Enrique Alfaro Ramírez, governor of the state of Jalisco.
Sofía Medeles (Ajijic, Jal.)– Governor Alfaro told a socially distanced crowd in Ajijic’s Plaza that the federal government has abandoned the state financially but he is working to get help to all sectors of the population “as far as possible.”
«We are having to face this (the crisis) alone, because the federal government has abandoned us, leaving us without support of any kind because this seems to be our problem,” he told the socially distanced crowd of a hundred people, many of whom had waited since early morning to meet him. He added that, «we have come to give some economic support and to show that we are trying to help all Jalisco’s women to the full extent of our power.»
In an immediate crowd-pleasing show of support, Alfaro helped distribute economic support and 55 bicycles from the program «Reactiva Municipios» of the Ministry of Economic Development of the State of Jalisco.
Alfaro also unofficially proclaimed the designation of Ajijic as a Magic Town (the Federal Secretary of Tourism makes the decision, not the state governor) and announced the investment of more than three and a half million pesos for the rehabilitation of the northern area of the main square (in front of the Rosario Chapel and the Cultural Center), to begin on Saturday, November 28. He also publicized the future remodeling of the Auditorium of La Ribera and the construction of the Chapel of Vigil.
Alfaro also assured the crowd that the construction of a second aqueduct to take water from Lake Chapala to Guadalajara has been completely cancelled, and the metropolitan water supply will be provided through other projects, such as helping in the cleanup efforts of the Lerma-Santiago River.
In his ten-minute speech, he boasted to the Ajijitecos that hundreds of millions of pesos have been invested to cushion the economic impact of the pandemic, and he assured people that the Jalisco is ready to reopen the economy since the upward trend in the number of infections has been halted, as well as the percentage of hospital bed usage. He added that the state cannot continue with the isolation because «if people do not die of the virus, they will die of hunger.
«We cannot stop our economy anymore because the economy is the other pandemic; if we continue in isolation and shut down, then maybe we will not die of the virus, but many will die of hunger and we cannot allow that,» said Jalisco’s governor.
The governor and his entourage spent most of Thursday in the area on a tour that included visits to the municipalities of Chapala, Jocotepec and Tuxcueca, where it was announced that the State of Jalisco will be the first in the country to implement the coronavirus vaccination program.
«Tomorrow (Friday, November 27) I will announce together with the University of Guadalajara (UdeG), the start of the vaccination program, as Jalisco will be the first state to be well prepared when it comes to receiving the COVID-19 vaccine», he said.
Wrapping up, Alfaro, saying “thank you to the people Ajijic for receiving me, long live Chapala, long live Ajijic and long live Jalisco.”
Translated by Patrick O’Heffernan
Patrick O’Heffernan.
The United States is currently home to more than 7,000 non-daily newspapers with more than 150 million readers. There are no similar statistics of weekly local newspapers in Mexico, but Wikipedia lists 55 regional newspapers, 24 of which publish weekly. The actual total is probably much higher because the Wiki list does not include the many hyperlocal weeklies that exist in almost every town and pueblo in the country. But regardless of the correct number, Mexico is blessed with a robust infrastructure of local papers.
Here in Lakeside, the majority Spanish-speaking population relies on the Semanario Laguna and its website, Twitter feed and Instagram sites for breaking news, plus its innovative Ventas Publicidad Laguna WhatsApp site for local business news. For English-speakers, there is the English-language section of Semanario Laguna, plus hyperlocal online news websites in English, Facebook groups, and the Lakeside edition of the English-language Guadalajara Reporter.
Some people dismiss the hyperlocal news organizations and outlets. They prefer to get their news from Facebook, TV, regional weeklies, national or state dailies, or “big news” websites like NewYorkTimes.com, LATimes.com, Guardian.com, etc. But local weeklies are the muscle and sinew of journalism in any country for two big reasons.
First, local papers provide you with information about what is going on in your neighborhood, your town, your school, sometimes your block. Where else are you going to find out who won the local high school soccer game, whether or not the town’s escaramuza charra team is going to the finals, or why the street across from your house is being torn up? Who else is going to interview Miss Ajijic and Miss Chapala and their courts? Who else is going to cover the local citizens’ rally to stop illegal development and then go and photograph the illegal development?
