Chapala

 Chapala municipal workman installing new cages in new dog shelter in east Chapala. Photo: Chapala official  video

Patrick O’Heffernan (Ajijic).- SOS Chapala Dog Rescue announced on Facebook Monday, May 23, that it is closing its dog shelter in West Ajijic. The next day, May 24, The Chapala municipality announced via a Facebook video the construction of a new shelter for dogs in Hacienda La Labor in East Chapala.

If the new shelter is properly completed to handle up to 100 dogs, and the dogs from the SOS facility in West Ajijic are moved to it and then closes down, the Aguirre Administration will have solved a Gordian knot of technical and legal problems and competing interests handed to it by the previous administration. However, as of the close of this edition, a few questions remain unanswered.

The actions by both entities are the result of a year-long political and legal battle involving homeowners whose lives have been turned upside down by the noise from the SOS West Ajijic  shelter, SOS who took on management of the facility in good faith for the municipality and invested large sums of money into it, the Chapala municipality, and the Jalisco State Pension Fund.

As Laguna reported  on May 13 of this year, a group of 20 Mexican and Expat homeowners  and representatives of several Homeowners Associations in West Ajijic filed a lawsuit against the SOS Chapala Dog Rescue organization, the Chapala government, and the Jalisco State Employees’ Pension Fund over the dog shelter established by the previous municipal administration near their homes. 

SOS operates the shelter under an agreement with the previous administration, which established it on land originally donated to the municipality for a graveyard. However, after SOS took over the Department of Ecology’s flailing operation, invested $800,000 pesos and turned it into a shelter noted in the industry for its high standards (but condemned by its neighbors for noise), the previous administration transferred the land to the Jalisco state Pension Fund to pay a debt to the Fund. SOS was not informed of the transfer and the Fund was not informed of the existence of a shelter on its property… essentially dumping the problem in the lap of the State and SOS before it left office.

The original shelter established and operated by the Moisés Anaya Administration was built without consulting the surrounding homeowners who found themselves suddenly inundated with the loud barking of dozens of dogs 24/7. Months of negotiation to solve the barking at the shelter  went nowhere so the homeowners sued. In a copy of the lawsuit obtained by Laguna, the plaintiffs charge that the dog shelter was illegally established by the Anaya Administration on land zoned for housing only, and that the agreement between the Anaya Administration and  SOS Chapala Dog Rescue was  invalid.  The lawsuit requests that the court orders administrative action be taken to move the shelter to a site zoned for the correct use.

The new administration reopened negotiations, found a useable site, and obtained a commitment from the homeowners to pay the lease fees – $15,000 pesos per moth – and, according to a photo provided to Laguna by the homeowners, signed a  lease on May 2 with Señor Trinidad in Hacienda la Labor for a former horse facility.

“The lease is for a 11,000 sq meter space with electricity and water and everything they need.  It  is a  dog paradise, Linda Freeman, a spokesperson for the homeowners told Laguna, adding that,  “  it’s $15,000 pesos a month but the homeowners agreed to pay for 2 months in advance and   (all rent) for two years. The  owner has been given $30k.by the municipality, but we paid for it through a donation to the municipality. As a group we will continue to support the municipality”  Freeman. They are acting in good faith.”

Jesús González pointed out the new construction at the dog shelter to Chapala President Aguirre. The concrete pad for new cages is in the background. Photo: Chapala official video

Sue Hollis of SOS sys not so fast; the site  is not properly prepared and the lease is too short for serious investment.

Questions about the site remain unanswered, as well as who will manage the new shelter, but the government is not asking for any investment for SOS, according to the homeowners. 

I know for a fact that the government did not expect SOS to pay one cent for either the lease or for construction of new facilities,” Nita Rudy, President of the Puerta Arroyo Homeowners Association, told Laguna.

As to the site, Hollis pointed to issues with the facility in terms of design and construction.

“They (the municipality) are not building new cages, just dividing the existing stalls, which have  to be fumigated for ticks before dogs can use them, plus they have to have drainage for the needed daily washdowns. And outside of the stalls they want to put dog runs in the corral, which is not acceptable because many dogs in one run will get into fights, especially during  fireworks,” Hollis told Laguna in a telephone interview.

Hollis said that she (SOS) refuses to put money into a new property with only a two year lease and that the rent after that is much too high for the group.

