Representatives of eleven communities of neighbors around the Parque Islas Canarias and the Islamar hotel in Arrecife have spoken this Friday on Radio Lanzarote-Onda Cero to denounce the situation in which around 1,000 residents of Arrecife find themselves due to the concerts that the City Council and the Cabildo of Lanzarote have scheduled near their homes.
"They have put on four concerts for us during the month of October. The park is 25, 30, 40, 50 meters from our houses, the speakers are 40 meters from our living rooms. In October, four concerts took place, three by the City Council and one by the Cabildo. The house, the windows, the bed, the pillow vibrate, 1,000 neighbors without sleep," Juan Pablo Padilla reproached during his intervention on the radio program.
"We have the same right to rest as the rest of the citizens of Arrecife, we pay the taxes that are marked, we deserve the same respect as the rest of the neighbors," added Celia Jiménez.
Celia Jiménez's house is 28 meters from the park, where several concerts were held this past October. "I understand that what needs to be done is to diversify the areas. You can organize an event, minimizing the sound impact, but not endure 14 hours of music in a row," asked the conejera resident.
These representatives of the eleven communities support the Carnival celebrations or the Sangineles, but ask that the party does not mean a loss in their quality of life. "In my house I have measured 80 decibels. I have been battling this issue for many years. We are not against regulated parties or a specific activity, we are against abuses," said Jiménez on the morning radio program Buenos Días, Lanzarote.
"The volume of the music is not the same as a few years ago, the volume of people has nothing to do with it. Also, there is a serious problem, the behavior of many citizens," added Jiménez.
This neighbor has narrated that she has had to pay for hotels to be able to go to work. She has also added that the local businesses in the area do not respect the rest of the neighbors, due to the noise on the terraces and the lack of soundproofing.
"There are very sick people living in the buildings, if they already have a difficult life, that they are tortured in that way is a bit inhumane. It is intelligent to rectify, please, do not torture us anymore," Juan Pablo Padilla asked during his intervention.
"One morning I woke up crying and said to my wife: let's go, we sell and we go away. There may come a time when the center is uninhabitable and no one lives in the center," imagined this Arrecife neighbor.
If things continue like this, they have already studied the possibility of filing a contentious-administrative appeal against the institutions to prevent this situation from repeating itself and have even considered the option of going to the criminal route against the promoters of the concerts. At the same time, they extend a hand to the Arrecife City Council and the Cabildo of Lanzarote to find a solution.
The noise from the cafeterias
"In general, people are aware of the fact of implementing bars in public areas, on sidewalks. The Sociedad Democracia has its parties every weekend without soundproofing its premises. Between everyone, lowering the volumes can coexist. It is not controlled. The Police have literally told me why are we going to go if it is useless.
The representatives of the neighbors have been open to talking with the institutions. "The neighbors are always open to dialogue, what happens is that we are never counted on," concluded Celia. This neighbor has 30 complaints filed with the Local Police and the Arrecife City Council, but assures that the situation has not changed since then.
"You cannot pretend that this is the Arrecife disco," denounce the neighbors Celia Jiménez and Juan Pablo Padilla
