Alejandro Marichal: “We are launching a project that will improve streets, services and public spaces in Montaña La Data after more than 20 years of waiting”
Davinia Ramírez: “This assignment will coordinate urbanization projects, urban management, land readjustments, tenders and infrastructure execution in an area that affects approximately 600 families.”
The Department of Urban Planning of San Bartolomé de Tirajana is launching the largest urban regularization and transformation process developed in decades in Montaña La Data, an area that had been awaiting a definitive urban planning solution for more than 20 years and that directly affects hundreds of families in the municipality.
The project encompasses an area of 341.420 square meters, currently containing approximately 350 homes and around 230 developed plots. The work will enable the urbanization and final regularization of the area, improving infrastructure, access, public services, and common spaces, as well as creating new residential opportunities and land for future public facilities.
The project will be developed through a comprehensive commission to GESTUR Canarias, a public company attached to the Government of the Canary Islands, with an initial investment of 1,2 million euros and an estimated planning period of eight years.
The first deputy mayor, Alejandro Marichal, emphasizes that “this project represents a turning point for Montaña La Data and for hundreds of families who have been waiting for a definitive solution for far too many years.”
“We are launching a project that will improve streets, services, and public spaces in Montaña La Data after more than 20 years of waiting. This is not just another administrative procedure; we are laying the groundwork to solve one of the biggest urban planning challenges in San Bartolomé de Tirajana,” he stated.
The urban planning situation in Montaña La Data has been one of the municipality's most complex issues for decades. The area's irregular development and the difficulties stemming from the original planning left hundreds of families in a state of uncertainty for years regarding their homes and the future of the area.
It is worth recalling that this area has been subject to a complex urban planning process that began in the 1980s with the old Municipal Subsidiary Regulations. Since then, it has undergone various planning modifications, approval of partial plans, land readjustment and urbanization projects, as well as numerous sectoral reports and administrative procedures aimed at adapting the zoning to the existing buildings within the area. During this process, the area suffered significant setbacks due to court rulings that annulled the land readjustment and urbanization projects approved in 1998, halting the works carried out between 1998 and 2005 and forcing the City Council to reformulate the urban development model for the Montaña La Data area. After years of technical, environmental, and legal review, including the approval of the Environmental Impact Statement by the COTMAC (Canary Islands Territorial Planning Commission) and the processing of the Partial Revision of the General Urban Development Plan (PGOU), the City Council finally approved the revision of the area's planning in December 2023, thus definitively unblocking the urban development of the Montaña La Data area.
The new development plan differentiates between already built-up areas and those plots still awaiting urban development, allowing management to be adapted to the current reality of the area. Thus, in the already established areas, urbanization projects, road improvements, infrastructure upgrades, and urban regularization will be carried out. In the areas awaiting development, urban land readjustment and urbanization processes will be implemented to complete the management of the area.
The Councillor for Urban Planning, Davinia Ramirez, emphasized the technical and administrative dimension of the project, noting that "we are facing one of the most complex and ambitious urban planning projects that this Councillor has dealt with in many years."
“This commission involves coordinating urbanization projects, urban planning, land readjustment, tendering, and infrastructure development in a vast and well-established area. It is a large-scale undertaking that will shape the development of Montaña La Data for years to come,” he explained.
The urban development plan will allow progress to be made on the land reserves and transfers planned for public spaces, green areas, and future amenities in the sector, thus promoting the gradual improvement of Montaña La Data. The plan also includes a large open space between Montaña La Data Alta and Baja, intended to house facilities and amenities that will serve the entire area.
The project will also allow for the development and implementation of plots of land currently awaiting urban planning approval, facilitating more orderly growth and better integration of the area within the municipality. To facilitate the execution of the works, the area will be divided into different development units and isolated urban projects, organized into six major phases of intervention.
The commission includes the drafting of land readjustment projects, urbanization, technical and legal documentation, assistance in tenders, works management and health and safety coordination, allowing for a comprehensive approach to the urban transformation of the sector.
Alejandro Marichal insisted that “for too many years Montaña La Data has been synonymous with gridlock and uncertainty for many families. Today we are demonstrating that, with political will and serious technical work, it is possible to begin to resolve the municipality's long-standing problems.”
For her part, Davinia Ramírez highlighted that “this project will not only allow for urban planning management of the area, but also improve the daily lives of residents, provide the area with better services, and prepare Montaña La Data for the future.”
With the aim of explaining the details of the project to residents and answering their questions, the Department of Urban Planning will hold an informational meeting with affected property owners next Wednesday, May 27, at 18:00 p.m. in the community hall of the Agüiro Residents' Association. The meeting will provide residents with details of the planned urban development process for Montaña La Data and the various phases included in the project.
