The Islote del Amor will have a lake-pool, a cafeteria, walkways, spas and solarium areas in the coming months. These are some of the improvements that will be built on this islet. This Wednesday began the remodeling works of the old project of Manrique, "which he had already started, since some aspects such as the level of finish with the stone cladding was finished, only the gardens were pending", said the Minister of Tourism of the Government of the Canary Islands, Manuel Fajardo Feo, in a visit to the place, before the start of the works. The Minister has also assured that in addition to the recreational use designed by Manrique, it is expected that a sports use can also be made, to practice Latin sailing.
The works, which will be completed within nine months, will have a budget of more than 1,800,000 euros and only access will be cut off on the wooden bridge, which connects the Islote with Arrecife. "The company that is going to carry out the project, which in this case is a Temporary Union of Companies (UTE), must give us the work completed in 9 months, with the bridge in perfect condition," commented Fajardo. Apparently, this bridge will create small inconveniences in the elaboration of the works, since it will not support great weights, so it must be done through light vehicles.
For its part, the mayor of Arrecife, María Isabel Déniz, who also attended the event, announced that the City Council intends to hire, through a contest, a private company to manage the new spaces. "The Arrecife City Council will try to ensure that the completion of the remodeling works of the Islote de la Fermina coincides with the start-up of the new services that these facilities will offer," commented the first mayor of Arrecife.
Thus, the Islote de la Fermina will finally see its remodeling completed, which has been pending for 20 years, when César Manrique began to develop his design. The beginning of the works has also been full of controversy, since the winner of the ideas contest initially convened by the Government of the Canary Islands, Carlos Morales, is not going to execute the works. This is so, because when changing the owner in the Ministry of Tourism of the Government of the Canary Islands, it was understood that the original design of César Manrique should be respected and a new contest was convened, which offended Morales, who argued that in the initial contest no condition of that type had been established. However, and despite the fact that the possibility of initiating some type of legal action was considered, Manuel Fajardo Feo has stated "no having knowledge" that this has occurred.
Works in San Francisco Javier
The Minister of Tourism of the Government of the Canary Islands has also referred, in the visit to the remodeling works of the Islote del Amor, to those that will affect the capital neighborhood of San Francisco Javier. The project, which has been stuck for four years generating loud criticism among the residents of the area, will finally see the light, after the license was withdrawn from the old builder.
Manuel Fajardo has announced that this Thursday the bids presented in the urgent contest that was held will begin to be known, when the license was withdrawn from the old builder. "I hope that in two weeks we will be in an act like this, announcing the signing of the contract and the beginning of the works that will be carried out in San Francisco Javier," said Fajardo. "These two projects, the one of the Islote and the works of the neighborhood of Francisco Javier, are part of the two important proposals that we had for the city of Arrecife," commented the Minister of Tourism.