“We cannot afford this and it is not an appropriate site. We were quite willing to move, but it has to be the right property under the right conditions,” she told Laguna.

However, Nita Rudy told Laguna that in a meeting with Mr. Trinidad and representatives of the municipality, he indicated he would be willing to extend the lease and perhaps even sell the land. 

It is currently unclear if the site under construction by the municipality will meet these  requirements. It is also unclear where the monthly rent will come from beyond the funds provided by the homeowners group for the two years of the lease. The group has paid  $30,000 pesos for first and last month’s rent and committed to pay the monthly rent for the duration  of the lease, if the dogs are removed from the West Ajijic site. But as to who will make the payments after two years is still up in the air.  Laguna has reached out to the Chapala government with these questions but at press time has not received a response.

However, as far as the facilities are concerned, the video released by the municipality not only shows the horse stalls being divided into cages, but additional cages being constructed on concrete pads installed by Jesus González of the Department of Ecology. In the video, Jesus tells President Aguirre that the facility is 60% complete and in 8 – 10 days will have 50 completed cages. The video does not reveal the sanitation system for daily cage cleaning or the septic system for handling the daily waste of 100 or more dogs. Laguna has requested these details from the Administration.

The controversy seems to be coming to a head. The Jalisco State Employees Pension Fund has ordered SOS to leave its site and SOS is closing it down. The Municipality  has leased and is nearing completion of a new shelter in East Chapala and claims it can begin to take dogs very soon. The homeowners have paid $30,000 pesos to the landowner and agreed to pay the rent for 2 years, but only if the dogs and the cages in SOS shelter are removed. Secretary General of  the Council Lilia Alvado Macías  informed the homeowners that the SOS dog shelter lawyer had seen the site and agreed to it,” allowing the dogs to be moved and SOS to manage it.

The only questions that remain are: will the new shelter meet the standards SOS requires to manage it,  will the owner extend the lease after two years so the municipality and the site manager will not be scrambling  for another site, and can funding be found or guaranteed to meet the rent payments after the lease is up and a new administration takes over.

 The first question may be answered if SOS closes the facility and adopts out or fosters the dogs, rather than send them to the new shelter and manage for the municipality. The second question may take two years to answer and will be handed to the next administration. The third question could come down to the ability of any operation at the new site to pay for itself either through adoption fees, municipal funds, or donations.

In the meantime, anyone looking to adopt or foster a  dog, should contact SOS Chapala Dog rescue through its Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/soschapaladogrescue

Habitantes de San Nicolás de Ibarra presentaron sus quejas y recomendaciones al alcalde de Chapala. Fotografía: Jazmín Stengel.

Jazmín Stengel.- El Miércoles Contigo se volvió a realizar en San Nicolás de Ibarra después de seis semanas de espera, con la presencia de alrededor de 100 vecinos. Los cuales denunciaron la falta de seguridad en la población y de servicios en la Telesecundaria ‘Francisco Villa’, así como un proceso de elección para elegir a un delegado.

En el tema de seguridad, los vecinos reportaron varios asaltos en la comunidad, debido a que la patrulla que antes supervisaba la zona ya no lo hace con la misma frecuencia, por lo que exigieron que se preste especial atención a esta problemática. Después de escuchar la petición, el presidente Alejandro de Jesús Aguirre Curiel y el comisario Sergio Conzuelo Ramírez se comprometieron a tomar acciones.

Otro parte de la población abogó por las necesidades de los adolescentes, ya que, en la Telesecundaria ‘Francisco Villa’ los alumnos carecen de los servicios como el agua potable, que es de suma vitalidad para mantener la higiene, así como innumerables reparaciones de infraestructura, mantenimiento y falta de mobiliario escolar.

Al respecto, el actual administrador del agua en la delegación, Juan Antonio Vázquez Ayala, presentó un proyecto al alcalde de Chapala, Alejandro Aguirre, para bombear agua potable hasta las instalaciones de la institución educativa. Éste aún está en etapa de evaluación.

La tercera queja más mencionada por los habitantes de San Nicolás de Ibarra fue nuevamente el reemplazo del actual encargado de despacho, Salvador Delgadillo Márquez, debido que ha sido acusado de llevar una mala gestión o ser insuficiente para el puesto. Es por ello que, los habitantes siguen cuestionando sobre la elección a delegados prometida en tiempos de campaña, pero que hasta la fecha el Ayuntamiento ha seguido postergando.

