It’s rare nowadays that neighbors can claim victory over local governments that bow to special interests by granting permission to build monstrous edifices, or holding noisy events right on their doorsteps.
But residents of several Zapopan colonias achieved just that, after Jalisco Governor Enrique Alfaro nixed the decision to stage this year’s Day of the Dead Calaverandia Festival in the Metropolitano Park, the Guadalajara metro area’s largest green space.
Suspended for the last two years due to the pandemic, the three-week, evenings-only “theme park,” inspired by the traditional November celebration, was first held in 2018 in the Parque Avila Camacho, featuring around 30 attractions. Organizers Altea Corp were keen to change the venue of this year’s event, and obtained permission from the Agencia Metropolitana de Bosques Urbanos (Metropolitan Agency of Urban Forests) to use four hectares of the 115-hectare park, promising to respect the flora and fauna, use only low noise pyrotechnics and designate 1,400 parking spaces, to alleviate any traffic congestion.
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