La Laguna expands its protected catalog and opens 45 days for allegations

The San Cristóbal de La Laguna City Council has initially approved a minor modification to the catalog of the Special Protection Plan for the Historic Center with the aim of expanding the list of protected buildings, totaling 68 properties. The agreement was adopted by the Municipal Urban Planning Management through Resolution 5310/2026, dated September 29, within file 2020002109, and is published in the Official Gazette of the Canary Islands no. 211, dated October 22, 2026 (announcement 3644, pages 38124-38126). The procedure opens a period of 45 business days to submit allegations and suspends the granting of urban planning licenses in the affected area.

The most balanced alternative of the environmental process

The approved document is titled “Minor Modification of the catalog of the Special Protection Plan for the Historic Center of La Laguna” and develops alternative 2, chosen among the proposals submitted to the simplified environmental evaluation process. The municipal body considers it “the most balanced from the perspective of sustainable development and the protection of heritage values,” according to the text of the agreement.

The expansion is detailed in an annex with the list of included properties, which also defines the exact scope of the license suspension. The list combines buildings from streets within the historic core and on its edges:

• Marqués de Celada, the axis with the most properties on the list, with 18 numbers between 28 and 124.
• Núñez de la Peña, with eight addresses, including number 17 on the corner with Manuel de Ossuna.
• Adelantado (numbers 21, 22, 23, 25, and 32), Cabrera Pinto (24, 37, 64, 66), Juan de Vera (21, 23, 40, 43, 47), and El Sol (4, 6, 8).
• Viana (27, 29, 31), San José (3, 6), La Cordera (13, 17), La Marina (5, 7), Candilas (10, 12), and Bencomo (5, 7, and 26, the latter with 27 San Agustín).
• Other included roads are Anchieta, Herradores, Maquila, Quintín Benito, Rodríguez Moure, Plaza de la Junta Suprema, and Plaza del Doctor Olivera.

Forty-five days to appeal and consultation with other administrations

The file and the approved document are subject to public information for 45 business days from the publication of the announcement, during which citizens may submit allegations or suggestions. The consultation can be made at the Management offices, at Bencomo street, no. 16, from 9:00 to 14:00 hours, and on the website www.urbanismolalaguna.es.

In parallel, and for the same period of 45 business days, the document is sent to the administrations that may be affected by reason of subject matter or territory:

• The Island Council of Tenerife, which must notify the Administrative Service for Territorial Planning and Strategic Projects, the Cultural Heritage Unit, and the Mobility and Transport area, as well as Metropolitano de Tenerife, S.A., due to the impacts on the tram system.
• The Vice-Ministry of Territorial Planning and Ecological Transition of the Government of the Canary Islands.
• The city councils of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Tacoronte, El Rosario, and Tegueste.
• The Ministry of Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda, through the Directorate General of Civil Aviation; the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Digital Transformation; and the Ministry of Defense.

Suspension of licenses and appeal process

The initial approval entails the automatic suspension of the granting of urban planning licenses within the scope of the modification. This effect will expire upon final approval and, in any case, after one year has passed since the publication of the announcement in the Official Gazette of the Canary Islands.

Excluded from the suspension are conservation, maintenance, and consolidation works indispensable for preserving the heritage values of the property, provided that this regime has not been altered by the proposed determinations or that those initially approved are less restrictive than the current planning. The agreement also orders the publication of the suspension in the gazette and in at least two of the island’s most widely circulated newspapers, and the notification of the municipal services for Licenses, Historic Center Management, Discipline, Planning Management, and Activities.

An optional appeal for reversal may be filed against the suspension within one month, or a contentious-administrative appeal within two months, counted from the day following the notification or publication. The announcement is signed by Beatriz Simón Franco, Head of the Historic Center Management Service, by delegation of the managing counselor (Resolution No. 3854/2023).

The decision directly affects owners and developers of the historic complex, who for the next 45 business days find any intervention in 68 properties conditioned and have the opportunity to influence the final catalog. The expansion consolidates the protection of an area declared a World Heritage site and reinforces municipal control over renovations in the historic center.

Source: Official Gazette of the Canary Islands, no. 211, of October 22, 2026, section V. Announcements (Other announcements), pp. 38124-38126 (official reference: announcement 3644).