Local news outlets, whether daily or weekly or online, provide the information people want and need for their daily lives. You cannot get everything you need from Facebook, or local editions of metro papers, or national websites. You need news organizations with people on the ground, in your community who know where the bodies are buried (or try to find out), who know the local government, who know the local businesses and nonprofits, and know what you need to know in your community and its relationships to the state and the nation and yes, even the world.
Which brings me to the second reason local news organizations are so important to journalism; they are not only its muscle and sinew, they are its womb.
The Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute of NYU publishes a long list of journalists who began at a local weekly or small TV station and went on to win Pulitzer Prizes, lead national networks, serve as executive editors of major newspapers, or become best-selling authors.
Consider Christine Amanpour, Chief International Anchor for CNN; she started on a small radio station in Rhode Island. Pulitzer-Prize winning photographer for the New York Times Homer Bigart started as a copy boy at his hometown newspaper. Ben Bradlee, the Executive editor of the Washington Post whose character we all saw in the film The Pentagon Papers, started his career as a cub reporter at the New Hampshire Sunday News, a start-up Sunday paper in Manchester, New Hampshire.
Or consider Lakeside homeowner Teya Ryan who started in a small, hyperlocal public TV station in Los Angeles, where she cut her teeth producing community stories and eventually rose to Executive Vice President and General Manager of CNN, leading the world’s largest news organization.
Even here at Semanario Laguna we are losing one of our reporters to Mexico City where he will get a Masters Degree and work for one of the nation’s largest magazines. A former writer for Laguna is now one of the top sports writers in the country. And we are proud that they started with us — a hyperlocal news organization that runs photos of local school graduating classes and pictures of crocodiles in our lake alongside investigations of government misfires and private takeovers of public property.
We know many, if not most, of you who are reading this right now also get news from Facebook, or the Guadalajara Reporter, or news alerts from national papers in the US and Mexico. Great – you should. I do. A variety of sources gives you a much better understanding of the world. But we thank you for reading the Semanario Laguna because, not only does that mean that you are well-informed locally, but you are part of what keeps independent journalism in Mexico strong.
Patrick O’Heffernan, PhD, is a volunteer cub reporter for Semanario Laguna. He is a former correspondent and magazine editor in Asia, a Professor of Mass Media and International Relations at Georgia Tech, and an Emmy-winning TV producer for the UN. He started his career as a summer intern with the Los Gatos Times -Saratoga Observer, a hyperlocal weekly newspaper in Los Gatos California
Although it had been announced for September, work resumed last week.
Miguel Cerna: Late, but progressing. Last week, the Government of the State of Jalisco resumed the construction of the bicycle path that will connect Ajijic with San Juan Cosalá when its second stage is completed. According to the Jocotepec municipal president José Miguel Gómez López, the $87.5 million peso project will extend from the exit of the neighboring town and up to the area of the thermal waters.
Jalisco Governor Enrique Alfaro Ramírez had announced the beginning of the work in September when he went to supervise the Chapala work last August, but the work began only last week
José Miguel Gómez López, said that, “as of September, we are already in the bidding process for the work; we started the second stage which already has a budget of 87.5 million pesos. We have completed the Ajijic segment and are going to reach San Juan Cosalá, so we are already in Jocotepec».
Last November 9, the Mayor of Jocotepec met with restaurant owners in the Piedra Barrenada restaurant row to discuss the complications and annoyances the construction would cause and how to mitigate it. The previous cyclopista passed over the mountain to avoid reducing lanes, but the Civil Protection agency objected to the risk of the mountain route, forcing the path to use the highway, reducing the number of lanes and tightening traffic.
“ We evaluated running the path over the mountain on stone roads and not on the highway but Civil Protection ruled that the route was unsafe – a risk for cyclists because the stone is broken, killing this route, «the Mayor explained.
However, the possibility will be re-evaluated with new studies to determine if the danger persists. According to Gomez Lopez, the second stage of the cyclopista will be completed in January and then construction crews will finish the stretch to the municipal seat of Jocotepec, thus concluding the entire work approximately in March, resulting in a bike path from Jocotepec to Chapala. Translated by Patrick O’Heffernan
The new well is located in the zone known as «La Mojonera».
Sofía Medeles (Ajijic, Jal.) – SIMAPA stepped up it’s drilling for the new water well the agency started on November 10 to supply west Ajijic to end the years-long water cutbacks in the La Mojonera neighborhood of the Rancho del Oro subdivision.
