Icod de los Vinos Residents Plan Protest Over Stalled San Marcos Beach Rehabilitation

Frustrated by years of bureaucratic delays, residents in Icod de los Vinos are returning to the streets to demand action for San Marcos beach. The local advocacy group, SOS Playa de San Marcos, has organized a protest for May 16, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., outside the Canary Islands Government headquarters in Santa Cruz de Tenerife.

The protest stems from a long-stalled rehabilitation project. Although the plan was officially approved years ago, it remains trapped in administrative red tape. The non-partisan group argues that the beach has been neglected by authorities for too long. Residents previously held similar protests in 2014 and 2015, which eventually led to a 2023 action plan that has yet to be implemented.

The situation has become increasingly tense due to a public dispute between the current mayor, Javier Sierra, and his predecessor, Francis González, who now serves as the Deputy Minister of Infrastructure. Mayor Sierra accuses the regional government of political obstruction, while González claims the delays are due to the City Council’s failure to submit paperwork to the correct departments.

While local officials plan to discuss the issue in an upcoming extraordinary plenary session, the residents' group believes this political finger-pointing is merely a distraction. They maintain that a technical solution is already in place and simply requires an environmental report to proceed. The group is now calling for clear deadlines and better cooperation between government agencies, framing the May 16 protest as a final ultimatum to end the ongoing inaction.