The Director General of Cultural Heritage and Fine Arts has sent a letter to Mayor José Luis Sanz requesting information about the wiring, lighting, and damage caused by the festival. The City Council responds that the incidents have been "minor" and have been resolved.
The Ministry of Culture has focused on the Icónica Santalucía Sevilla Fest and its impact on the Plaza de España. In a letter addressed to Mayor José Luis Sanz, the Director General of Cultural Heritage and Fine Arts, María Ángeles Albert de León, requests "clarifications" regarding the wiring, lighting fixtures, and the "possible damage" that the festival may be causing to the monument declared a Cultural Heritage Asset (BIC).
The letter, which this newspaper has accessed, reminds that the Plaza de España was declared BIC by Royal Decree 599/2023, of July 4, and that, according to Law 16/1985 on Spanish Historical Heritage, this declaration implies "a series of obligations and restrictions" to ensure the conservation of the property. The Ministry claims to have learned, through the media, about the ordinance being processed by the City Council to regulate the use of the square, which allows a maximum of 45 days of occupation per year for the same event. Therefore, Albert de León requests that the Ministry be granted "a hearing procedure" to understand the content of the ordinance and present objections.
The City Council's response: "minor" damage and shared competencies
The Deputy Mayor and Urban Planning Delegate, Juan de la Rosa, responded this Friday with another letter defending the municipal management. In it, he asserts that the authorizations for the occupation of the square are processed "in accordance with the current municipal ordinances" and with "full respect" for historical heritage regulations. He also reminds that the Plaza de España is an architectural ensemble of shared ownership: the installations on towers, arcades, and facades — which are state-owned — have favorable technical reports from the Technical Unit of the Ministry of Finance.
De la Rosa also comments on the alleged damage. He states that the City Council, in coordination with the festival promoters, establishes "control and supervision mechanisms" during the setup and dismantling. He attaches the incident reports from the 2024 and 2025 editions, from which, according to his version, it can be inferred that "the incidents that occurred have been minor" and that "they have already been resolved."
A conflict affecting the pockets and pride of Sevillians
For the residents of Seville, the controversy is not just about heritage. Icónica attracts thousands of people to the Plaza de España every summer, but it also generates disturbances due to noise, traffic disruptions, and wear on the pavement. The municipal ordinance being prepared by the City Council aims to bring order, but the standoff with the Ministry of Culture adds uncertainty about the future of the festival. Meanwhile, Sevillians wonder if the next edition, scheduled for the summer of 2026, will take place without issues. The City Council hopes that the technical reports and collaboration with the Ministry of Finance will be enough to dispel the Ministry's doubts. However, the letter from Culture makes it clear that it will not settle for vague explanations: it wants to see the ordinance and, in the process, for measures to be taken so that the ceramics of the benches and the floor tiles do not continue to suffer under the weight of the stages and the audience.
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