Eugenio Robayna, head of markets for the Teguise City Council, was this Friday on the Radio Lanzarote-Onda Cero program Buenos días, Lanzarote to answer some questions about the Teguise Municipal Market.
With 40 years of history, the market has become one of the main tourist attractions of Lanzarote. In this sense, Robayna began by thanking the work of the farmers, artisans and other people who are part of it and, in addition, congratulated "the new association formed by more than 80 of these vendors".
He also continued recalling the beginnings of the market. "The market was born in the Plaza de Los Leones and the people of the town brought watermelons, onions or melons and sold them right in the historic center," he says.
Also, in this sense, the councilor pointed out that "thanks to the markets, many foreigners have arrived and have bought and repaired the old houses, so new stores have also emerged."
However, the covid pandemic had an impact on the market since, as Eugenio explains, "many of the Senegalese, Italians or Moroccans had to emigrate and return to their homes and then we had to start little by little, so through the security plan we had to have a limited area and go outside the Plaza de los Leones."
He also highlighted the good functioning of the parking areas of Teguise when not only the market is held, but all events. "We must congratulate all those people who have the plots that used to be sandy next to what is the historic center of La Villa because they put those parking spaces at the disposal of the city council and they then feed themselves every Sunday," he said. In this regard, Robayna stated that "this is one of the problems that Haría has and they are seeing how to solve it."
Actions of the City Council
To carry out the market correctly, the Teguise City Council "invests for the first time 480,000 euros for two years in the market, where we have guaranteed a doctor every Sunday and also nurses, police, etc.". In the case of product counterfeiting, the councilor pointed out that "when there are any, the Civil Guard goes in search of them."
The use of approved white tents has also been launched to guarantee the rest of the neighbors and avoid the hammering from an early hour to carry out the assembly of these structures.
On the other hand, the City Council intends to pedestrianize a part of José Bethancourt Street. "We are going to put a different type of floor," he detailed. He also indicated that the objective of the City Council is to "start opening public spaces such as the library, the House of Culture during the market."
However, one of the points that vendors complain about the most is the bureaucracy of the licenses although "a meeting will be held to unblock this process."
New initiatives in the market
Eugenio Robayna has also revealed that in the next Carmen festivities, the City Council "wants to integrate the people because they have been the most affected by enduring the traffic on Sundays and the people, so activities will be carried out."
"I want to make an exhibition in the Timple House Museum about the history of the market with all the mayors who have passed through it and, on the other hand, do activities for children in the Plaza de Los Leones with mats, games or storytellers," he concluded.
