Santa Cruz Urban Agenda Seeks More Public Ideas by March 13

Santa Cruz de Tenerife's Local Urban Agenda, a key plan for the city's future, hasn't received many ideas from the public so far, despite its importance. This plan, launched by the city council and following a national model, sets out ten main goals to make the city more sustainable, inclusive, and resilient, focusing on social well-being and economic growth.

The city council has set up an online forum on its website, open until March 13, where residents, businesses, and community groups can submit their ideas. These ideas fall into categories like Environment, Energy, and Sustainable Mobility; Urban and Digital Economy; Culture, Heritage, and Tourism; and Social Inclusion. Most of the suggestions received so far are about Environment, Energy, and Sustainable Mobility, with a strong focus on managing traffic.

Regarding mobility, proposals include reducing traffic in Anaga Rural Park by building a public transport hub near San Andrés to manage vehicle flow. Other suggestions involve encouraging people to use the Intercambiador car park or converting empty buildings, like the old Flex headquarters, into large public car parks with shuttle services to the city center. Ideas also cover introducing cross-city tram routes, using sensor-equipped traffic lights to improve traffic flow, and giving priority to bus lines that are busiest or have high demand.

Environmental ideas include using eco-friendly methods to clean graffiti in public spaces and transforming the Santos ravine into an urban walking trail. Another suggestion is to introduce a tourist tax in popular areas to help improve the quality of life for local residents.

For the Urban and Digital Economy, proposals focus on making Santa Cruz a leading center for cloud digital services, able to compete internationally. There's also a call for a comprehensive 'Smart City' strategy, using technologies like the Internet of Things (IoT) and Digital Twins. These tools would gather real-time data to simulate different situations, plan investments, and assess the impact of public decisions before they are put into action.

In the cultural sector, residents have suggested promoting 3D modeling projects to preserve, share, and digitally restore historical heritage. Another idea is to create a cultural and tourist map, both digital and physical, that includes heritage sites that are preserved, have disappeared, or are partially damaged. Other proposals include setting up a craft market in central areas, such as Calle Castillo or near the Auditorium, to support local production and employment, and designing a smart heritage signage plan with consistent information plaques and QR codes.

Finally, for Social Inclusion, suggestions include Santa Cruz joining the World Health Organization's Global Network of Age-Friendly Cities and Communities, to address the challenges of an aging population. Another proposal is to develop a local industry for designing tourist pins, which could create around a hundred sustainable jobs.

Mayor José Manuel Bermúdez highlighted that citizens have a direct chance to influence the city's future, emphasizing that the Urban Agenda must include the voices of those who live in Santa Cruz every day. Carlos Tarife, the Councilor for Public Services and Strategic Planning, whose department is in charge of the Local Urban Agenda, assured that once the public participation period ends, the most practical suggestions will be used to create a roadmap for Santa Cruz, which will be connected to the city's broader Strategic Plan.

Tarife explained that the plan will be built upon two earlier stages: a diagnosis conducted in late 2024, which identified existing problems and challenges, and the current phase of identifying projects. This foundational work will help address issues such as social inequality, the erosion of cultural identity, environmental decline, and a lack of coordination in urban policies. The aim is to create a comprehensive and collaborative vision to improve residents' quality of life and encourage more inclusive and resilient urban development. The councilor also guaranteed that the initiatives within the Urban Agenda would receive the necessary funding to be put into practice.

Beyond the initial diagnosis, which was confirmed through both in-person and online public participation, working groups were held in mid-December. These groups involved various city departments, residents, institutions, and associations to gather proposals, which will now be enhanced by the public contributions from the current phase.