The Santa Cruz de Tenerife City Council, through its Strategic Planning and Economic Promotion department, has requested the Deputy Commissioner of the Local Police to “enhance the police presence” to ensure a greater number of officers are available to “assist” inspection staff in the removal of unlicensed vendors operating in the municipal Flea Market, which takes place every Sunday adjacent to La Recova and La Rambla Azul.
As reported by DIARIO DE AVISOS, police sources indicate that the council’s request was made on 12 March, although it was only officially communicated to the officers last Sunday.
In the correspondence, the City Council requires police escort on Fernando Bonnin Street from the time stalls are erected until they are dismantled, while inspections are conducted on vendors who lack proper authorisation and leave their goods on the ground, thus violating municipal regulations.
Additionally, it was noted that on 10 March, the police unit was called to the aforementioned street when inspectors requested several individuals selling goods on the ground to remove their items; this led to violent behaviour from one of the sellers involved, who appeared to show signs of intoxication.
Moreover, the municipal inspection service referenced in the document the report from the Directorate of the Self-Protection Plan of the Rastro, which calls for increased police presence during stall collection times due to the risk posed to pedestrians when vehicles enter the area without the requisite authorisation.
Police sources mentioned yesterday that “there are insufficient officers to manage the protection duties for the inspectors in the Rastro and to attend to other areas of the city as well; last Sunday, there were merely four cars and two motorbikes covering the entire zone, as the operational group is at minimal capacity on Sundays.”
Concerns regarding insecurity and illegality within the capital’s Rastro were highlighted last June in a report by Public Services inspectors, which outlined severe irregularities in commercial activities, including the sale of counterfeit goods, expired pharmaceuticals, and stalls operating with gas cylinders. The document, as reported by DIARIO DE AVISOS, detailed checks conducted at the municipal market from October 2023 to April 2024, aimed at “verifying the attendance of the 411 stalls and the existence of unlicensed and spontaneous setups,” and recommended implementing corrective actions.
The irregularities were predominantly located on Francisco Bonnin Street, where a larger number of individuals lacked proper authorisation or licensing. In this area, which has 22 designated stalls, the report noted that, “with the exception of four or five, the remaining stall owners rarely appear, which has been exploited by spontaneous and habitual vendors (without licences) to set up shop with merchandise on the ground, obstructing pathways.”
