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Mexico City's Historic
center rises from the ashes
** This article was originally published
in the Vuelo
Magazine of Mexicana
Airline. The author is Arturo Mendoza Mociño. Photos
by: Antonio Butt
It's the crown jewel of Latin America.
 Embodying
centuries of history and refinement, Mexico's historic city
center harbors more than 1,500 buildings that constitute the
beating heart of the country. The center is now recovering
its lost splendor as the result of an unusual but exemplary
union between Carlos Slim and the government. So far, buildings
spanning 34 blocks have been renovated. But it doesn't end
here….
During the viceroy ship, Mexico City was
known as the City of Palaces. Refurbishing this historic treasure
is the lofty challenge that faces the Trust Fund for the Historic
Center of Mexico City, whose representative, Ana Lilia Cepeda,
is quick to reassure us that the Trust enjoys the full support
of local politicians and has the necessary resources to meet
this challenge head on.
The Trust's Advisory Board, which initiated
a pilot program in February 2002, is comprised of the historian
Guillermo Tovar de Teresa, the Federal Government, the Mexico
City Government, the Mexico City Government, representatives
of the local community and private enterprises spearheaded
by entrepreneur, Carlos Slim.
“This pooling of efforts is not merely
historic,” says Ana Lilia. “It's audacious. Never
before has an urban development project of such magnitude
and with such an ambitious objective been undertaken; that
of recovering the majesty of squares and streets that cover
an area several times the size of the historic centers of
Barcelona, Madrid and Lima”.
The Center is nine square kilometers of
problems to be solved; street vendors, trash collection, public
safety, buildings that sink at a rate of 8 centimeters per
year, obsolete tax and town planning regulations and a chaotic
traffic system that forces 350,000 vehicles to cross the city
center's main square every day, when only 125,000 actually
need to.
Open-heart surgery
 Streets
were gutted and laid bare to the sky above; with the scrupulousness
of a heart surgeon, the pilot program proceeded to rescue
13 streets and 615 historic buildings. This architectural
program has centered on Facades and street lighting. All the
buildings have been given a face-lift, their facades cleaned
with high-pressure water jets and than painted in pastel tones.
Stone and brickwork has been polished and new sidewalks and
traffic lanes have been constructed. Specific parts of the
project were commissioned to different architects, with the
approval of the National Anthropology and History Institute
(INAH), and coordinated by Enrique Cervantes Sanchez, president
of the Mexican Academy of Architecture.
One by one, the unblocked arteries have
been reopened and are functioning as never before, thanks
to the vision of experts. But it doesn't end here, says Ana
Lilia. A new lease of life is also to be given to La Alameda
square, Plaza del Empedradillo, Plaza Juarez and the Ex Templo
de Corpus Christi. A bright halo hovers over the city's historic
center. Its fresh image can be appreciated by day or by night
in its recently inaugurated streets and illuminated monuments.
Monte de Piedad, Casino Español and Plaza Tolsa are
just a few of the buildings that can now be admired in a new
light.
A Mexican SoHo, to lease or to buy.
“The model building,” as it
is now popularly known, stands at Number 37 Motolinia street,
in the heart of Mexico City. Curvaceous blonds and brunettes
live here, adding a touch of chic to a rebirth in the making.
 Motolinia
37 has become the touchstone of the Historic Center Foundation:
It is through the real-estate market that Slim has sought
to bring life back to the city center, by transforming it
into the perfect place for living, working, studying and enjoying
a night out on the town. With a view to achieving this goal
and recouping the property value of the zone, the Foundation,
under the management of Adrian Pandal, has initiated a residential
pilot program with leases that are accessible to artists and
students. “Our aim is to encourage more and more people
to live in the city center, as a means of rescuing some of
the most beautiful buildings in all of Latin America,”
says Pandal. “What is our main challenge here? To change
people’s view of the historic center as a dangerous
place to live, as a place that's overrun by street vendors.
Contrary to popular belief, this is one of the best areas
of the city to live in, because it's well communicated; even
more so than Interlomas of Santa Fe.”
