The mayor of Teguise, Oswaldo Betancort, and the Vicar General of the Diocese of the Canary Islands, Hipólito Cabrera González, have sealed a collaboration agreement to restore the tower of the Church of Our Lady of Guadalupe. According to the agreement, the Teguise City Council commits and is obliged to grant a subsidy of 30,000 euros.
In the press release sent to the media, the City Council points out that the Island Council and the Government of the Canary Islands will also contribute with this same amount. The note indicates that according to that agreement, the Church "commits and is obliged to demand from the company that is awarded the work to have a Comprehensive Construction Risk Civil Liability policy, which "responds, if necessary, to the damages that its intervention could cause to the temple object of action, in the terms established in current legal regulations".
This tower, which is located in the Plaza de la Constitución de Teguise, belongs to the architectural catalog of the General Plan of Ordination of the Municipality. The poor condition in which it is found is not new. The Teguise City Council was aware of its deterioration back in 2011 and, in fact, the tower has been fenced off for years for security. In 2013 the bells had to be removed. Their support had deteriorated to the point that it was feared that they could break or fall.
Municipal competence, according to the Heritage Law
"The Historical Heritage Law of the Canary Islands specifies, among other powers of the City Councils, that of establishing the necessary promotion measures in order to achieve its preservation and revitalization. In this regard, it also provides that aid for the conservation and restoration of Church assets belonging to the historical heritage of the Canary Islands will be carried out through specific agreements with ecclesiastical institutions", they have stressed from the City Council in the note in which they announce the agreement.
The collaboration between the Teguise City Council and the Diocese of the Canary Islands was sealed last Thursday, January 14. This agreement, for the City Council, "is an effective and practical way for the exercise of religious activity and the functions entrusted to said Institution". "Therefore, there is a will on both sides for the rehabilitation, preservation, conservation and rehabilitation of the Architectural Heritage of the municipality", they have pointed out.
