Long-suffering residents of the district where the bulk of the biggest Las Palmas Carnival events are staged are celebrating a crucial victory in their dispute with the city authorities over all-night noise.
A ruling by the Canarian High Court released yesterday has vindicated the residents of the Santa Catalina area in their legal action against the city council for organising a massive concert by latino pop idol Carlos Baute in February 2023 as part of that year’s Carnival celebrations.
The concert was in breach of a formal agreement between the residents and the council which stipulated that late-night concerts with massive crowds could only be staged on two occasions during Carnival, namely, after the Carnival Queen and Drag Queen Galas.
News of the Carlos Baute concert and the anticipated late-night crowd of over 10,000 outside their apartments prompted the residents to request it to be cancelled or moved to another venue but the request was turned down by the Carnival organisers. A lawsuit filed by the locals failed initially but their appeal to the High Court division which deals specifically with disputes with official bodies such as local authorities has been upheld.
Judges were scathing in their findings, criticising the authorities for disregarding the key clause in the noise agreement dating back to 2015. “The clause on the maximum of two late-night concerts is totally clear and the Baute concert should have been held immediately after one of the two Galas, not on a separate night” said the panel.
“Due to their sheer size and importance, Carnival events are prepared well in advance and it was unfair to ask residents, in planning meetings, to put up with the noise generated by up to six concerts lasting until 3am” , the judges added.
The council was ordered to pay 1500 euros in costs and reimburse the residents for noise measurement reports which they commissioned at the time of the Carlos Baute concert to demonstrate the nuisance caused into the early hours.
According to media reports today, the council may appeal the judgement and there is some speculation that it may seize the opportunity to have the 2015 agreement scrapped.
Photo: Promoción Las Palmas
