Arona Council Approves Waste Service Expansion Amid Political Criticism
Arona’s City Council has approved hiring 27 new sanitation workers and €1.5 million in budget adjustments to address infrastructure gaps and local service needs, despite criticism from the opposition regarding the adequacy of the measures.
Public services in Arona are back in the political spotlight following a recent City Council meeting that highlighted the struggle to keep infrastructure in line with the area’s growing population.
The Council has approved hiring 27 new workers for street cleaning and waste collection to address current service gaps. However, the move has been met with skepticism from the opposition. The issue stems from a 16-year-old contract, originally planned in 2010, which remains in effect until February 2027. Environment Councilor Clari Pérez (CC) acknowledged that the current €12 million-a-year service is inadequate and that a new tender is needed to better serve a population that has now surpassed 100,000 residents.
Socialist spokesperson Julián Mena criticized the new hiring plan as insufficient and politically motivated. He argued that the plan fails to address the need for new machinery, updated labor agreements, and better staffing levels, claiming it will only result in about five extra workers per shift. Mena blamed Mayor Fátima Lemes (PP) for failing to start the new tender process early enough to avoid relying on the outdated contract.
The meeting also saw the approval of nearly €1.5 million in budget adjustments, funded by the treasury surplus. This includes €450,000 for cultural events, €600,000 for economic and commercial projects—such as Christmas activities and the agricultural market—and €250,000 for repairs at Los Tarajales beach and improvements to local schools and daycare centers. The PSOE questioned the need for this extra spending so soon after the annual budget was passed, though department heads defended the costs as necessary for supporting local businesses and decentralizing cultural activities.
Finally, the Council addressed a long-standing legal matter dating back to 2000: a €25,488 payment for legal fees to councilman Luis García. The payment relates to his past dismissal from the Urban Planning department and his exit from the socialist group. The current government described the payment as a final consequence of the institutional instability that marked the previous legislative term.