Municipal president Moisés Anaya Aguilar and officials from Ajijic and SIMAPA were on hand to launch the project last week. Juan José Vázquez, head of operations for SIMAPA Chapala, said that it will take three to four months or a little longer to deliver the water, depending on the type of soil and the time needed to install the necessary equipment. The well is moving a ahead in La Mojonera neighborhood
Complete costs for the well and associated facilities were not available at press time since at this stage it is difficult to determine cost, capacity and duration of the project, Juan José Vázquez told the press last week, and more precise information has not yet been made available. He told the press last week that the capacity of Ajijic’s water supply system is concerning because only two of Ajijic’s six wells supply most of the demand in Ajijic. The new well will help relieve the demand.
Municipal president Anaya Aguilar thanked Jorge Gastón González Alcérreca, the engineer who heads the Secretariat of Integral Water Management (SEGIA) for working with the State Water Commission (CEA) to get the drilling project underway and moving ahead.
Anaya Aguilar said he was pleased with yet another achievement of his administration. «We are happy that this vitally important commitment was fulfilled, since the lack of water was one of the problems that most afflicted the people on this side of town. Let’s hope that the process goes smoothly and that the well will soon start working,» said the mayor in his speech at the well’s kick-off.
Ajijic delegate Juan Ramón Flores, said that he hopes that the process of drilling and equipping the well will move as quickly as possible. Also present for last week’s project launch were Councilwoman Cristina Gómez Padilla; the head of COMUDE, Celso Ramón Hernández Díaz; Secretary Ricardo Martínez; and Ramón Ramírez, head of SIMAPA Ajijic.
Translated by Patrick O’Heffernan
Ajijic seafront.
Sofía Medeles (Ajijic, Jal.) – Large profits for the tourism sector but inflation for the locals and misuse of the grant money by corrupt politicians are among the reactions of Ajijic residents to the application for Ajijic to be designated a Pueblos Mágicos.
Since it was announced that the Chapala Council would nominate Ajijic for the third time as a Magic City, opinions have been flying. Laguna surveyed 24 people and 12 businesses in the Heart of Ajijic, to get a sense of the local feeling about the application.
Most of the people surveyed (20,) are conflicted because they would appreciate the honor for their town but they see many inconveniences. The remaining four respondents simply find it a bad idea.
Miguel, a five-year resident told Laguna that, “this project would boost the economy of Ajijic and the well-being of the residents, but the infrastructure of Ajijic can’t really support an increase in tourism. “Besides,” he added, “the added value it would bring would be unevenly distributed, increasing the wealth imbalance here – the costs are already exaggerated, and they would be even more so.”
Elena, who works in the restaurant industry, said that she would appreciate more tourism, but had similar concerns.
«Well, it would be great if there was more tourism,” she said, “ so that we all could do well, especially the people who work in places that depend on it, but I think that if we were to get the title everything would be more expensive, so maybe we would earn more, but we would pay more.”
Native Ajijiteco Jorge told Laguna, «there would be more work, yes, but there would also be more inflation in prices, in income, and in services. First, the economic infrastructure should be put in order, so that the magical town really benefits Ajijic and not just the tourists and a few people who get rich from our work. I sincerely believe that the Ajijitecos are not prepared for this, because to me, Ajijic is a rural ranch that wants to rush into urbanization».
Meanwhile, the respondents who denied that there would be any benefit echoed Maria who said, «Tourism has become more of a problem than a solution in the last few years, tourists come and don’t respect, they don’t consume, besides leaving a lot of garbage and creating a road chaos without comparison, I don’t see any benefit to those of us who live here.»
However, for the commercial sector of the Heart of Ajijic, galleries and restaurants and handicraft store owners see much benefit in the proposal.
Alejandra from the handicraft store Manos de Ajijic, commented «As for the economic spillover I think it would benefit the businesses and the people who work with tourism. However, Ajijic does not have the space to grow more, causing excess demand in the hotel business. For the real estate business, I think it would be very beneficial, however only for the tourists, but more tourist housing could price more locals out of the market.”
Gustavo Arce from Amigo del Cacao warned that,»it is a good project because Ajijic has a lot of potential, it meets all the requirements. As long as the magic city award benefits the people and not the corrupt politicians. It’s like saying that the magical towns program sends a peso to Ajijic, and from that, 10 cents arrive in the town and 90 cents go somewhere else. If there is some authority that can regulate that, it would be wonderful, otherwise we don’t need it”
Translated by Patrick O’Heffernan
Photo: Archive.
