Government Subdelegation (Former Civil Government)

Santa Cruz de Tenerife · Category: Cultural spaces · Subcategory: Institutions · Year: 1951 · Authors: Domingo Pisaca Burgada

The plot on which this building stands was originally intended to be occupied by a square that would serve as an antechamber to the Town Hall building. The permanent lack of municipal funds that gripped the corporation for many years prevented this wish from being realised.  

The plot was acquired by the State in 1928 with the intention of constructing the Postal and Telegraph services. Later it was considered that these services should be located near the port, as was finally done, leaving the land finally available to build the Civil Government headquarters.

The project was designed in the 1940s by Domingo Pisaca, then an architect for the Ministry of the Interior in Tenerife. Pisaca conceived a building similar to the Bank of Spain located right next to it. With four floors, it presents a classicist and solemn tendency in its structure. To give it more prominence, the entrance was placed at a level higher than that of Méndez Núñez street, so access is via two side ramps and a frontal staircase, set within a base topped by two obelisks. The main façade stands out for its central axis in the form of a portico with three semicircular arches, above which rise eight paired Tuscan order columns. As a finishing touch, a broken entablature in relief and a low wall with the national coat of arms are outlined.

The impression of this building is one of strength and solemnity. It was completed in 1951.

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