Tenerife harbours two monstrosities that mar its coast. These are two concrete giants whose construction was left unfinished, not only marring the landscape but also posing a risk to those who venture into their skeletal structure. They are the abandoned buildings of Añaza and La Matanza. While the City Council of Santa Cruz is finalizing the procedures to eliminate the one that is within its municipal area, the Council has just started the process to bring down the one on the coast of Acentejo.
The Island Council announces through a statement that it “is driving the demolition of the so-called Skeleton before the end of the term”. It also commits to expedite the drafting, processing, and final approval of the Special Plan for the Protection of the Protected Landscape of Costa de Acentejo, which includes the necessary collaboration agreement to demolish this eyesore.
They are actually two large buildings, one completed and the other in structure, located on the edge of the cliff, which were originally within the scope of the Puntillo del Sol Special Plan, definitively approved in September 1972. They consist of two blocks articulated by a central core built in the 70s and intended for hotel use, 15 floors high and located on a plot with an area of 183,000 square meters.
This is not the first attempt to remove this eyesore from the natural skyline of the coast of Acentejo. But the project has encountered bureaucracy, especially regarding the necessary urban planning for the demolition. Already in 2019, it was announced that the new Special Plan for the Protection of the Protected Landscape of Costa de Acentejo would propose the demolition of the monstrosity of La Matanza. The then Councillor for Territorial Policy of the Council, Miguel Ángel Pérez (PSOE), revealed that this long-awaited Plan “will go on public display after the summer”, and that among its proposals will be the demolition of the biggest tribute to the visual and landscape impact of the North of Tenerife.
Five years have passed and this plan remains stuck. Or at least it was. The new island Government, formed by CC and PP, resumes the project. Currently, it is preparing the document, with the advance phase and response to suggestions completed, and is carrying out administrative procedures for the contracting of the following phases: initial and final approval. “Once the document of objectives and criteria, which collects and synthesises the public participation process, response to suggestions from the advance document and proposal for selection of alternatives, is completed, they will be submitted to the plenary of the Council for adoption,” details the statement from the island Government.
The Costa Acentejo Plan was initially approved in 2008 and was later annulled by a court ruling in 2014. Since then, the Council has been working, alongside the involved municipalities, on the development of a new document to find solutions for the most degraded areas and ensure the public and sustainable use of the coast of Acentejo. The Protected Landscape of Costa de Acentejo includes 401 hectares of coastline, mostly cliffs, from the municipalities of El Sauzal, La Matanza, La Victoria, Santa Úrsula, Tacoronte, and La Orotava. Besides offering a solution to the monstrosity of La Matanza, this plan foresees alternatives for other areas in the region, such as Rojas, where increased protection is desired.
The eyesore of Añaza is closer to its end. The Urban Planning Management of Santa Cruz de Tenerife announced last February that they will expropriate this unfinished hotel on the Southwest coast to acquire the land once the building is demolished. The building is constructed on an area of 2,350 square meters, with a building of 40,000 square meters.
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This large unfinished building of 22 storeys, located on the coast of Añaza and Acorán, began construction in 1973 by a German company, with the intention of establishing a hotel with 741 rooms. However, two years later, the promoters disappeared and to date have not responded to the numerous attempts at communication by the chicharrero City Council for them to assume their responsibility and demolish the building.
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Could someone tell us, why you always publish two identical photos and why there are no illustrations for your texts at all? This is really annoying and I guess we won’t visit here anymore.