Manuel Jacobo (Chapala, Jalisco): The pollution of the Lake Chapala area continues due to the lack of enforcement by the National Water Commission (CONAGUA), and due to the lack of interest on the part of the authorities of the three levels of government who argue that they do not have the authority to deal with the issue.
Riberas del Pilar is a prime example in the municipality of Chapala. There, retired bullfighter, Alfredo Ríos Becerra «El Conde» began filling the federal zone with debris four years ago, while his neighbors denounced his bad behavior to the Federal Attorney General’s Office for Environmental Protection (PROFEPA) and to the CONAGUA, but nothing happened.
They also complained to the municipal authorities who did nothing to stop the pollution, but, instead they put in a drinking water connection, numbered streets and houses and brought in electricity. Shortly before the former president of Chapala, Javier Degollado González closed the site, at the end of his administration, Semanario Laguna documented more dumping and pollution, and everything continued as if nothing had happened.
Currently the filling is notorious and there are some cabins that, according to the neighbors, Alfredo Ríos defines them as stables but there are cement foundations and every time their neighbors question them, he threatens and intimidates them. The case of «El Conde» is one of the many cases on Paseo del Lago street, because along the way there are various invasions that include construction of houses and gardens.
For Mario Salmón, activist and architect, member of the College of State Architects based in Chapala, the concern is great, because over the years he has documented the invasions and all the processes of the lake, but in the last invasions he has observed how «in less than three weeks they raise a wall almost 50 meters long by four meters high and made a garden and it is already on the edge of the lake.
Another problem experienced by the largest lake in Mexico is the amount of garbage that goes into the lake, as well as illegal fishing by fishermen who come from other places.
Local people have also identified as a serious problem the pollution that reaches the fresh water of the lake through the sewers, because many of them do not work and there are no treatment plants.
Now that a decree has been published in the Official Journal of the Federation (DOF) guaranteeing free access and transit on beaches throughout the country and establishing a fine of just over one million pesos for those who prohibit passage, it is hoped that this will help to evict the invaded areas.
The decree was issued last Wednesday, October 21 by President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (AMLO), which adds several provisions to the General Law of National Property, to ensure free access and transit on the beaches, where it emphasizes in Article 8 that access to Mexican beaches may not be hindered or restricted.
That is why the architect Mario points out «we all have the right to a beach, we all have the right to access, everyone. It doesn’t matter that if I have a thousand pesos and if you don’t , I can’t stop you from going to the beach. » Translated by Patrick O’Heffernan
Patrick O’Heffernan
In the late 1960s, after a century of complaints, the governors of the North American states of California and Nevada approved a bi-state compact to protect Lake Tahoe, the largest freshwater lake west of the Rocky Mountains. They created the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency to oversee development around Lake Tahoe, which is slightly smaller than Lake Chapala. TRPA was approved by the United States Congress and tasked with creating a plan with the local cities and agencies. Today that plan is enforced by TRPA and federal, state, and local governments that strictly regulate development.
Lake Chapala is now facing the same kind of crisis Lake Tahoe faced 60 years ago. But Lake Chapala is far more vital to the people of its surrounding states and towns than the mostly recreational Lake Tahoe is. Lake Chapala, Mexico’s largest natural lake, is the linchpin of a gigantic eco and economic system, the River Lerma-Lake Chapala drainage basin, which includes more than 8 million people, 3,500 diverse industries, 750,000 hectares of irrigated farmland and 14 cities with populations in excess of 100,000. And it is under deadly stress.
Lake Chapala is beset by pesticide runoff, dehydration, algal blooms, high phosphorus levels, heavy metals, aquatic weeds, sewage, and loss of shoreline. Driving much of this is illegal appropriation of the Federal shoreline and water – illegal dumping in Jocotepec for merry-go-rounds, illegal building on the beach in Ajijic by restaurants, illegal filling for farms in Riberas, garbage dumped in the lake from west Ajijic to Chapala, illegal fishermen, untreated sewage – they are all killing the lake.
Why? Because there is little to no enforcement.
Chapala, Jocotepec, Jalisco and the Federal governments all have agencies whose responsibility is to protect the Lake we all love, the largest lake in Mexico. And they all fail.
The problem is not weak laws, or lack of scientific expertise, or ignorance of the problems or corrupt or underperforming officials. It is lack of political will.
