The exercise equipment is out of order and users are waiting for government support to repair it. Photo: Héctor Ruiz.
Héctor Ruiz Mejía.- The municipal president of Jocotepec, José Miguel Gómez López, has decided to withdraw economic support from its municipal gymnasium, according to the gym’s users. Mayor José Miguel reports that the sports center’s annual cost to the city of Jocotepec is 24 million pesos, and was “no longer affordable” to City Hall.
After the mayor’s announcement that the gym located on 30 Degollado Street was going to be dismantled, a committee of gym users was formed to meet with the City to discuss allowing the recreational center to remain open. Consequently, it was agreed that the gym facility would remain in operation, but without any economic support from City Hall.
As a result of the City’s funding termination, the per visit fees were increased from 10 pesos to 15 pesos per visit, and the monthly fee has risen from 100 pesos to 150 pesos per month. «We had to organize among ourselves, and we agreed to raise the fees and to have more control over the payments. The users, especially those in the morning, have been very motivated to help this [gym facility] remain open,» said one of the users, who preferred to keep his name anonymous for fear of reprisals.
A regular user of the gym who was a part of the committee disputed the Mayor’s assertion of a 24 million peso annual cost to operate the facility. According to Alberto Reyes, ex-director of COMUDE, during his administration the monthly rent of the facility was around 3800 pesos, and if maintenance, cleaning and trainers’ payroll is included, the monthly outlay should not have exceeded 15,000 pesos per month.
In Semanario Laguna’s interviews of gym users, the importance of keeping the gym open was stressed, since the facility’s cost is accessible to the great majority of the people; and by closing the facility, many people would not have the opportunity to exercise. «Maybe there are people who have the possibility of paying for a normal gym, but there are many other people that you take this away from them and what do they do?» commented one of the interviewees.
Seminario Lakeside’s request to the City’s Social Communication Department for comment in this matter was unanswered. Carmelo Gutierrez, manager of the new Sports Management Department, only responded to a request for comment with an assurance that he «did not have at hand» information concerning the gym’s monthly expenses, but denied that financial support will be revoked by the City.
Translated by MaryAnne Marble
This is what one of the more than one hundred fixed stalls on Chapala’s malecon looks like.
Jazmín Stengel. Chapala (JAL) : In the second year of the pandemic and few outdoor Christmas festivities, tourists did not visit Chapala as they did in previous years. Based on a series of interviews conducted with merchants of different trades during the first week of January in the downtown area of the municipal capital, Laguna found that few did well this season.
On December 24 the stores and sidewalks of Avenida Francisco I. Madero were full of people, but in spite of this most of the merchants reported that they sold less than in previous years. «Even last year with the pandemic we did better,» commented a young woman selling traditional winter fritters, while buying a glass of atole from her neighbor, who also complained of having sold only half of what she used to sell.
Members of the “Tianguis Navideño,” that was relocated to the main square of Chapala, also complained about the low sales. «The location was bad, and there was little support from the City Hall,» said Francisco (Paco) Mora. The line of businesses were visually blocked by the tianguis, so although access to their businesses remained, customers passed by.
On the malecon, the souvenir and accessory stalls also had the same complaint. «This year the holidays were not even felt,» said a woman preparing micheladas. However, the tourist areas were able to take advantage of holidays such as Christmas (December 25), December 31 and New Year’s Eve, when the food and beverage businesses achieved their highest sales of the season.
Among restaurateurs there were also differences. The diverse food places had many reservations from both Mexicans and Expats to celebrate Christmas Eve dinner on December 24, according to Laguna’s research along the boardwalk. Seafood restaurants were the most popular on December 25 and January 1, but none of them managed to surpass the sales of previous years.
«After two years locked up, we don’t even love each other anymore,” exclaimed a voice from Johnny’s Place, who also said that the families that have attended year after year have changed their customs.
Due to the cancellation of the presentations planned by the municipal government a few hours before the beginning of the New Year’s Eve celebration, many people ignored the health warning and looked for a pleasant place to continue the night, which filled almost all the bars in the area. Unfortunately, such nights were few and far between.
Those who suffered the least from this year’s losses were the hoteliers, who, although they did not manage to reach the occupacity of other years, did maintain a partially full capacity during the two weeks of vacations.
Translated by Sandy Britton
The crash left 2 vehicles damaged
Excessive speed was the cause of a serious accident on the highway in San Antonio Tlayacapan, as a late model black pick-up truck was driving towards Chapala on the highway and rammed another vehicle the morning of January 3.
The hit and run driver lef a Chevrolet pick up 2500 black and white with Jalisco license plates with damage to the left side dashboard, panels and right side tire, and a family van Peugeot 2011, with damage on the right side and front of the vehicle. Both cars were immobilized on the road, causing serious traffic problems. There were no injuries.
Only 100 young adolescents were vaccinated in this past application of the Pfizer vaccine. Photo: Archive.
Héctor Ruiz Mejía – The number of positive cases of Covid-19 in the municipality of Jocotepec has tripled, announced the director of the Rafael Gómez Rodríguez municipal clinic, Dr. Ricardo Alvarado.
According to Ricardo Alvarado, for a little more than two weeks, between four to five of ten patients he sees in a day in his private consultations alone have tested positive for coronavirus.
