The Yucatecan capital is growing, but not in a compact or orderly way. In the last two decades, Mérida has experienced a phenomenon of metropolization, of expansion towards its peripheries, warn specialists from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM).
They indicate that the growth has occurred mainly through corridors to the north, in the direction of Puerto Progreso, Conkal, Motul, and Sisal, areas where upper-middle and upper-class residential complexes predominate, often under the scheme of “private” with amenities such as green areas, swimming pools, gyms, and running tracks.
According to an analysis by the UNAM, between 2000 and 2020, the built area of the metropolitan area of Mérida practically doubled, going from 21,103 to 42,186 hectares.
“The growth is not compact, but based on patches here and there,” explained Adrián Aguilar Martínez, coordinator of the Yucatan Academic Unit of Territorial Studies of the Institute of Geography of the UNAM. This pattern, he added, reflects an irrational use of the territory and represents a serious challenge for urban planning.
THE CITY EXPANDS FASTER
UNAM data indicate that the city is expanding faster than its population. While urban sprawl grew at an approximate rate of 2.3 percent per year, the population grew at two percent. In 2000, the metropolitan area was home to about 800 thousand people; by 2020, the figure reached 1.3 million inhabitants.
Through the analysis of satellite images and government data, the Institute’s team detected that in the west and south of the city, there are large developments of social interest, as well as settlements of population with fewer resources, where housing is of low quality and access to services is limited.
Analysts say that with this growth come new labor dynamics, such as low-skilled jobs – gardeners, domestic workers, and maintenance personnel – that serve the residential areas of the north.
Source: 24 Horas