As far back as 1997, there was call for international pressure on Mexico, similar to the Canadian lobbying that led to the conservation of Monarch butterfly habitat, to detail the Lake’s problems and develop a multi-state, regional-national effort to save the Lake. But this takes will and money. The agencies whose job it is to protect the Lake are underfunded, overworked and undercoordinated. And that is the failure, not of the good people who manage and staff the agencies, but of political will to give them the authority and resource they need to succeed.
The Lakeshore is Federal, but the local office of the Federal agency is understaffed – so much so that when Chapala Mayor Moisés Anaya Aguilar took its director on a tour of illegal appropriation of Federal shoreline he was told that there are too many problems and too few resources to do much. Local agencies have no authority to act and Federal agencies have no capability to act. And AMLO has other priorities.
Some progress is being made, mostly in uncoordinated fits and starts. There is a move to devolve enforcement authority to the local governments. But that will be a wack-a-mole game that ignores the major problems and will meet fierce pushback. Without a regional plan, progress monitoring, funds from the Federal government for enforcement officers and equipment, sewage treatment plants, shoreline rehabilitation, and prosecution, it will fail.
Which is where political will comes in. The lake can be protected if the people demand it. In this week’s Laguna, reporter Sofia Medeles chronicles how the online complaints of a citizen finally prodded coordinated governmental action to stop illegal beach appropriation by the Maria Isabel restaurant in Ajijic. It will take many –thousands – of citizen complaints to get the sewage treatment plants built, stop the pesticide runoff, prosecute the lakeshore invasions, and regulate fishing and tourism to save the Lake. And it may take international pressure to get the Federal government to generously fund state and local agencies and give them the authority to get the job done.
The Tahoe Regional Planning Agency could be a model for Lake Chapala’s future. A scientifically-based plan with clear progress benchmarks backed up by determination in state, federal and local governments overcame lethargy and opposition in Lake Tahoe. It might work here. But it took the people of California and Nevada 100 years of complaining, pressuring and voting to create the political will. Lake Chapala does not have 100 years
Ajijic Ex-pat Liaison Héctor España.
Patrick O’Heffernan, Ajijic. In a normal year, the Technical College in Ajijic certifies over 100 students for good-paying jobs in a variety of fields, but this year, because of the Covid-19 economic slowdown, there are no jobs and the usual part-time employment many students rely on to p[ay tuition have disappeared, leaving any students stranded without tuition or living money. Ajijic Ex-pat Liaison Héctor España Ramos has started a fund to support them.
“You may not be aware of our Technical College in the Libramento. It prepares and certifies youths for high paying secure technical employment and houses over 1200 students a year. However, this year, there are so few jobs that 364 students will have to drop out due to the inability to pay the $125 dollar/ semester tuition.,” said España Ramos.
There are 161 students currently at risk, he added, pointing out that $125 will pay the annual tuition for a student. Both male and female students in all majors from engineering to culinary arts are at risk.
España Ramos has set up a tuition fund to support students. Donors receive a name, picture and information on the student they are supporting. The response from the community has been strong, although not nearly enough to provide tuition for all the students who need tuition help.
“I want to thank you to all the people who have helped. We are getting good donations but we need more for all the students. If we can do this for pets, why not students? “he said.
People can donate at PayPal using the address ms1cb@yahoo.com for dollar donations to a friend, or they can call him at his cellphone 33 10650725 to arrange a cash donation and choose the student they want to support.
To reinforce measures to prevent contagion by Covid19, during the weekend, personnel from the municipal government of Chapala and Civil Protection made tours of different points in the municipality to deliver mouth guards. Photo: Municipal Government of Chapala.
Domingo M. Flores: During the first weekend of the activation of the Emergency “Red Button”, five businesses were closed for not complying with the measures decreed by the Government of the State of Jalisco, including liquor stores and restaurants; two located in the city of Chapala, two in Ajijic and one more in Atotonilquillo.
At least 200 enforcement staff from different departments of the municipal government participated In the operation. Twenty-four reports of private parties were also investigated; however, since the meetings were on private property, they could not be closed but were asked to turn down the music and were reminded that crowds are not allowed due to the increase of cases of Covid-19 in the State.
«The parties were not held in public premises but on private property, and we cannot close down houses. After we arrived, they turned down the music, but as soon as our people left, they turned up again. These were very irresponsible people celebrating a variety of things,» said the President of Chapala, Moisés Anaya Aguilar.