Maquinaria pesada desazolvando los cauces en La Canacinta Ajijic. Fotografía: Cortesía.

Jazmín Stengel.- Chapala se prepara para recibir el temporal con el desazolve de los arroyos y cauces del municipio para prevenir inundaciones.

Los trabajos se han enfocado en la población de Ajijic, luego del deslave de los cerros en octubre del año pasado, en el que el barrio de La Canacinta resultó afectado.

Otros de los puntos en los que trabajaron y se mantienen en observación son el arroyo San Marcos en la cabecera municipal, el arroyo Grande en la delegación de San Antonio Tlayacapan junto al club de golf y el de la colonia Las Guerras, en Atotonilquillo.

Los cuerpos de emergencias en Chapala están preparados para atender complicaciones con lluvias de 30 hasta 70 milímetros, según estadísticas generales en los que Bomberos y Protección Civil se basan. Sin embargo, la lluvia del 5 de octubre llegó hasta los 120 milímetros en el barrio de La Canacinta, Ajijic.

Chapala cuenta con 32 puntos de riesgo identificados en el municipio, donde las lluvias podrían provocar inundaciones.

La maestra Carolina Medina Lugo de la Secundaría Santos Degollado de Ajijic, recibiendo su reconocimiento por 40 años de servicio en la comunidad. Fotografía: Jazmín Stengel.

Jazmín Stengel.- El Gobierno Municipal reconoció la trayectoria de 14 profesores de Chapala por más de 30 años de servicio docente; seis de secundaria, cinco de preescolar y tres de primaria.

En total fueron 625 profesores de distintas instituciones educativas que llegaron al desayuno el 13 de mayo en las instalaciones del Hotel Montecarlo, en la cabecera municipal.

Los profesores de secundaria reconocidos durante el desayuno buffet que contó con música de mariachi fueron: Lourdes Bernardo Hernández con 30 años de servicio; Juana Morones Magaña con 32; Martha Castañeda Contreras con 34 años de servicio; Leticia Hernández de los Santos también con 34 años.

Se colocó un arreglo de flores sobre la placa de los maestros frente al Centro Cultural Antigua Presidencia. Fotografía: Jazmín Stengel.

Al igual, la maestra Carolina Medina Lugo y el director Raúl Zamora Cárdenas de la Secundaría Santos Degollado en Ajijic fueron reconocidos por sus longevas trayectorias, con 40 y 51 años de servicio respectivamente.

A nivel primaria, se reconoció a Alicia Torres Real y a Luis Candelario Padilla Martínez, ambos con 30 años de servicio; y a la supervisora de la zona 96 de primarias, con 40 años de servicio. Los dos últimos quedaron fuera de la entrega de reconocimientos al no acudir, por lo que se les hará llegar con acto cívico en sus respectivas escuelas, afirmó el director de Educación en Chapala Diego Beltrán González.

En nivel preescolar, se reconoció a Jonathan de Jesús González Padilla con 30 años de servicio y a Claudia Almendra Ibarra Flores con 31 años, además de las maestras Itzel del Río con 39 años de servicio, Marcela Alcantar Rodríguez con 41 y la maestra Patricia Hernández con 39 años de servicio. La maestra Patricia tampoco pudo asistir al evento, por lo que al igual que a los otros profesores se les hará llegar su reconocimiento más adelante.

View of the Ajijic boardwalk and Lake Chapala. Photo: D. Arturo Ortega. 

Editorial Staff.- After the first heavy rain of the year, Lake Chapala is still losing water. To date, Mexico’s largest freshwater lake has lost 93 cm (over 3 feet); it’s at about 63% of total capacity. 

From January 1st to May 4th, Lake Chapala dropped from 74.98% of capacity to its current level, a loss of about 12 cm.

Translated by Amy Esperanto

 Fernando Riveros Magaña, director of the Chapala Regional High School. Photo: Jazmin Stengel.

Jazmín Stengel (Chapala).-  Sex education, and keeping students safe from harassment and bullying will be a priority for Fernando Riveros Magaña, the new director at the head of the Chapala Regional High School of the University of Guadalajara (UdeG), for the period 2022-2025.

Riveros Magaña served as Secretary General of the Chapala school from 2015 to 2018. Now, he takes the place of his colleague and friend Juan Ramón Álvarez López, who led the high school management since 2015.

