The spokesperson for Nueva Canarias-Bloque Canarista (NC-BC) in Tenerife, Valentín Correa, denounced this Thursday that the new tourism project driven by the CC and PP government group in the Santa Cruz de Tenerife City Council for Las Teresitas, which includes the construction of a hotel, a shopping centre, and an office block, represents a “developmental model that excludes the public and repeats past mistakes.”
Correa criticised that this proposal ignores the social and public function of the beach, which is “highly valued” by the residents of Santa Cruz and the entire island, and is perceived as an emblematic space of free, close, and popular use. “Las Teresitas is a beach for everyone, not a product to privatise or turn into a tourist showcase,” he declared.
“With the announcement from José Manuel Bermúdez, CC is on track to repeat historical mistakes by once again betting on a model that will lead San Andrés and El Suculum, already saturated in peak season and with mobility issues, to collapse,” pointed out Correa.
The Canary Islands spokesperson noted that, “it is clear to everyone” that various previous municipal governments in the city have been interested in developing the Las Teresitas area “behind the backs of the public, promoting economic and business interests far removed from the general interest,” from the preservation of the environment, as well as the use and enjoyment of a beach. “With these types of initiatives, real access to the beach is restricted, displacing residents in favour of private interests,” he warned.
“It is not an isolated case”
Correa insisted that instead of addressing social demands or improving the quality of public space, speculative projects are promoted, which have been encouraged on the island for more than three decades under CC governments. The Las Teresitas project by Bermúdez “is not an isolated case,” alerted Valentín Correa. “We see the same in El Mojón, in Arona, in Cuna del Alma or the macro tourism project for the new golf course in Adeje, which will drive up the housing market through new residents, leading us to critical situations,” he denounced.
The NC-BC island spokesperson reminded that it is the “responsibility” of the public administrations of Tenerife, as well as the Canary Islands government led by Fernando Clavijo, to set “limits” on a “developmental model” that pushes the island towards “collapse,” “without solutions” for mobility, with an increasing “unsustainable” vehicle park and a strained housing market, which is pushing the people of Tenerife to “live in precariousness.”
According to Correa, “we cannot continue to endorse the plundering” of the territory through new plans he considers “a genuine nonsense that will lead us to failure if we do not commit to proper sustainable planning.”
According to Valentín Correa, Las Teresitas beach “does not need hotels or shopping centres. It needs respect, public investment, real accessibility, and quality services to continue being a vibrant space, shared by the city’s residents and the island, and free of charge.”
