The Governing Council of the Cabildo of Lanzarote has agreed to reject the tourist authorization for a hotel project planned in Playa Blanca, as it is land classified for single-family residential use according to current planning regulations and has an unfavorable report from the Yaiza City Council, which is mandatory and binding.
The file, processed by the Department of Tourism Planning, states that the rulings of the High Court of Justice of the Canary Islands and the Supreme Court partially annulled the Yaiza General Supplementary Plan on the coastal strip, which reactivates the previous partial plan "Montaña Roja" (1979), which only allows single-family homes or bungalows, but not hotel establishments. For this reason, the Yaiza City Council reported unfavorably on the activity and the Governing Council has had to deny it.
The president of the Cabildo of Lanzarote, Oswaldo Betancort, emphasized that this decision "demonstrates that the Island Institution is committed to legal certainty and a responsible territorial model." "It is not about being for or against specific projects, but about ensuring that any development on the island respects the regulations, the current planning, and the carrying capacity of the territory. Lanzarote must grow with order, with transparency, and with respect for our environment," he stressed.
Betancort added that these types of decisions "allow us to act with clear rules, avoiding irregular situations that in the past have generated legal conflicts and urban planning problems."
For his part, the Councilor for Territorial Policy, Jesús Machín, explained that the Yaiza City Council's report is binding, in accordance with tourism and classified activities regulations, and therefore the Cabildo is legally obliged to respect it. "This land is zoned for single-family homes and not for hotel use, and this has been confirmed by both the planning and the court rulings. Our responsibility is to ensure compliance with the territory and prevent developments that do not comply with the law," he said.
Machín recalled that the Cabildo is promoting a new stage of territorial planning based on the updating of planning instruments, including the PIOT and the special plans for natural spaces, to "offer clarity, security, and balance between development and environmental protection."
