Los Realejos Buys Historic Viera Cinema for €250,000

Los Realejos has bought back the historic Viera cinema after six years of talks. The council officially purchased the building on Calle de El Medio de Arriba on Thursday, November 20th. A statement confirmed that the cinema is now "the property of the people of Los Realejos."

The Los Realejos City Council paid 250,000 euros for the well-known cultural landmark, buying it from the CajaCanarias Foundation. This price was 34% less than its valuation of 380,000 euros. While the current Popular Party (PP) government started discussions to buy the cinema in 2019, the previous owner made a final offer in January of this year. Mayor Adolfo González said, "we took this opportunity to recover this cinema."

The next steps involve commissioning studies to check the building's condition and explore its potential uses. A preliminary project is planned for 2026, which will include a public consultation. The actual renovation project will be drawn up in 2027. Local authorities aim for the cinema to return to its cultural purpose and bring life back to Realejo Alto.

The Viera cinema was built in 1947, designed by architect José Enrique Marrero Regalado. He also designed other significant buildings like the Basilica of Candelaria and the Cabildo of Tenerife headquarters. The cinema is a prime example of the Neo-Canarian style, popular in architecture at the time. In the 1970s, the building was renovated inside, changing its original look.

The cinema was designed with three main parts: an entrance area, the auditorium, and the stage and screen. The entrance area, with a single-story hall to the north, connects to a three-story section facing the street. This part contains corridors and stairs leading to viewing boxes at each end, and continues to the projection room and roof. A large metal truss supported this section, spanning the auditorium and stage, while the entrance area had a flat roof.

The main front of the building has two distinct parts. The single-story entrance features an arcade with three stone-framed semicircular arches. This leads to the main section, which is structured with five vertical sections and three floors. The upper part, which juts out and houses the projection booth, is notable. Below it, stone brackets are incorporated, echoing traditional local architecture. These elements, along with stone framing around the windows that uses curved lines to soften the building's straight edges, are characteristic of the Neo-Canarian architectural style.

The Viera cinema operated until the 1980s. Its activity then decreased, leading the owners to close it. In 2004, the Los Realejos City Council considered buying it, but the deal didn't happen, and negotiations were difficult for years. After being closed and unused for decades, showing signs of wear, the previous owner carried out some basic maintenance to prevent further damage. In 2018, a group of citizens started a social media campaign calling for its restoration.