Mérida, Yucatán — Meeting with the Board for the Preservation of the Historic Center, mayor-elect Renán Barrera reiterated his proposal to create a dedicated Centro Histórico management office.
When the mayor returns to office Sept. 1, he will inherit a much livelier Centro than the one he left in 2012. Loud late-night clubs have popped up next to residential properties, and promised noise regulations have yet to be passed by the current administration.
Before the election, Barrera campaigned on the noise issue, promising to regulate businesses and restore order to the Centro. On Monday, he emphasized solutions to keep residents happy while allowing the downtown to thrive.
“We already managed to give life to our Historic Center, considered the second most important in the country after Mexico City; now we want to do more to keep it attractive, but to preserve conditions for a healthy coexistence among citizens,” Barrera said.
The incoming mayor met with the Patronato Centro Histórico Mérida civil association’s president, Enrique Ancona Teigell, as well as board members Zazil Canto Ureña, Raimundo Vargas León and Raúl Zapata Álvarez. Mario Martínez Laviada also participated.
With this office, he said, Barrera is aiming for a more coordinated and planned work that allows the development of actions and projects with a cultural, touristic, economic and healthy coexistence vision.
At the meeting, they agreed that it will be important to work in coordination with universities to involve young people in raising awareness about the challenges presented by the Historic Center.
Other topics addressed were the revitalization of public spaces, commercial areas, the colinias, municipal markets and green areas.
Ancona Teigell offered to work in a coordinated manner with the next municipal administration, after recognizing that who will lead the new triennium has demonstrated with actions, interest and willingness to work for the historic center.
Source: Diario de Yucatán
