Los Cristianos’ Tarajales beach will now need private finance initiative to become a reality

[aspasia]

 It's only been 15 years in the planning, so it's still early days for Los Cristianos' Tarajales beach. The latest is that the mayor, José Alberto González Reverón together with Cabildo VP Carlos Alonso, Turismo councillor Francisco José Niño, and PP representative Águeda Fumero, met Environment Dept representatives in Madrid yesterday, and the agreement reached was that despite public funds supposedly being allocated over two years ago, a private finance initiative is to be sought to help make the plan a reality.

It has been presented as a successful outcome, of course, but the reality is that the promised public funding has not materialised and private funds will be needed – in the worst crisis in recent history. Arona Ayuntamiento will start immediately to seek finance in the private sector, perhaps starting with the hotels which would most benefit from the beach, namely the Moreque and Princesa Dácil. All is not lost, however, because it seems that if partial private funding can be achieved, national and regional Governments together with the Cabildo and Aronas Ayuntamiento itself, will stump up the remainder. JA

[aspasia]

 Costas has approved the plans for the beach, to be funded with private finance raised in return for 30 year exploitation rights for sunbeds, umbrellas, bars, etc. The agreement was reached yesterday in Madrid between the economic VP of the Tenerife Cabildo Carlos Alonso, the subdirector general de Costas Ángel Muñoz, PP member Águeda Fumero, and tourism councillor Francisco José Niño.

Arona mayor José Alberto González Reverón was unable to attend the meeting, but everything is now in place for the beach to proceed – apart from the money. Local businesses and hoteliers near the beach are said to be "quite interested"  in the project and that talks are "continuing". Costas itself has confirmed that it will contribute part of the cost of the expropiations required for the project, the total of which amount to €14 million; the remainder, says Costas, must be paid by the Canarian Government.

I see this as one of those projects that is in place for quite a few years before it actually comes to fruition. JA

[Janet]

The last real information was back in mid-2012, when Spain's national coast department approved the plans for the beach, and the money was to be raised by "private finance" – if it could be.  Now, Diario de Avisos is reporting that the renovation to playa de Los Tarajales and the refurbishment of the paseo marítimo is just pending a new meeting between the Dirección General de Costas, the Tenerife Cabildo, Arona Ayuntamiento, and Spring Hoteles, the company which includes the Arona Gran in its chain and which seems to have come up with the money to the tune of some €9m.

Cabildo president Carlos Alonso said that the project had proceeded more slowly than one would have expected but that various factors had served to delay plans, not least the expropriation of private property that Arona will have to enforce: it seems that the council  has said it will find solutions. With permissions in place, and now the money too available, let us hope that Arona administers these plans for its self-proclaimed "star project" more effectively than some other issues lately ... JA