Masca - 15.08.2008

Rehabilitation of the areas around Masca that were affected by last year's fires will begin in September

Reconstruction and rehabilitation of the homes and areas affected by the fire that devastated a large part of the municipality of Masca last summer will begin in September. The Council of Tenerife approved a collaboration agreement to work with the Town Hall of Buenavista del Norte in order to draw up a Special Plan for the Protection of the area around the Caserío de Masca.

 

The Plan involves the regulation of urban construction in the Masca area. The area was recently declared an Asset of Cultural Interest (BIC) due to its historical, architectural and ethnographic value. The agreement will also mean the beginning of the recovery of the area that was badly hit by last summer's bush fire, which destroyed a total of five homes.

 

The approval of this Special Plan is significant as it means that, in the future, the financial aid that the Government of the Canary Islands and the Council of Tenerife assign to fire relief will reach those affected much more quickly. Via this initiative, projects will be set in motion to rebuild the five damaged homes and clean and restore the terraced plots.

 

The Special Plan for the Caserío de Masca also entails shortened processing time for a range of administrative procedures that, at present, oblige residents in the area to apply to the Council of Tenerife's Heritage Commission for building licences. When the Plan enters into effect, the Town Hall of Buenavista del Norte will be authorised to approve building licences in the hamlet, which will expedite these procedures significantly.

 

The Plan will not only accelerate the coordination of financial aid in response to the fire, but will also make it possible to establish criteria to protect one of the island's most stunning enclaves. Amongst the measures included in the Plan, attention should be drawn to the plans to run the electricity supply underground.