La Laguna Suspends New Holiday Rental Licenses Amid Planning Update
La Laguna City Council has temporarily suspended new holiday rental licenses, effective January 13, to comply with a new Canary Islands law requiring tourist accommodations to be explicitly included in the city's urban planning document.
The La Laguna City Council has voted to temporarily stop new holiday rental licenses in the area. This decision, proposed by the Drago Verdes Canarias party, is a direct response to a new law in the Canary Islands.
This new law, which recently came into effect, states that homes used for tourism must be specifically mentioned in a city's main urban planning document, known as the General Urban Planning Plan (PGO). La Laguna's current PGO does not include this.
The proposal was approved on Tuesday, January 13, with support from all political groups except Vox. This means that no new holiday rental licenses will be issued in La Laguna until the PGO is updated to meet the new regional rules.
The City Council also decided to ask its legal team to create a "Verification and Control Plan." This plan will help regulate, oversee, and ensure the new law is followed locally.
Carmen Peña, a councilwoman from Drago Verdes Canarias, explained that this is a "technical moratorium" that starts right away. She noted that issuing new licenses without the proper urban planning could be illegal. The main goal, she said, is to slow down the growth of holiday rentals and ensure homes are primarily used for residents.
This isn't the first time the City Council has addressed this issue. In June 2024, they approved another proposal, also from Drago Verdes Canarias, to include restrictions on holiday rentals in the future General Plan. This showed an earlier commitment to tackle the issue through urban planning.
Peña also stated that her party wants the new PGO either not to allow homes for tourist use at all, or to do so with very strict limits. She believes this decision should involve public participation.
Commenting on the new regional law, the councilwoman felt it was "late and not enough" to stop homes from being converted from residential use to tourist use. However, she acknowledged that, given the current legal situation, the City Council has taken the "most ambitious possible" step to prevent more homes in La Laguna from becoming holiday rentals.
The temporary halt on licenses is based on an agreement to continue updating the city's planning documents to match the new regulations. This effectively pauses new licenses until those plans are changed.
After some changes by the governing team, the approved points are as follows: