Santa Cruz declares Enough and “Blinds” the existing provision of 125 permanent accommodation spaces for individuals experiencing homelessness. This initiative aims to encourage other municipalities on the island to establish their own social care facilities. The area councillor and president of the Municipal Institute of Social Attention (IMAS), Charín González, stated yesterday that “the capital allocates the most resources to shelter these individuals, whilst other locations such as Adeje fail to provide even a single space for habitation.” This reality creates a ripple effect, resulting in the need for Santa Cruz to bear the brunt of social pressures throughout the Canary Islands.
The mayor reported that the municipal reception centre (CMA), commonly known as a shelter, accommodated 869 individuals under its residential programme last year, while 464 others were assisted on the streets by mobile outreach teams (UMA). Furthermore, he confirmed that the majority of these individuals are not from Santa Cruz; a fact corroborated by the socialist spokesperson, Alana Chinea, who noted that “of all the homeless individuals assisted, both in the CMA, in minimal demand centres, and on the streets, 7.8% are from Africa; 83.5% from Europe; 0.2% from Asia and 8.5% from America.”
González announced, during an appearance requested by the Vox Group, that “the City Council will boost the CMA budget by €700,000 this year, alongside the hiring of new comprehensive service provisions totalling €3.5 million. The objective is to implement a greater level of intervention with users, and also to expand the number of UMAs in response to the high volume of cases, many of which involve mental health issues, that find themselves in street situations.”
In addressing the concerns of insecure conditions raised by nearby residents, the councillor revealed that a shock plan has been authorised, which will integrate increased police presence, security cameras, and enhanced lighting in the area to mitigate issues such as drug dealing and public defecation. “These are complex situations we are already addressing,” he remarked. He also mentioned that “this plan will involve the decentralisation of the shelter, aiming, over the next two to three years, to reduce the current number of places and redistribute users across three or four centres, each accommodating between 25 and 30 individuals.”
Regarding the future sites of these smaller social care facilities, González dismissed the idea of establishing them in industrial areas, as requested by residents, asserting that they “will be located in well-connected areas that offer necessary services.” He emphasised that “the aim is to alleviate social pressures and ensure accessible support resources are available in various parts of the municipality.”
Alejandro Building
Additionally, the Councillor for Social Attention appeared, at the request of the PSOE, to elucidate the situation surrounding the Alejandro Building, situated in the Nuevo Workers neighbourhood of Ofra, where families of squatters have long been seeking housing alternatives or rents aligned with their incomes from the capital City Council. Following several evictions, two new releases have recently been communicated to families as of February 27.
The mayor noted that, “since 2013, numerous resources have been provided to assist these individuals based on social workers’ reports, offering social benefits for essential needs or more affordable rents from the current property owner. Despite these efforts, we remain in the same predicament; however, any vulnerable family will always receive support from IMAS.”
He also announced that he will convene a meeting next week to seek solutions to halt further evictions and identify alternative accommodation options. “All individuals facing vulnerability are equal,” he stated. In response, socialist mayor Alana Chinea demanded that “the agreement reached last July be honoured, urging the Canarian government to purchase this building.”
