Business owners on Puerto Vallarta’s revamped, pedestrian-only malecon are pleading with the state and city governments to allow traffic back on to the street adjoining the port’s boardwalk at certain times.
Trade has dropped off significantly since the Malecon was refurbished and vehicles and buses rerouted onto other streets, the business owners say.
Some businesses have closed altogether, while others have been forced to lay off staff.
For years, the Malecon was home to some of Vallarta’s most iconic restaurants, bars and tourist haunts.
The Jalisco government representative in Puerto Vallarta, Andrés González Palomera, has held several meetings with business owners to find ways to stimulate the city center’s economy.
A major problem is the surge in all-inclusive packages offered by many area hotels, which means tourists often do not eat out, or even bother to visit the center anymore.
According to González Palomera, the state government has earmarked 500 million pesos for the regeneration of Vallarta’s center, starting with an upgrade to the Isla del Río Cuale.
The decline of businesses in the center appears even more worrying, given that international tourism to Puerto Vallarta has actually increased by 18.4 percent in 2014, according to government statistics.