The Government of the Canary Islands has granted a direct aid of more than 2.45 million euros to the developer of the illegal Sandos Papagayo hotel (formerly Papagayo Arena) in Playa Blanca, which remains open to the public and accommodating tourists despite not having any license to do so. This was reported by the digital newspaper Canarias Ahora and has been corroborated by La Voz.
These aids correspond to the Covid line of direct aid for self-employed individuals and companies, which were launched by the previous Government group of the Canary Islands, formed by the parties of the Pacto de Las Flores, through Decree Law 16/2021.
This subsidy, amounting to 2,452,630.49 euros, was granted last December 2023 to the entity Papagayo Arena SL, after an administrative appeal presented by the company was estimated, which had initially remained on the reserve list.
These aids sought to mitigate the consequences of zero tourism during the toughest period of the coronavirus pandemic. The Canarian Executive, now led by Coalición Canaria and the Partido Popular, accepted the appeal presented by Papagayo Arena SL and granted the exact amount that the company had requested, being one of the most substantial.
The Sandos Papagayo Hotel
The company Papagayo Arena SL owns the illegal Sandos Papagayos hotel in Playa Blanca, one of the most controversial urban planning cases on the island. The tourist establishment is one of the 22 hotels that had their licenses declared null and void in Lanzarote and one of the three that have not yet been able to legalize their situation.
Specifically, its license was declared null and void by the Justice in 2007 by the Superior Court of Justice of the Canary Islands for committing serious urban planning infractions. Then, in 2016, it was declared criminal by the Provincial Court of Las Palmas, which sentenced the then mayor of Yaiza, José Francisco Reyes, to six years in prison and disqualification and decreed the seizure of all his assets.
Currently, the Governing Council of the Cabildo de Lanzarote, headed by Coalición Canaria and the Partido Popular, approved this August the initiation of the file to authorize the tourist classification of the hotel. The Yaiza City Council warned then that this approval is subject to obtaining the urban planning license and the mandatory authorization from Coasts.
Meanwhile, the General Directorate of Coast and Sea published its definitive demarcation in Playa Blanca on July 8 and determined that the protection zone of the Las Coloradas Partial Plan, on which the hotel is located, occupies a width of 100 meters, so most of the establishment falls within the new protection easement.
The illegal hotel occupies a public access road to Las Coloradas beach, exceeds the permitted height and in constructed floors, as well as the number of accommodation places.