«In the previous wave, at the most I was giving one or two positive people per day in my office, that number has already tripled alarmingly», the doctor said in an interview for Semanario Laguna.
Dr. Alvarado said that within the coronavirus results there are all variants, which apparently indicates that the Omicron variant, which has raised international alarm, is already in the municipality.
Without having exact data, Dr. Alvarado said that the positivity within the hospital has been correspond to some degree with the results he sees in his office, which he said indicates that he the current situation of contagion in the municipality is «worrisome».
He also reiterated his concern that the increase in infections will come with the January holidays, noting that the United States is currently one of the countries most affected by Covid-19 and during these holidays a large percentage of the ‘Absent Sons’ – Mexicans living abroad – usually come, he said.
He also added that those who have been most affected in this new upturn have been children and all those who have not been vaccinated, «there are people who do not want to vaccinate their children and this is having serious consequences,» he said.
This fact was reflected in this last vaccination days, which began last Wednesday, January 5, and which was aimed at young adolescents between 12 and 14 years of age, of which only one hundred units of the Pfizer vaccine were administered- one of the vaccination days with the lowest participation.
Finally, Dr. Alvarado urged the community of Jocotepec to become aware of the personal responsibility of each resident, even during the patron saint festivities, to maintain the correct sanitary measures.
«At this point it would be worse to cancel everything, since the merchants had already paid and to return all the money would have been chaos», he asserted, but it is necessary to wear a mask at all times, as well as to ask our companions to wear it, he said.
Translated by Maryanne Marble
There is concern among merchants about how to finance the new requirement imposed by City Hall to increase space in the Mercado. Photo: Courtesy.
Héctor Ruiz Mejía: Of the 28 street vendors who have been proposed to join the Municipal Market of Jocotepec, 10 will have to pay 7,500 pesos to secure their place.
After the extensive rehabilitation of the Market, where the spaces for street vendors on Morelos and Josefa Ortiz de Dominguez streets were erected, only 18 places were available. The City Council decided to make 10 extra modules available so that everyone can fit.
One official, who preferred not to be identified, said the measure and the cost are mandatory for the vendors. It will be the only way to ensure their place inside the establishment.
Each module will cost 7,500 pesos. Vendors must make a down payment of 3,750 pesos and the other half is to be paid in monthly installments, according to municipal authorities.
However, the measure surprised more than one of the merchants, who after a constant bad “streak” since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, live precariously on a daily basis with families to feed.
“We just got out a few bags of nopales and things have not picked up as we expected at this time,” said one of the vendors. “How are we going to pay 7,500 pesos?” The vendor added that the merchants were concerned about the impact their sales will have when they are relocated. Now there is the initial payment to have this “privilege.”
“Previously I had my ‘puestito‘ (little stall) fitted out. It cost me 10,000 pesos with much sacrifice, and now they tell me I need to spend again in another place to be able to enter,” said another vendor. In view of the uncertainty, she offers her vegetables to passers-by with the hope that an improved economic situation will help her find stability.
This represents the mayor’s final step in eradicating street vending in the municipality and confining merchants once and for all to a single place. The move is based on the idea that street sales are a big “nuisance” that contributes little.
However, some residents of the riverside municipality, originally from the United States, Canada and other parts of the world, visualized the future with sadness, saying street vendors are part of the essence of Mexico. These are people who settled here long ago and love Mexican culture.
“The street markets are what give color to the urban landscape, how sad it will be when they are gone,” said a Michigan native with a certain nostalgia. She preferred to remain anonymous, but she has lived in Jocotepec since 1970, partly because of the warm climate but also because she was captivated by the warmth of the people and the streets that are full of life.
Translated by Mike Rogers
Photograph of Pedro Aguilar. Photo: Courtesy.
Héctor Ruiz Mejía – The death of Pedro Isaac Aguilar Rentería, an 18-year old who loved soccer has shocked and saddened Jocotepec.
“I never imagined how much people loved my son,» said José Francisco Aguilar, a native of the municipality of Jocotepec, who at 45 years old, never imagined the tragedy that he and his family would suffer.
However, in the face of adversity, the farewell that the people and his friends gave Pedro something has comforted the heart of his father Francisco. Pedro was known as «el cuatito» (because he was a twin) died January 1st after a serious accident . Friends of «el cuatito» said goodbye for the last time to their beloved friend to the beat of «Muchacho Alegre, remembering his life with joy.
To the surprise of his family, last Tuesday, January 4th, hundreds of people attended his funeral mass, for which his mother thanked the people of Jocotepec with the words: «Jocotepec is a very beautiful town, but when it shows unity for others, it is a beautiful town».
“I just asked them not to stop singing, and they did not stop singing; that gave me a lot of happiness, realizing how much people loved my son, he was like an artist who knew everyone,» recalled his father remembering the charisma that his son had in life and how he was a hard-working young man from a very young age.
“While finishing his acupuncture studies at the CETAC» he worked as a laborer on a construction site, and as a fruit vendor and a lot of other jobs; he never gave up work” said his father., recalling with deep feeling, his father the passion that the young man of 18 felt for soccer, saying «he was very good, he was always wanted to play».
“I try to stay strong, to stay serene and calm, but there are moments when I can’t stand it, I just can’t.» No father should bury his children,” said Francisco Aguilar who knows that he still has family to think about, which gives him some strength and courage to continue.
Translated by Patrick O’Heffernan
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