The project includes 45 buildings on the
perimeter of the city center, running from 20 de Noviembre
to Eje Central and from Republica de Cuba to Izazaga, taking
in the southern end of La Alameda. There is accommodation
to suit all budgets, from tenement buildings to apartment
blocks and hotel rooms. The Foundation has invested 800 million
pesos in these buildings and intends to lease them out with
one purpose in mind: injecting young blood into its project
for the repopulation of the city center.
Such is the case of Karla is a cultural
promoter who has taken upon herself the task of finding tenants
with a bohemian profile for the first apartments leased out
by the Foundation. Thanks to her efforts, photographers, artists,
models and publicists have gradually been moving into these
renovated buildings. The hope is that they will eventually
bring life to another Condesa, one of the city’s more
trendy areas to live.
 The
reasons Karla and Gustavo prefer the center to other parts
of the city are many and varied, but they’re all convincing.
They say that the center has better town planning than other
areas; the buildings are properly numbered and each street
is marked with a sign. Furthermore, 60 percent of the city’s
cultural events take place here and the streets become safer
to walk every day.
But, cultural aspect aside, the over-riding
factor for potential residents is the rent. An art deco apartment
dating from the forties, with a view of Motolinia, like the
one Villamar lives in, rents for 4,500 pesos, but there are
cheaper options. At the Hotel Virreyes, on the junction of
Izazaga and Eje Central, there are rents as low as 1,500 pesos
a month.
According to Pandal, there are only leases
available to date, although the possibility of selling these
properties in the future is being analyzed. For the time being,
the Foundation is seeking to strengthen its presence by issuing
convertible debentures, a mechanism that allows investors
to withdraw their capital whenever they wish and entitles
them to receive their portion of the profits generated during
their participation. Since it is a public partnership, the
Foundation is required to publish information regarding its
transactions and investments.
 This
historic and ambitious effort to resuscitate Mexico City's
center brings to mind the words of Bernardo de Balbuena in
his ode Grandeza mexicana: “She flourishes in flames
of beauty/and rises like a phoenix from the ashes, /flying
high above the clouds /watching as the beautiful arches and
golden roofs / of temples ascend majestically from the ground.”
THE BEATING OF A EXPANDED HEART
Area …………………………………………9
km2
Blocks ………………………………………668
Historic Buildings 16th. - 20th. century……
1500
Civic monuments …………………………196
Religious monuments ……………………67
Museums …………………………………53
Squares ……………………………………68
Cloisters …………………………………19
Fountains …………………………………28
Murals ……………………………………12
Parking lots ………………………………185
[16,500 parking spaces]
ARCHITECS RESPONSIBLE FOR RENOVATION,
BY STREET
Street…………………………………………
Architect
Donceles………………………………………Ramon
Banfil
Tacuba ………………………………………
Carlos Flores
5 de Mayo ……………………………………
Jaime Ortiz Lajous
Motolinia ………………………………………
Flavio salamanca
Bolivar Allende ………………………………
Ricardo Prado Nuñez
Gante-Filomeno ……………………………..
Sergio Zaldivar
Mata-Xicontécatl-Plaza …………………….
Sergio Zaldivar
Tolsá-Marconi ……………………………….
Sergio Zaldivar
Madero ………………………………………
Javier Villalobos Jaramillo
16 de Septiembre ……………………………
Gabriel Mérigo basurto
Venustiano Carranza ............................... Carlos
Dario Cejudo Crespo
Isabel La Católica ……………………………
Luis Amal Simón
Palma ……………………………………….
Fernando Sánchez Chávez
5 de Febrero …………………………………
Carlos Obregón Formoso
Guatemala …………………………………
Francisco Pérez Salazar
THE TRUST FUND FOR THE MEXICO CITY HISTORIC
CENTER HAS A BUDGET OF:
500 million pesos allocated as
follows:
100 million for public safety
375 million for public works
25 million for markets and squares
CONTACT
Fundación del centro Histórico de la Ciudad
de México
Phone: 5625-4900
Web site: http://www.centrohistorico.com.mx
** This article was originally published
in the Vuelo
Magazine of Mexicana
Airline. The author is Arturo Mendoza Mociño. Photos
by: Antonio Butt
To know more about the Historic Center
please visit: http://www.centrohistorico.df.gob.mx |
