PSOE, Unidas Podemos and the PP vote in favour, while Coalición Canaria and Vox abstain
Adeje Town Hall has taken another step in its strategy to expand the supply of affordable housing in the municipality. At the plenary session held this Thursday, December 4, the transfer of two plots of land was approved with the favourable votes of PSOE, Unidas Podemos and the Partido Popular and the abstentions of Coalición Canaria and Vox. The sites are valued at 1.3 million euros, with a combined area of more than 3,000 square metres, and have been transferred to the Municipal Services Company of Adeje (EMSA), the entity that oversees the Housing Promotion Agency. This measure will allow the immediate start of the technical and administrative procedures for the construction of two buildings that will provide around 90 new homes.
The transferred plots are located in the area of Los Olivos, very close to the Los Olivos secondary school and the neighbourhood of Las Nieves, a natural expansion area of the municipality intended for the development of new residential spaces. The architectural projects have already been commissioned, which will speed up the process so that construction can begin as soon as the procurement procedures are completed. The final timelines depend both on the public contracting processes and on the development of the works themselves.
This first action forms part of a broader municipal project, the Adeje Housing Plan, coordinated by the mayor’s office, headed by Rodríguez Fraga, and involving various municipal departments and EMSA. The plan aims to build, in the next six years, approximately 200 affordable homes through new transfers of land that are already under study.
It is important to note that this is the first step in a process that will culminate in the construction on the two plots and that the process may take around two years, although it is expected that the first works on the ground will be visible before summer 2026.
During the plenary session, the mayor of Adeje, José Miguel Rodríguez Fraga, explained that “we are fully committed to providing real solutions to the housing problem. We are not only transferring public land so that these developments can become a reality, we are also assuming, directly or indirectly, all the costs arising from the development of these two plots. Our commitment is clear, to ensure that families can access decent and affordable housing”.
Adeje is a municipality particularly affected by the housing crisis impacting the whole country, since the municipality and the entire region are an economic engine, where more employment is created than anywhere else in the Canary Islands. This means that thousands of people need to live in the area, close to where they work, which increases demand and pushes up prices.
For this reason, a few months ago, the Town Hall transferred two other plots to the regional government for the construction of 51 homes in Armeñime, a project that, although drafted and ready to start, is facing considerable delays on the part of ICAVI. The Town Hall has already asked the regional ministry for information on the status of the works, which depend on external administrations and should already have begun. In addition, on April 3 the municipal plenary session approved requesting the regional government to designate Adeje as a stressed area, in compliance with Law 12/2023 of May 24 on the right to housing.
“This is not an isolated project. Our aim in the coming years is to continue identifying and making available new pieces of municipally owned land so that the Housing Promotion Agency can continue building. We want to guarantee orderly and sustainable growth that allows Adeje to respond to the real demand for housing”, the mayor explained during the plenary session.
Beyond the direct drive to construction, Adeje Town Hall is committed to the proper and balanced development of the urban areas where these developments will be located. The goal is to ensure that the new residential zones have the services needed to support a comfortable, sustainable and convenient daily life, including educational centres, quality public services, commercial space, green areas and community spaces. This vision reflects the “new city” model pursued by the Town Hall, where localised economies and the reduction of travel are fundamental pillars.
The municipal Housing Plan has already activated other measures that help access to housing, such as rental and renovation grants. There are also emergency social grants to cover rental arrears, utility bills or mortgages, and specific aid for the purchase of a home in the Canary Islands for young people under 35, offered through other public bodies.
Adeje Town Hall underlined that it has a proven track record in promoting public housing and in renovating and adapting affordable homes. In the early 2000s, the municipality promoted the construction or refurbishment of around one thousand homes, an action that helped resolve the housing problem that existed at that time and offered quality solutions to hundreds of Adeje families. The economic crisis and the well-known property bubble led to the suspension of the municipal Housing Agency, which now resumes its role in response to the current social need for new residential solutions.
