminate the last vestige of Franco that remains in the municipality: the plate that is in the facade of the church of Santa Catalina and that exalts the founder of the Spanish Falange, Jose Antonio Primo de Riveraafter receiving this week the formal authorization from the Bishopric of the Nivariense Diocese, owner of the property.
This is confirmed to this newspaper by the mayor of the municipality, José Daniel Díaz, who adds that the Cabildo de Tenerife has also informed him that this element It is not part of the Asset of Cultural Interest (BIC) of the historical complex of Santa Catalina and, therefore, it is not among the elements that in themselves would be protected.
However, it must be taken into account that the church was recently restored and opened to the public a year ago, a performance that cost 2,032,802 euros, financed by the Bishopric and the Cabildo de Tenerife. As the Councilor for Works and Services transferred him, the façade has a lime paint that is on request and has already been requested; Therefore, he adds, the performance, which will be around 1,000 euros, “will be a matter of weeks.”
According to the Historical Memory Law, this plaque, placed in 1938 by the Franco regime, should no longer be on the façade of the aforementioned temple. It was in 2009 when the Plenary approved a Yes we can motion for the municipality to comply with the Historical Memory Law.
However, according to the mayor, “in tacoronte all corporations have worked in the same direction since the time of Guillermo Díaz Graham and that is noteworthy. This plate is the only element that remains in the municipality, since all the street names were changed, since the first democratic elections, and little by little other existing shields were eliminated, such as the Adult Education Center ( CEPA) and that of the Civil Guard barracks”.
It has been more than a year since the temple reopened to the public after being closed for two years. The improvement works have consisted of rehabilitation of the roof (to which a new thermal insulation chamber has been added), the conditioning of the walls affected by humidity, the reconstruction of the existing bathroom and the restoration of the carpentry.
The exterior perimeter waterproofing has also been carried out on the edges of the church, which will prevent the infiltration of runoff water from the square to the interior of the temple, favoring its circulation through the square.