Riveros Magaña says his priority will be to train teachers to raise awareness and diagnose disorders that may cause harm to students. 

He said that a case of alleged sexual harassment involving Professor David N. is unique in the Chapala High School record to date.

«Teachers must not only conscientiously avoid the abuse of minors,» he said, but they must act as first responders in situations of bullying or harassment.

«Harassment is something deeply rooted at all levels,” Riveros Magaña told Laguna. “However, that does not justify it happening here,» he said.

Students will be taught to recognize different levels of bullying and harassment and urged to report such incidents to the proper authorities if they themselves are victims. This would help create a safety net between teachers, administrators and students.

Issues relating to gender violence and sexual diversity would also be addressed, from the point of view of both young people and adults.

“The staff must be open to new forms of expression of love and coexistence between couples,” as well as being respectful towards, and tolerant of, the LGBTQ+ community, said Riveros Magaña.

The new director said he was aware of the need for more psychologists to serve students. His ideal is to have at least one psychologist per shift, with help from teachers who are knowledgeable about the subject.

Riveros Magaña said he would also work to resolve infrastructure deficiencies at the school, including drainage repairs at bathrooms, which must be fixed before they become a hygiene problem. 

The director also plans to create a wired internet network with fewer bugs and powered by solar panels. His most ambitious project is a large, open-air auditorium where young people can engage in activities in combination with the cultural centers of the municipality.

Fernando Riveros Magaña, 56 years old, graduated from the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Guadalajara in 1993. For 13 years he worked as a private doctor in the system of the Federal Health Secretariat, currently serving for the Jocotepec Community Hospital.

His teaching career began 13 years ago at the University Center of the North (CUNorte) of the UdeG in Colotlán. He also was in charge of Medical Services at the Los Valles University and area manager at the Universidad de Oriente. Within the UdeG he is responsible for the Outreach and Liaison Area of ​​the Transdisciplinary Literacy Institute (ITRALI) and deputy director of the “Letras a Volar” («Letters to Fly») program.

Translated by Alan Ferguson

The mayor of Chapala, Alejandro de Jesús Aguirre Curiel, accompanied by municipal officials and elements of Civil Protection and Chapala Firefighters. 

Editorial Staff.- Real estate developers who improperly diverted streams were largely to blame for major landslides in Chapala riverbeds last October, an investigation has confirmed.

The results of a diagnosis by the State Civil Protection Unit of the State of Jalisco (UEPCBJ) showed that the diversions had greatly reduced the natural width of the channels.

The diagnosis was revealed during a session of the Municipal Council of Civil Protection of the Municipality on Thursday, May 19.

State director Roldán Guerrero said the narrowing of the channels threatened the sustainability of the fragile micro-basin in the municipality. He argued against any type of construction that puts the population at risk.

The municipal president of Chapala, Alejandro de Jesús Aguirre Curiel, said that since his administration began, no real estate development had been approved.

He added that collaboration between all parties involved in future developments would be of the utmost importance to guarantee the security of residents.

The director of Civil Protection and Firefighters of Chapala, Lorenzo Antonio Salazar, reported that maintenance and conservation of riverbeds in federal zones had begun.

He said the work consists of cleaning streams in the municipality, starting in the Ajijic delegation since that was where the greater number of obstructions in the channels was detected.

He said that 30 percent of the work had been done, using machinery from the municipality and involving personnel from Public Works, General Services, Public Cleaning and Parks and Gardens.

The municipal director cited a previous lack of maintenance as a problem, with channels becoming obstructed by branches, trunks, earth and stones.

The rainy and tropical cyclone season began on May 15 and is expected to end on November 30.

Translated by Alan Ferguson

Affectations caused by the guamúchil tree that fell due to the strong winds in Miguel Martínez street in the municipal headwaters. Photograph: Jazmín Stengel.

Jazmín Stengel (Chapala).- Winds of over 50 kilometers per hour in Ajijic and more than 70 (about 43 MPH)  in Chapala were recorded for almost 15 minutes during the first rain of the season, which occurred on May 14, around 7:30 pm, according to Civil Protection and Firefighters of Jalisco.

According to reports from the director of Fire and Civil Protection in Chapala, Antonio Lorenzo Salazar Guerrero and the Municipal System of Potable Water and Sewage (SIMAPA), the result of the first rain in the municipality of Chapala was five fallen trees, damage to power lines and obstruction of water well number three. 

