As occurred this Wednesday with the Arona administration, fractured and awaiting reconstruction following the firm decision of the mayor, Fátima Lemes, to dismiss the four councillors of Más por Arona, the circumstances surrounding the contentious Guaza industrial warehouse, which is undergoing renovation by the car rental company Cicar, have entirely and abruptly shifted. On January 8, the Aronero City Council and, to exacerbate matters, the Department of Urban Planning, until this Wednesday led by former PSOE member Luis García, pivotal in the dissolution of the last government of socialist José Julián Mena and a decisive supporter of Más por Arona, decreed the sealing of the facilities and subsequently halted the construction works. However, the even more significant determination is the cessation of the land consolidation, a crucial aspect until now of the political controversy and in the courts regarding whether this establishment, previously occupied by the Renault company, could be renovated, expanded, and utilised for commercial purposes.
Interestingly, without this being previously disclosed, sources from Más por Arona, the party expelled this Wednesday from the local government, informed Canary Islands Now that the suspension order mandated by the Canary Islands Agency for the Protection of the Natural Environment last September, on the grounds that the works were being undertaken without the necessary permits, has been returned to the City Council. This is what the sealing has allowed with the date of January 8, although these sources note that the Urban Planning Management’s technicians had already deliberated and reached decisions prior to that ruling by the Canarian Agency for the Protection of the Natural Environment, an agency dependent on the regional government, concerning both the sealing and the cessation of the land consolidation.
What remains unclear is whether this sealing represents another manifestation of the loss of trust and rejection of the procedures and achievements of the various councillors of Más por Arona that the conservative mayor cites to validate her decision to remove them. Nevertheless, the action taken by the City Council considerably complicates the prospects for the continuation of the expansion and renovation projects on this building, although sources acquainted with recent events suggest that, at certain intervals, the operations might have been able to persist internally.

Prior to this seal and alteration regarding the consolidation of land for industrial purposes, activities at this warehouse and its surroundings had continued in recent months despite the ruling from the main urban discipline authority of the autonomous community. The decision was issued on September 16, although the signature of the executive director of the agency is dated the 13th.
Key businessman in the split of the local PSOE in 2020
The Cicar car rental company acquired this warehouse from businessman Diego Cano, the same promoter of the El Camisón shopping centre, which instigated a crisis that dismantled the absolute majority government of the PSOE aronero in 2020. This very crisis resulted in the formation of Más por Arona and the alternative governing team composed of councillors critical of former mayor José Julián Mena alongside the PP and CC, although this agreement has not even lasted two years and was dissolved this Wednesday without even the councillors of the Canarian Coalition being informed.
Until this new sealing (there have been previous ones), the continuation of the works on this warehouse has been reported to the Natural Environment Protection Agency, the courts, and the Civil Guard since October. This was initiated by the original complainants regarding this renovation and expansion of the property, citing continuous use according to their perspective along with various reports from the local police (supported by testimonies from neighbours) since 2012, although there are conflicting interpretations and documents from the local Urban Planning department. This has triggered notable internal disputes between officials (secretary and municipal secretary versus architect Damián Hernández regarding whether consolidated commercial use could be granted, which was implemented but attempts were made to repeal), as well as between Mena and the Urban Planning councillor with the PSOE, and now, with Más por Arona, Luis García.
Now, the consolidation and commercial utilisation of the land has been extinguished, making the completion of the works and its business purpose for Cicar increasingly challenging, unless changes occur with the new local government, currently consisting solely of PP and CC, albeit with the potential inclusion of two Vox councillors and the pursuit of external support, such as that from the councillor of NC, to secure the 13-seat majority (5 from the conservatives, 5 from the nationalists, 2 from the far-right, and that one from NC). Of course, this is as long as CC or parts of it do not claim they will never ally with Vox in governance, and alternative governmental options or a clear vulnerability emerge, similar to what Mena has already encountered since the summer of 2020.