Historic Oaxaca barrio Xochimilco is filling up with bars, garbage and crime say, neighbors

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“Right now we have severe problems with the issue of land-use change, which the municipal authority has been changing; It has been very drastic, this is an area that we have defended as housing and the municipality has been authorizing various party halls, bars in this area and right now they are invading us in an excessive way and unfortunately they do not pay us any attention “, affirmed César Gabriel García Santos, president of the Neighborhood Committee (Comvive) of Xochimilco.

He added that a clear example of the displacement of the inhabitants is the case of the Historic Center of Oaxaca de Juárez, which is full of shops and where former residents chose to sell their property and avoid the problems of a commercial area.

“We want to be listened to and to be listened to at that point of keeping the room in this area. We have our right to tranquility, to housing, as it is for our well-being ”, he declared in the vicinity of the Plazuela de la Cruz de Piedra.

Excess of bars and party halls

César Gabriel García Santos, a resident of the Xochimilco neighborhood, asserted that with the consent of the authorities, who have supposedly authorized the change in land use, they have increased the number of bars and halls for rent for events.

He affirmed that these new businesses are displacing the inhabitants of this middle-class neighborhood. “What the bars generate is noise, an excess of cars in this area, crime; Obviously, since there are more vehicles, more parking, people in a drunken state because crime takes advantage of doing damage, dirt, garbage; So, obviously, all of that is left to us who live here and what we want is for it to go down ”, he explained.

“The restaurant hours, it is understood that there are some that are food restaurants and others already turn out to be clandestine bars; And well, all those kinds of things, because we would like the municipality to now, unfortunately, this administration is already leaving and we want the new administration to take action on the matter ”, he pointed out.

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“If (Oaxaca de Juárez) is a heritage city, let them be regulated under that regime because at the end of the day we see people who have, who have been arriving, buy properties and it is precisely for that, to make bars and really the room in the city it has been running out ”, he explained.

In Xochimilco “we still have a room, we are a little more than 70, 80 families that live here; So we are trying in one way or another to defend ourselves from that evil that is embracing Oaxaca, ”he said.

Authorities refuse to change land use

The president of the Comvive de Xochimilco expressed that the times they have met with the authorities, they have denied that they authorize the change of land use; however, bars and terraces continue to grow.

“So what kind of authority do we have; If they don’t authorize it, why is it that they allow it; How is it that these people can make use of these spaces to make this type of lounges, of bars; It is understood that in order to put a room in an area, there is a regulation; to put a bar, near a school, here we have a school zone, there are close here; however, the bars put them at 100 meters, less than what is allowed and the authority says they will see it, “he revealed.

Building permits, a headache

García Santos asserted that many people in this traditional neighborhood choose to sell because their properties are badly damaged and in order to carry out modifications they must have permits from the Historic Center, the INAH; Being complicated, they decide to sell their properties.

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“(People who) have purchasing power come, to buy and remodel to their liking; they do not have any care in the architectural matter, they destroy everything that has been. So, the response of the authority is very incoherent; When you want to do things in a good way, it takes a lot of work to get a permit, to do a remodeling; People come with money, they arrive, they put some stamps on them and by paying the fines they allow them to build their homes, ”he said.

“We defend this space that we have in La Cruz de Piedra, where we still have a room; We are more or less about 70 families, 80 families who live here; We try to defend ourselves from that stain ”, he concluded.

Source: nvinoticias.com

The Oaxaca Post