“In recognition of the district of Valleseco for its decisive contribution to making the planning of the Ligrasa area a reality, maintaining its public use and free access to the sea. Today marks the inauguration of this Pools Zone in the Functional Area of Valleseco for the use and enjoyment of all its residents. Santa Cruz de Tenerife, 10th March 2024″. This is the inscription on the plaque unveiled yesterday by the authorities during the opening of the new space that connects the city to the sea, leisure, and enjoyment of the citizens.
Pedro Suárez, President of the Port Authority; José Manuel Bermúdez, Mayor of Santa Cruz; Rosa Dávila, President of the Tenerife Island Council; Jesús Javier Plata, government subdelegate, unveiled the inaugural plaque in the presence of Javier González, President of the Platform in Defense of Valleseco Beach, and hundreds of neighbourhood residents of Valleseco and Santa Cruz, as well as municipal and regional councillors and officials, attended the opening for bathing yesterday at the Pools Zone, a significant step towards reclaiming Valleseco Beach. The initial project (a sandy beach of over a kilometre) was drafted by the Directorate General of Coasts in 1996, and the administrative process for what is now a reality began in 2005.
Pedro Suárez, President of the Port Authority, formalizes the handover of the Charcos Zone to the city of Santa Cruz. / Andrés Gutiérrez
“Eighteen years have passed, too many, but better late than never,” expressed the President of the Port Authority, Pedro Suárez, who conveyed “the deepest gratitude” to the residents of Valleseco. He acknowledged their “drive” for the project and their generosity. “The Port of Santa Cruz officially hands over to the city today a space open to the sea for the enjoyment of all. Congratulations and thank you very much for your patience and for always being there.”
“The Port of Santa Cruz officially hands over to the city today a space open to the sea for the enjoyment of all. Congratulations and thank you very much for your patience and for always being there”
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Timeline
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Pedro Suárez outlined the timeline of this project, starting from the signing of the collaboration protocol between Coasts and the Port Authority (2005), the launch of the ideas competition (2006), the project drafting (2007), the environmental impact declaration (2012), the modification of the Special Plan of the Port of Santa Cruz de Tenerife (2017), the signing of the inter-administrative agreement for project funding (2019), the project bidding and execution (2020), the awarding of the works to the Temporary Union of Companies Dragados and Construcciones Elfidio Pérez and the start of the works (2021), the completion of the project and its handover by the Ministry of Transport (2023), and the transfer of the use of the Valleseco Pools Zone to the Santa Cruz City Council (yesterday).
This initiative required a final investment of almost €19 million – it was awarded for €13.6 million – an increase due to the exceptional price review applied in the final stage of the project, a cost increase covered by the four administrations involved in its development. The construction of the Valleseco Pools Zone was carried out by the Temporary Union of Companies formed by Dragados and Construcciones Elfidio Pérez. Its execution started in June 2021 and was completed last year. This infrastructure provides Santa Cruz de Tenerife with a new 272-meter long coastal bathing area, between the Maritime Rescue tower and the facilities of the Tenerife Marine Sports Center (Cidemat), as well as a 300-meter promenade east of the municipality.
A group of local residents present at the inauguration ceremony applaud the authorities. / Andrés Gutiérrez
Africuya
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The waves break, the song composed and sung by Africuya – the late Andrés Vidal Déniz – served as the soundtrack to the event where locals took the first dips in the Pools Zone while the authorities highlighted the importance of the moment experienced yesterday.
The Valleseco Pools Zone is part of the project Sun and shade, by Casariego Guerra Architects. Its development covers a length of 340 meters and a total area of 13,300 square meters across various spaces. Terraces, sea jumps, a wide platform, an accessible ramp to the ocean, the games pool with bleachers, stairs, and hammocks; the central solarium, the natural pool, with seating, along with a 300-meter promenade to the east of the municipality.
Steps and Shores:
The pathway, with its stairs and shores, leads to a narrow strip of shallow depth, at the beginning, which opens up to a natural soil of measured depth, as well as the docks acting as a shore where you can swim from any point of the coast configure this new space. The project includes green areas and lawns, fountains, showers, and adapted toilets.
Mayor José Manuel Bermúdez assures that “this area will always be freely accessible to the public, always”
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José Manuel Bermúdez, a native of Valleseco and the mayor of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, recalled that his childhood “is closely linked” to the town and its coastline, “where I learned to swim and where I still swim”. The opening of the renovated Charcos Zone is “an important day full of emotions,” he expressed before clarifying a neighbourhood question: “This area will always be freely accessible to the public, always.”
