Mérida, Yucatán — A public-private program called “Permanent Maintenance of the Historical Center” was officially kicked off yesterday at Parque Saint Lucia.
The 2.4 million-peso program provides for an ongoing cleaning schedule for walls, sidewalks and streets, which will be attended to twice a week, particularly near parks, bus stops and markets.
City officials say the work will not affect commercial activity during the annual Buen Fin promotion or the holiday season.
Mayor Mauricio Vila, accompanied by representatives of business and civil associations, kicked off the work by monitoring workers with a crane hanging seasonal ornaments at 60 and 55. Then came power washing of the sidewalks at 55 and 62, which were caked with chewing gum.
Trash cans, with separate bins for organic and inorganic waste, were also installed.
On Calle 62, between 55 and 57, streets were power washed, and graffiti, stickers and posters were removed from walls. Bright yellow-orange stripes marking curbs and lanes were painted on Calle 60 between 57 and 59.
The program is a collaboration with the chamber of commerce, the state and the region’s utility companies, which are required under the rules to respond within 24 hours when wiring or water lines are reported broken.
“With the participation of civil societies and institutions, we will have a safer, more functional, attractive, cleaner and more beautiful historic center,” say Vila.
