One of the historic apartment complexes in Ten-Bel, Alborada, located next to Las Galletas (Arona), will open its doors at the end of the year once its comprehensive renovation process, already underway, is completed, which has required an investment of 15 million euros from an American fund, with offices in New York and Miami, through the Sparta company and its subsidiary Libra, owners since April 2022 of 58% of the apartments (282). The remaining 42% (196 units) is in the hands of resident owners.
DIARIO DE AVISOS spoke with the executives of the company that owns it, who traveled to the island last Wednesday and explained the details of the operation, the first in the Canary Islands for this group, which concentrates most of its hotel assets in Greece. “We are a very dynamic group, with many lines of business and we are always looking for opportunities that benefit our companies but also the community,” said María Correa, the company’s director.
Almost 100 apartments are in the “completion phase” by the construction companies that are carrying out the work. The forecasts for the new property point to the completion of the works in November, in order to start receiving clients before the end of the year. Work is being done so that the non-hotel establishment has four stars on its façade -three already have them-, for which a waiver from the Government of the Canary Islands will be needed, since the property lacks a requirement on surfaces to achieve said category.
As Javier Álvarez, architect and project manager hired by the property, explained, not only will a comprehensive renovation of the apartments be undertaken, with the replacement of furniture and a change of image, but also the plumbing, electricity and electrical systems will be replaced. of fire protection. In addition, the degraded pavement of the La Ballena pool and its solarium will be replaced by another with better material and a sandy color, to generate a sense of continuity as if it were a beach. The comprehensive reform will also extend to the snack bar floor and the rest of the public spaces.
María Correa justified the investment, because “this is a property that has immense potential and that is why we are putting all our efforts into it with one goal: for Alborada to recover its splendor and return to being the place that everyone wanted to come to.” vacation”. The directive referred to the bathing area of the complex as the “great jewel” of the establishment, since, she recalled, it is “the largest seawater pool in Europe.”
Regarding the staff of 45 employees, who went so far as to call several strikes with the previous owner due to delays in receiving their salaries, Correa emphasized that “things have improved a lot” and, although he recalled that some of the staff are subject to a ERTE after the fire in the old La Ballena building last January, assured that the workers “are excited and hopeful that the complex will once again be a tourist jewel.”
For his part, Stefanos Gabriel, manager of Sparta Properties (Sparta Properties), told this newspaper that “we are very happy with the Alborada operation” and expressed his desire to materialize new investments in Tenerife and the Canary Islands. “We are creating a network here and surely other opportunities will come up in the future, hopefully we can be successful in the Canary Islands”, he indicated.
The CEO of the company that owns it, who acknowledged having come “without too many expectations” until he “fell in love” with the building and its facilities, confirmed that the reforms, initially budgeted at 10 million euros, will reach 15 million and, regarding the relationship with the owners of 42% of the private apartments, he pointed out that “we are here to clean up that relationship, because the idea is a ‘win-win’ and that is the spirit of the agreements we are reaching with them.” Finally, regarding the name, it is not yet known if Alborada will be maintained or “we will make a clean slate,” María Correa pointed out. To do this, the group has already launched a market analysis.