A group of neighbours next to the inaugural plaque. / Andrés Gutiérrez
The mayor highlighted that the project comes “after many ups and downs”, the result of “work and determination” of the neighbourhood’s citizens, to whom he conveyed “respect, recognition, and congratulations for their commitment”. Bermúdez took the opportunity to appreciate the collaboration between administrations, which has made this project possible “above bureaucracy, work, and political struggle”.
He did not overlook that the execution of this project was in jeopardy in 2017, as the funding was not secured. “Thanks to Fernando Clavijo, Carlos Alonso, and Pedro Suárez,” signatories of the agreement with the City Council, who overcame that obstacle.
First users of the Valleseco Charcos Zone. / Andrés Gutiérrez
Patience
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The Valleseco Charcos Zone is “one of the most relevant works for the city,” contributing to “the consolidation of the Island’s touristic infrastructures and being a great benefit for its capital and population.” The Government Subdelegate, Jesús Javier Plata, also referred to the neighbourhood’s longstanding struggle maintained over several decades: “They have known how to wait and be patient, which makes them greater as individuals and as a society.”
Plata pointed out that the origin of this project dates back to 1996, with a proposal from the General Directorate of Coasts for a sandy beach throughout the area, a concept that the ideas competition (2015) replaced with the pools, on the South side of the area, and a stretch of beach on the North side.
Rosa Dávila, the President of the Cabildo, did not hesitate to highlight that this inauguration “marks a milestone” and opens “a new era in the capital of Tenerife.” The project “fulfils not only the wishes and demands of the residents of this popular neighbourhood but also reinforces the vocation of a lively, dynamic, and cosmopolitan city that wants and must continue to embrace the sea.” She pointed to the people of Valleseco “as the protagonists of today” (yesterday) and said she feels “very proud that, thanks to the will of the institutions and the determination and perseverance of the residents, the Charcos de Valleseco are now a modern and sustainable bathing and recreational area, as well as a tribute to the generations of chicharreros who had their first contact with the ocean in this part of the coast of Santa Cruz.”
The authorities and representatives of groups that participated in the inauguration yesterday. / Andrés Gutiérrez
Cidemat
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The president responded to the challenge posed by the mayor and assured that “we are already with the Cidemat project, it is my commitment”.
The perspective of the President of the Canary Islands Government, Fernando Clavijo, led him to introduce a nuance by stating that achieving this project “has taken many years, so I hope that in the future we will have the possibility, from the Canary Islands Government, to be more agile when providing the responses demanded regarding Coasts.” To achieve this goal, “we need the responsibility in Coasts to be fully effective, as established by the Autonomy Statute and the Transfer Decree, without the central government reserving any action capacity in this area”.
The Residents
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In their speeches, all authorities highlighted the over 30 years of demands over this coastline by the people and the Platform in Defence of Valleseco Beach. The president of the collective, Javier González, outlined the history of the neighbourhood movement from its inception, expressed gratitude and recognition to those who made this project possible, and clarified: “I don’t know if it’s evident, but we are extremely happy; it is a day of celebration, festivity, and triumph of popular initiative.” He then reminded that “we still
“There is a part left to be done and it must be done as soon as possible”.
The future of this area relies on completing the Sun and Shade project, the winner in 2005 of the ideas competition organized by the Port Authority and designed by architects Joaquín Casariego (who passed away in January 2016) and Elsa Guerra. Although yesterday was “a day to enjoy,” the mayor of Santa Cruz stated that he will be “even more at ease when we finish the rehabilitation of the Tenerife Marine Sports Center (Cidemat) and the area of warehouses, docks, and beaches that still need to be dignified.”
Inauguration of the Valleseco puddle area | 03/10/2024 | Photographer: Andrés Gutiérrez Taberne / Andrés Gutiérrez
A Prime Example of Success
One of the aspects highlighted by the authorities was the fact that the cooperation between administrations (the Spanish Government, Government of Canary Islands, Tenerife Island Council, and Santa Cruz City Council) made this intervention possible. “It is a success story resulting from that inter-administrative collaboration that we must extrapolate to other matters,” reflected the President of the Port Authority, Pedro Suárez.
Expressions of Gratitude
All those involved expressed their gratitude to those who made this project possible. To the residents of Valleseco, first and foremost; to the Anca architecture studio and its architects Elsa Guerra and Noemí Tejera; Javier Mora and Elena Roso from the Infrastructure department of the Port Authority; Enrique García Roda, project director; to the company that carried it out, the UTE Dragados and Construcciones Elfidio Pérez; to the Port Authority presidents involved in the project development: Luis Suárez Trenor, Pedro Rodríguez Zaragoza, Ricardo Melchior, and Carlos González; as well as to those who are no longer with us and who participated in this project, like architect César Casariego, co-author.