Of the five trees, two fell in the Atotonilquillo delegation, one at the entrance on the Santa Rosa – La Barca highway and the second at the exit to Juanacatlán, damaging a light pole and telephone cables, which have already been repaired.

Another tree, almost 15 meters (50 feet) high, fell in La Floresta, a subdivision of Ajijic, blocking the road for almost an hour. The Fire and Civil Protection Departments removed it completely. 

In the municipal capital, on Emiliano Zapata Street, a tree collapsed and took the perimeter fence of the neighboring land.  On Miguel Martinez Street a guamúchil tree fell on the niche of the Virgin of Guadalupe and the gate of house number 480-A, taking down  two walls and a metal sign. 

Miguel Martínez street was blocked on Sunday 15 after the strong winds. Photograph: Jazmín Stengel.

Firemen and Civil Protection promised Eliba, owner of the property, that members of the Urban Development Department would come to assess the damage, but a week after the incident they still have not shown up. 

In addition, water well number three, located on Teofilo Silva Street, was clogged with sediment, to the extent that only four liters of water per second could be extracted, when on a regular basis it gave 25 liters per second. 

At the close of this edition, SIMAPA personnel were re-drilling the well to stabilize the water supply in the Las Redes and Barrio Nuevo subdivisions, located northeast of the municipal capital.

The effects of the rain were also felt in other areas. In school 1066 of Las Redes Chapala, damage was reported to a shade netting structure that was also damaged by the strong winds of the weekend,  and  was removed by Urban Planning personnel,  after an  assessment of the structure by Firefighters and Civil Protection.

«Having a municipality rich in green areas also entails risks,» explained Salazar Guerro. Neither Fire and Civil Protection, nor the Directorate of Ecology have conducted a total study of trees in the municipality, to identify how many of them are sick and at risk of collapsing.

Typically, upon receiving a report, the Fire Department and Civil Protection go to the site to diagnose the tree and determine its condition. For this reason, the director of Civil Protection made a request to the public to report to them any type of anomaly in trees in their gardens or public spaces. 

Translated by Christalle Dalsted

During the River Plate Classic, the player with shirt number 10 is ‘El Ratón’ Alfredo Amezcua Arellano. Photo: Jazmín Stengel.

Jazmín Stengel (Chapala).- One more victory. The Chapala Selection maintains its undefeated leadership and will advance to the round of 16 of the Jalisco Cup in the first place of  on the board, after defeating the Mazamitla Selection with 3 goals to 0 as visitors, adding two more points to their record, during the sixth matchday.

The first goal was scored by number 17 Ricardo ‘El Rika’ Vázquez Beltrán when he received a serve in  a long shot by ‘El Ratón’, Alfredo Amezcua Arellano in the 13th minute, at the beginning of the first half. 

In the 27th minute, Carlos Corona Mercado (shirt number 15) took advantage of a rebound from a free kick to put the ball into the back of the net, making the score 2-0.

The third goal was scored by number 13 Carlos Amador Uribe when he saved a shot against the crossbar by ‘El Ratón’ Alfredo Amezcua Arellano with his head, in the 40th minute of the second half.

In the overall standings, Chapala secures its qualification to the round of16, and so far is the undefeated leader of table 5 Southeast, with five matches played, only one tied, 13 goals scored and only two against with a goal difference of 11 goals and 14 points in total.

Concepción de Buenos Aires is in second place with six games played, three won and lost, three  with  only five goals for and eight against, which makes a difference of minus three goals and 9 points in total.

The neighboring municipality of Jocotepec, in third place, is fighting for qualification to the round of 16, with five games played, of which they have won three, lost one and tied one. They have 6 goals for and two against, which makes a difference of 4 goals and 10 points in total.

Translated  by Patrick O’Heffernan

Large bags of trash sit along a chain link fence. Credit: Jazmín Stengel.

Jazmín Stengel (Chapala).-  Neighbors complain that garbage is still not being collected in some Chapala neighborhoods including San Juditas, San Miguel, La Purísima and Las Redes. 

In response, the Chapala municipal government explained that the company in charge of garbage collection in the municipality, GIRRSA, has one broken-down truck. The broken truck is negatively impacting their ability to maintain the regular garbage pickup schedule. 

In the interim, municipal employees are working to pick up the slack.

Translated by Amy Esperanto