Icod de los Vinos is planning a new outdoor sports and leisure area aimed mainly at teenagers in La Centinela, with a multi-sport court, pump track, seating areas and a new playground all included in the project.
The council is now completing the final preparations before work gets underway.
The project, which has a budget of more than €400,000 and is fully funded by the local council, will transform part of the main road through the area while also making changes to improve accessibility and traffic flow.
Construction is expected to begin shortly and, if everything goes to plan, the new space should be completed during the first quarter of 2027.
A space designed with teenagers in mind
According to Jorge González Socas, Icod de los Vinos’ councillor for Works, the project came about partly because there are plenty of parks designed for younger children but far fewer places where teenagers can spend time.
Young people currently gather around La Centinela square to play football, ride scooters and generally hang around, which has occasionally led to minor complaints and disagreements.
The idea is to give them somewhere specifically designed for those activities.
The new area will include a multi-sport court and a pump track, along with spaces where young people can simply sit and socialise. There will also be a separate playground for children aged between one and six.
Natural and artificial shade will be included too, with the council already planting trees in the area.
Changes to the road and parking
The project isn’t just about creating a new park.
Traffic through La Centinela has increased following the closure of Avenida Príncipes de España for other works, so the redesign will also include changes to how vehicles move through the neighbourhood.
Part of the road alongside the new park will become one-way, while the rest of the street will continue operating in both directions.
Pedestrian safety is also part of the plans. The pavement will be raised to reduce the current height difference, which is around 40 centimetres in some areas.
As expected, not everyone is entirely thrilled about the changes.
Some residents have raised concerns about the loss of parking spaces. González Socas has said that although some spaces will disappear, the council plans to compensate for this by adapting other areas for parking and creating spaces reserved for people with reduced mobility.
A growing part of Icod
La Centinela is one of the more densely populated parts of Icod de los Vinos and already has plenty going on.
The area is home to a municipal football pitch, swimming pool, secondary school, primary school and language school. There are also plans for a future athletics track as the neighbourhood continues to grow.
For the council, the new project is about filling a gap that has been overlooked for a while.
Children have playgrounds. Adults have plenty of places to go. Teenagers, meanwhile, often end up sitting on walls or finding their own spaces because there simply isn’t anywhere designed with them in mind.
Whether the new park solves every complaint in La Centinela remains to be seen, but at least there will soon be somewhere they can play football, ride their scooters and hang out without being told to move along every five minutes.