During the recent plenary session held by the City Council of Santa Cruz de Tenerife on Friday, April 26, the Urban Planning councillor, Zaida González (PP), responded to criticisms raised by the PSOE spokesperson, Patricia Hernández. González stated that “the construction of a hotel on Las Teresitas beach is essential to fund the improvement works, estimated to cost around 35 million.” González argues that it is “a matter of economic feasibility.” Hernández, on the other hand, believes that improvements can be made to the beach without the need to construct a hotel and questions the Urban Planning chief, asking if a hotel is necessary to cover the costs of infrastructure like sewers and lighting.
Hernández put forward a motion demanding that the ruling government team (CC and PP) enhance public participation procedures concerning the modifications being made to the General Urban Plan (PGO) of the municipality, specifically for the Las Teresitas beach project aimed at improving the bathing area. According to the PSOE spokesperson and former mayor of Santa Cruz, the online citizen consultation organised by the City Council has been “ineffective,” highlighted by the fact that “only 45 out of over 211,000 residents participated.”
In the socialist’s view, citizens should have a say in this project amidst discussions about the desired tourism model for the islands, particularly after a recent event that raised more questions than answers.
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In the early 2000s, the former mayor of the Santa Cruz City Council, Miguel Zerolo, proposed a plan for the most iconic beach in Tenerife. This plan resulted in one of the biggest scandals in the Canary Islands, leading to a 7-year prison sentence for the Las Teresitas case. The history of Las Teresitas beach also includes the infamous Mamotreto case and Las Huertas case. Gloria Gutiérrez Arteaga, a socialist member of the Canary Islands Parliament in 2008, referred to “the Mamotreto” to the Minister of the Environment and Territorial Planning, Domingo Berriel Martínez, explaining its impact and the subsequent demolition in 2017.
The Las Huertas case, which arose in the early seventies when the City Council tried to expropriate land from Las Huertas and Montaña Morera residents, ended up in corruption scandals involving politicians, businessmen, and officials after an aborted purchase operation. In 1998, Inversiones Las Teresitas (ILT), a company led by Ignacio González and Antonio Plasencia, orchestrated an extensive fraud with the intent of acquiring land behind Las Teresitas. This led to a series of corruption cases and imprisonment of individuals involved.
The city has been grappling with ways to address the issues at Las Teresitas in recent years. In 2018, the current mayor of Santa Cruz, José Manuel Bermúdez (CC), discussed the update of the Strategic Plan initiated in 2007, during Miguel Zerolo’s tenure, to enhance the surroundings of Las Teresitas. In a meeting involving various social and economic stakeholders, the mayor proposed a collective rethinking of the city’s approach.
The Superior Court of Justice of the Canary Islands (TSJC) annulled the 2013 General Urban Plan in 2020 due to the absence of a Strategic Environmental Assessment. Consequently, the municipal government is keen on amending the current plan in Santa Cruz – that of 2005 (an adaptation of the 1992 Plan). The municipal government is advocating for this change.Improving San Andrés Beachfront and Boosting Economic Growth
The year 2020 witnessed Unidas Podemos challenging the PSOE’s stance and blaming them for enabling the ongoing governance. Ramón Trujillo, the Unidas Podemos spokesperson, initially voted in favour of the Plan but later had to retract his support, citing the need for “significant changes” to enhance public transportation in the area. Criticisms also arose from various social groups against a proposed hotel construction project under the Plan.
What led to the modifications in the PGO and what was its objective? In November 2023, the Popular Party and the Canarian Coalition jointly executed alterations to two aspects of the General Planning Plan, including provisions for Las Teresitas. The City Council had tasked GESTUR with these adjustments, and subsequently approved the changes. The PSOE raised concerns over the lack of transparency and clarity from the government on the modifications within the PGO that would impact the city, while the PP maintained that all necessary information had been provided.