Anaya Aguilar explained t the officials in charge of the operation were ordered to avoid confrontation; on the contrary, they were to respectfully explain to those who violate the Emergency Button decree that no public or private meetings can be held.
Public Security responded to 22 cases of people who were aggressive because of the measures were being enforced. In addition, it was announced that as of November 4, officers of Mobility boarded the Chapala-Guadalajara buses to verify that users and drivers wear masks; if they were not, the authorities provided them with one.
Anaya Aguilar called the tourists irresponsible, who, despite the activation of the Emergency Button, decided to come to Chapala in the midst of the contingency.
«Those who came behaved very irresponsibly. They jumped the bars in the restricted areas, and there were people who helped them. Don’t believe what you read on social networks. We can’t be everywhere all the time so some people are just careless for 10 to 15 minutes. But just braking the protocol rules to get a picture can infect others. Tell them that we are doing our job,» said the president of the municipality.
Anaya Aguilar congratulated the solidarity of the merchants of the Malecón who complied one hundred percent with the sanitary measures, and recalled that the municipality will continue to close businesses that do not comply with the decree until it ends on November 13. Translated by Patrick O’Heffernan
Dharma’s on the Ajijic Malecon will have to discontinue its popular Sunday afternoon concerts, like this one last week with Lete Gibney.
Patrick O’Heffernan, Ajijic. Governor Alfaro of Jalisco pushed the red button Wednesday with an announcement on the state’s website https://botondeemergencia.jalisco.gob.mx/. The restrictions will last for 14 days but may be extended if Covid cases don’t level off. Practically this means his measure will take effect throughout the state of Jalisco as of Friday, October 30 and last until Friday, November 13. During two included weekends there will be a stoppage of activities from 6:00 in the morning on Saturday and until 5:59 in the morning the following Monday.
The website lists events that can and can’t be held, times that events and restaurants and other establishments can be open, and protocols required. The restrictions vary somewhat with the location – different rules apply in Chapala and Puerto Vallarta– but in general, commercial activities must close by 7 on weekdays and cannot continue on weekends. This includes restaurants bars, buses, and private social events. (our thanks to Kerry Watson of Chapala Health Talk Facebook group for her excellent reporting on the announcement)
In Chapala (including Riberas, San Antonio, Ajijic, etc), the main areas and activities that will be shut down during restricted hours include plazas, the Lakeside malecons, public markets and tianguis ,flea markets and organic markets, sports areas/teams and urban forests, religious ceremonies and meetings of more than 10 people, and open or closed event centers.
This will be a blow to the restaurant and entertainment sector in Lakeside, but the impact will vary. Laguna conducted a nonscientific telephone survey of music venues to get an idea of how they plan to respond to the two week-long – and possibly longer – red button restrictions. In general, many venue owners looked for ways to continue providing live music. These efforts ranged from concerts at Casa Domenech from 5 -7 on the nights its is open – Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Fri, to Adelita’s in San Antonio Tlaycapan which will offer music only one night a week, on Thursdays.
Venues like Gossips that only had music on weekends, will eliminate music for the red button period. Others like Meraki’s will continue their weekday music schedule, but just move it earlier, to 4 pm to 5 or so. Meraki’s has the flexibility to move its music completely outside, which it will do, to insure social distancing, an option not available to all venues.
Some venues will have to postpone live music, but will draw business with open mic nights, like La Bodega . The venue hopes a 25% discount on drinks will make up for business lost because of the lack of live music.
Dharma’s may be the local venue most impacted because it is the only music and food venue on the Ajijic Malecon and will lose its popular Sunday afternoon concerts, although it will offer music on Wednesday nights.
Owner, Ayrton Adrian lamented the impact of the closure of the Malecon, saying. “yes, this will totally hurt business. We are the only place on the Malecon with music. Shutting down from the Malecon will hurt us, especially because we will lose our weekend business. We will alert your customers that we are open and that take out is available on weekend, but no music.”
The general consensus of the venue operators Laguna talked with is that they hope it is only two weeks; they will lose business without the music and weekend business, and will try to make it up with take-out and deliveries, but for two weeks it won’t be fatal. Ray Domenech of Casa Domenech pointed out the impact on the music community and mentioned that one reason he was determined to offer music on the nights he was opened was to keep supporting the artists that support him.
© 2016. Todos los derechos reservados. Semanario de la Ribera de Chapala