Santa Cruz Plans €2.8M Market Revamp Amid Funding Row
Santa Cruz de Tenerife plans a €2.8 million pedestrianisation project around its Nuestra Señora de África Market, funded by the Canary Islands Government and the City Council, despite political disputes over lost Next Generation funds and accusations of mismanagement.
Tenerife's capital plans to spend 2.8 million euros this year to transform the area around the Nuestra Señora de África Market. The goal is to make it easier to get around and more appealing, mainly by making Darías y Padrón street pedestrian-only. However, this plan has caused a lot of political arguments within the Santa Cruz City Council.
During a city council meeting, Public Services Councilor Carlos Tarife announced a new funding plan for the project. The Canary Islands Government will provide 1.4 million euros. The City Council will cover the remaining costs and plans to ask the Cabildo (island council) for more help.
This announcement came amidst a heated dispute. Councilor Tarife refused to respond to Patricia Hernández, spokesperson for the Socialist group, who repeatedly accused him of lying and referred to audio recordings. Hernández, a former mayor, claimed the city council had lost 1.7 million euros in Next Generation funds meant for the market area. This contradicted Tarife's earlier statement that only 82,000 euros were lost. Hernández insisted the entire grant was forfeited because the work wasn't completed by the deadline.
Tarife defended himself by explaining that the initial 81,000-euro grant was only for planning the pedestrianization project. However, the larger proposal involved thirteen other tasks, totaling 1.7 million euros, which needed to be finished and paid for by December 31, 2024. These tasks included finalizing the pedestrianization design, setting up an online marketplace, and installing smart delivery lockers. Due to delays in some of these tasks and the impossibility of completing others, 60% of the planned investment couldn't be officially approved by the deadline. As a result, according to the grant rules, the city had to pay back all the money it had received.
Despite this setback, Tarife tried to put the city's overall management of European funds into perspective. He stated that the city council has successfully used 85% of all European funding it has received, meaning eight and a half out of every ten euros.
The plan to make the area behind the Recova pedestrian-friendly will also include new spaces for outdoor seating and shade structures. The project is currently awaiting a report from the Mobility department for final approval. To speed things up, the work will be carried out using an existing contracting agreement. Tarife added that the construction schedule will be coordinated with the Market's management to avoid disrupting sales during the upcoming Christmas and Three Kings' Day shopping seasons. José Alberto Díaz-Estébanez, spokesperson for Coalición Canaria, expressed his disappointment with what he saw as excessive personal attacks during the control committee meeting.