The Cabildo of Lanzarote has initiated two more files to declare two buildings on Calle Real as Assets of Cultural Interest, which are added to the one recently approved for the building of the old Hotel Oriental. This time, the buildings to be protected are “El Mercadillo” and the building that housed the Tamaragua store, which has been closed for some years.
The announcement of these two decrees signed by the Councilor for Historical Heritage has been published this Thursday in the Official Gazette of the Canary Islands, and means that both properties are now shielded against possible interventions that distort their values.
“The initiation of a BIC declaration procedure determines the temporary application of the same protection regime as the BICs already declared,” the resolution underlines. Thus, while the file is being processed, any action in these buildings or their surroundings “will require authorization from the Island Council, with a favorable opinion from the Island Commission for Cultural Heritage”.
In addition to notifying the property of this decision, the decree also establishes that the Arrecife City Council must be informed of the start of this file, reminding it that from now on it will not be able to authorize any intervention without it being previously endorsed by the Heritage area of the Island Corporation.
Likewise, the resolution will be notified to the General Directorate of Heritage of the Government of the Canary Islands, so that it can proceed with the preventive annotation in the Registry of Assets of Cultural Interest.
Along with the properties, where only maintenance, restoration and rehabilitation interventions may be carried out, their surroundings will also be protected. In this case, in the area of influence only a maximum of two floors may be authorized, which is the height of the asset to be protected, and possible interventions on nearby facades will have to pay “special attention” to the aesthetic design and materials, “in such a way that its perfect integration with the protected asset is guaranteed”.
Regarding the use that the two properties on which the BIC is being processed may have, the report indicates that “those activities that are currently being carried out will proceed”, without any room for “any use that could imply any risk for any of the parts of the asset”.
No protection due to lack of Architectural Catalog in Arrecife
The buildings on which these files have been initiated are located at numbers 14 and 35 of Calle León y Castillo (still known as Calle Real), and the objective is to declare them Assets of Cultural Interest with the category of monument.
In the case of El Mercadillo, it was already declared a BIC after an initial file initiated in 2004, although the courts later annulled that declaration.
The Cabildo technicians recall that it was also included in the Architectural Catalog linked to the Supplementary Planning Plan of Arrecife, which was initially approved, although it is currently not in force nor has a new one been drawn up, which leaves this and other buildings in the capital without protection.
The technical report highlights the “outstanding heritage values that this property has”, pointing out that it is one of the “most relevant in the capital of Lanzarote, with a set of heritage values of a historical and architectural nature”.
The building was built at the beginning of the 19th century, with an urban stately typology, “one of the largest in volume and height of the time” and located “on the most luxurious and commercial street on the island”. Furthermore, after being used for decades as a residence, it later played an important role in the society and culture of the island, having been the headquarters of the Sociedad Democracia. It was also one of the first places where plays were developed and the first where a film was seen, at least in Arrecife and “perhaps in Lanzarote”, according to the technical report.
Currently and for years, several stores operate inside, grouped under the name of “El Mercadillo”.
Regarding the building that housed the Tamaragua store, the Heritage reports also point to it as “one of the most relevant buildings in the capital of Lanzarote”. “The building located at Calle León y Castillo number 35 is one of the last examples of this type of housing that are currently preserved,” the report underlines.
Like El Mercadillo, it dates from the beginning of the 19th century and corresponds to the “traditional style of the wealthy class”. “As noteworthy elements, we should mention its “O” typology with a central patio, the composition of the facade, the decorative elements of its facade (currently hidden) and the rear patio,” adds the technical opinion.
