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 Puerto Vallarta Real Estate | December 2006 
Development Raises Locals´ Ire
 Bob Kelly - Herald Mexico
| | San Miguel de Allende, Guanajuato |
A citizens group protesting a burst of residential and commercial developments in San Miguel de Allende will rally at 10 a.m., Monday, in this colonial city´s central Jardín plaza and march to the site of two seven-story condominium towers they claim are being built in violation of local and federal laws.
More than 100 residents attending a public meeting Friday night signed a petition urging the city government to halt the construction and supported the rally proposed by the group, known as "Basta ya San Miguel," or "Enough Already San Miguel."
"The first thing to do is stop construction," said Rodrigo Treviño, another organizer. "If the city government represents the citizens, they will revoke the permits."
The 36-unit condominium buildings are being constructed on a slope next to the Caracol, a winding bypass road that connects the roads to Celaya and Querétaro. They are expected to be completed in about a year.
The group claims the 20-meter towers exceed the legal maximum height of 8.5 meters for buildings in San Miguel and has argued they will encroach on an arroyo, which is illegal under federal water laws.
The developer, Casas San Miguelito, said it had obtained proper permits and is working with the local architects´ association to alter the modern design that has upset residents and find a style more compatible with San Miguel´s colonial tradition.
The developers were told to stop work Thursday by the city government while building permits are being reviewed but have failed to comply, said Miguel Vidargas, a member of the commission to protect the city´s cultural patrimony. The commission, chartered by federal law to advise city government on development, organized Friday night´s public meeting.
The commission hasn´t met with city officials for more than a year, said another member, environmentalist César Árias, because former mayor and now-senator Luis Alberto Villarreal García was angered by their opposition to another developer´s plans to cut down more than 200 trees and build 90 homes on the former Aristos Hotel site next to the Instituto Allende, an internationally renowned arts school.
Current Mayor Jesús Correa has met with community leaders about the widespread opposition to the Caracol and Aristos projects, along with several other developments. He hasn´t taken a definitive stand on the issues, however.
"The last administration was not good for San Miguel," Vidargas said, charging that Villarreal was "looking out for his political ambition and not the city."
By damaging the city´s charm and values, the development could ultimately lessen San Miguel´s appeal to tourists and to foreign residents, two major sources of income, said Arias.
Correa apparently has agreed to least one of the protesters´ demands. A local television station reported Saturday that the mayor had announced that several businesses will be ordered to remove billboards on the edge of town. The "Basta Ya" group said billboards erected within four kilometers of the city limits violate federal law.
Another objective, San Martín said, is to force Casas San Miguelito, which is planning to build condos and attached homes close to the Charco de Ingenio and Botanical Garden nature preserve, to comply with a city ordinance adopted last year that limits the height and number of units that can be built in an environmental buffer zone around the preserve. |
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