The “little forest” that kept Carrasco’s residents in suspense was finally finished off and the green space on the corner of Lido and Bazurro was no longer in the hands of the Montevideo Municipality. The wooded property next to the fields of the Air Force was acquired this noon by an individual for US$ 1,570,000as confirmed to The Observer the president of the Association of Auctioneers, Pablo Ponce de León.
The day before the auction, the commune had thrown out an administrative appeal for replacement presented by the residents, represented by the lawyers Marcelo Marchesano and Mónica Voss. The residents had charged against the resolutions that enabled the mayor to auction off the land, alleging that they were “illegitimate and harmful” acts and asking for the “temporary suspension” of the auction given the short time with which they received news of it.
Mayor Carolina Cosse and Secretary General Olga Otegui signed the resolution on Monday to lift the suspensive effect generated by that administrative act. The commune alleged that the suspension of the auction would cause “significant and immediate economic damage” for the administration, “affecting urgent service needs.”.
The green space is the last of that block that remained in the hands of the departmental government, after they had been divided up in 2008. On that date the residents got together with who was the Director of Planning, Julio Battistoni, and wrote him a letter letter to Mayor Ricardo Ehrlich.
The corner of Bazurro and General French, which was a green and tree-lined space similar to that of Lido, is now in the form of a complex of 21 apartments, three stories high, garages, swimming pool and a fenced perimeter. The same thing happened in neighboring registries, in an area that has a high demand for real estate development, according to what the businessmen themselves have said.
Photo: Leonardo Carreno.
Property topped off in Carrasco Este, between Lido and Bazurro
The green terrain that resembles a forest within reach of the window is in this case the last point of a larger-scale malaise. Despite the fact that the real estate contribution of these residents –one of the highest in Montevideo– includes a additional for storm drainage -which is 10% of the urban contribution-, the pipe and storm drains were never installed in that environment, and the neighbors complain about a payment that does not entail any consideration.
The issue is that the property works as a natural drainage in an environment where the streets tend to flood. “Where there was grass that absorbed water, now there will be cement,” said the mayor of Municipality E, Mercedes Ruiz, who had told The Observer: “Since I took office I have been asking for that solution; It is the area with the most expensive taxes in Montevideo and they do not have sewage or rainwater systems”.
