The Ministry of Environment once again showed this Thursday its intention to expropriate the islet of Montaña Clara, located in the Chinijo Archipelago, after its owners decided to put it up for sale. For the three owner families, this is news "they have been hearing for a long time", as stated by Alejandro Márquez, spokesperson for the real estate agency in charge of the sale operation.
Having an island is a blessing for some, and an eccentricity for others. Montaña Clara was acquired in the 1950s by the then mayor of Haría, Mariano López Socas, along with another family. Now, his legatees have encountered an atypical situation: they own an island that is located in a Natural Park and in the Integral Natural Reserve of the Islets, in a special bird protection area, where any type of intervention is prohibited. "These families have been asking the Ministry of Environment to buy this property for many years since they have restricted all its uses," explained Alejandro Márquez. "As generations pass, families grow and it becomes more difficult to reach an agreement." That is why the López Socas decided to put the "For Sale" sign on Montaña Clara.
The Ministry of Environment assures that the demarcation process to delimit the extension of public and private land is in an initial phase, and that no purchase-sale operation can be carried out until the results are known, although for the moment, the ministry assures that 20 percent is of "Maritime-Terrestrial Public Domain". In addition, the central government has a right of first refusal over 35 percent of the surface, which corresponds to the "protection zone". Alejandro Márquez assures that, in any case, before transferring any offer to the owners "the State will be informed" although to this day "the owners have not contacted the Environment Ministry".
The starting price of this islet is nine million euros. An amount that has been set based on the price of the rustic square meter expropriated in Lanzarote. "The owners consider that it is the minimum price to start negotiating," explained the real estate advisor, "although the value of an island of these characteristics is much higher, and according to appraisers specialized in natural spaces, it may be three or four times above the nine million".
POSSIBLE BUYERS
After announcing the sale of Montaña Clara, the real estate agency "Look and Find" received numerous calls, mainly from curious people, although some, with more imagination, already saw their excavators planning around the island: "they asked us if apartment complexes could be built", pointed out Alejandro Márquez. Once the protection situation of Montaña Clara has been clarified, the real estate agency has, for the moment, two interesting offers. The first comes from a Spanish financial entity, which apparently intends to acquire the islet to protect it and receive tax benefits. The second, from a Dutch couple who have telephoned "several times, we have sent them a dossier and they have requested to visit the island", as confirmed by the real estate agency spokesperson. "They have boats, and a house in Gran Canaria, so they are very interested".
What is clear is that one does not sell an island every day. "It is a complicated sale, because there are many factors that influence and the buyer has to study everything very well," said Márquez. You only need to be a nature lover, have your own boat, want to enjoy an idyllic place and have nine million euros in your pocket... or more.
A SMALL PARADISE
Montaña Clara is one of the islands that form the Chinijo Archipelago, located north of Lanzarote. Like Alegranza, it is still privately owned. In addition to its volcanic origin, it has great environmental value, especially for the plant and animal species that inhabit the island, among which the Eleonora's falcon, the osprey, the Cory's shearwater, the Canary shrew or the white-faced storm petrel stand out.
Montaña Clara currently does not have any type of construction. As reported by the López Socas family, "only a few years ago a small hut of about 18 square meters was built". A building that was carried out by the Cabildo of Lanzarote itself, which the owner family came to "denounce for building without their permission".
ACN Press
