The insecurity, the dirty water boat and the bad smell were the main complaints of the residents of Paseo Anauco, after three mayors of Caracas promised to recover it and none of them complied. Now Carmen Meléndez arrives with the promise of doing “a great job”
The recovery of Paseo Anauco is not a new promise. She is at least 22 years old. Since the year 2000, the Mayor’s Office of Caracas has been in the hands of government officials and, since then, recovery plans for Paseo Anauco, located between Mexico Avenue and Plaza La Estrella, have come and gone, but all have left unfinished.
In 2003, with Freddy Bernal in the Metropolitan City Hall, a rescue plan was announced, after the rains of 1999 caused the overflow of the Anauco stream. Nothing happened.
Ten years later, in September 2013, the then mayor Jorge Rodriguez announced the Candelaria Plan with an investment of 73 million bolívares.
“Come so you can see the new Plaza la Candelaria illuminated, with trees, with spaces for our grandparents, for our children, with the walk Anauco recovered»,Rodriguez said.
Among Jorge Rodríguez’s promises for Paseo Anauco, the following stood out: a bike path, gastronomic kiosks, a park for children, surveillance and optimal lighting; but no results were seen.
Later he arrived at the Mayor’s Office of Caracas Erika Farias and no changes were observed in this place either, despite the fact that recovery works were also announced.
Currently, with Carmen Melendez new promises also arrived to recover the Paseo Anauco. The admiral toured the place on March 23 to learn about the conditions of those spaces and through Twitter she said: “Soon we will be rehabilitating for the well-being of the people of Caracas and those who visit us.”
He added that they took note of the neighbors’ suggestions to take advantage of the spaces and promised to do “a great job”.
A tour of Paseo Anauco, in La Candelaria, allowed us to discover this #23Mar the conditions of these spaces, which we will soon be rehabilitating for the well-being of the people of Caracas and those who visit us pic.twitter.com/OZlgYDFCbc
– Carmen Meléndez (@gestionperfecta) March 24, 2022
SuchWhich He toured Paseo Anauco and was able to verify that the first work actions had begun. Contrary to how the place looked at the end of 2021, when there were dirty water cans, garbage accumulation, lack of lighting, insecurity, among other flaws, this time it looks clean, but desolate.
This is how the black waters run along the Anauco promenade in La Candelaria, the stench affects the entire area, I just walked by and it’s terrible pic.twitter.com/a1ZLd9gMsL
– The guaro (@luisfcocabezas) November 13, 2021
On Paseo Anauco there are deteriorated exercise machines, there are still broken sewage pipes and a bit of a bad smell in the area. There are also workers who have conditioned the place and who focus on recovery, without being totally clear about the final project to be executed.
The gang of ten active workers since last Monday, March 28, has been knocking down friezes from the walls, cleaning the area, collecting the garbage; to frise again and paint, explains one of the employees named Uriel Licet.
“Many complaints” and insecurity
On Paseo Anauco there is a fixed position of the Militia that celebrates the recovery of the space “because there are many complaints: that the bridge is not illuminated, the lack of wiring, the insecurity,” enumerates the second sergeant of the Militia Milagros Díaz, who celebrates that they will have the support of the Caracas Police so that people can enjoy the place.
In this sense, Licet adds that after the recovery of Paseo Anauco, three police modules will be installed (at the beginning, center, and end) of the route. “The space is going to be recovered 100%,” promises the worker, who does not live in the area, but affirms that the space was “very deteriorated and crime was strong.”
Uriel Licet, worker of the Mayor’s Office of Caracas
One of the biggest complaints from the residents of the area was the bad smell from the sewage cans, as well as the presence of homeless people in the surroundings. “This was a disaster: there was garbage, dirty water cans and insecurity,” says David Rojas, an itinerant shoemaker who visits the area from time to time to do his work.
@HydroCapital2 thanks to hidrocapital its workers who listened to our call on the Anauco promenade who removed the sewage from us at the entrance on Mexico City a good job we can now open the windows of our apartments ? because before we couldn’t because of the smell ??
— fabi (@fabiola64666203) April 6, 2022
As the mayor Carmen Meléndez has not offered further details about the recovery plan for Paseo Anauco, not much is known about the project, especially to get the dozens of homeless people out of the area who have made Paseo Anauco his house.
“There have always been many homeless people, but I have no knowledge of what will be done with these people (once the space is recovered),” says Cruz Sifontes, second sergeant of the Militia.
Luis Aponte, a seven-year-old refrigeration technician established at the entrance to Paseo Anauco, comments that “there are a few people (homeless people who live in the surroundings), like 30 people, including men, women and children. It’s strong, strong.”
He also states that insecurity has increased because there are many people who come to the place to fix their personal problems with knives and other types of white weapons in this area and “we are all exposed.”
Luis Aponte acknowledges that after Carmen Meléndez’s visit, the presence of Caracas Police officers has increased several times a week along Paseo Anauco. Previously, “the Cicpc (Scientific, Penal and Criminal Investigations Corps) passed, if , once a month”.
Luis Aponte (blue flannel)
Although during the day there are not many homeless people wandering around the area, those who live there affirm that these people go at night to sleep.
What’s missing…
Those who make some kind of life in the Paseo Anauco welcome the recovery of the place, but they emphasize the actions that are needed to fully rescue this space of more than two kilometers long.
Oswaldo Villafranca lives in Santa Mónica, but he goes to Paseo Anauco three times a week to play chess and distract his mind. In the opinion of this elderly man, “there is a lack of lighting and public restrooms because many relieve themselves outdoors. Something is done, but a lot is missing, ”says the player.
Luis Aponte says that before the Mayor’s Office of Caracas sent the crew to recover the area, those who live in the vicinity were in charge of cleaning the sewers because “when it rains very hard, all the premises are flooded.”
About lighting, he says that about seven months ago they got cables and bulbs themselves and installed them on poles because the underground wiring was stolen. He assures that Corpoelec maintained the aerial wiring that they installed and only put in new lights, but condemns that in less than a week there is a deficiency with the lights: “They no longer turn on”.
The bookseller José Mañaricúa Torres describes the recovery as “positive” “because it is a space that has a history.” He says that until a few days ago, before the recovery work began, daring to enter the Paseo Anauco “was like risking extreme tourism.”
Bookseller José Mañaricúa Torres
At the entrance to Paseo Anauco on Mexico Avenue, the street is also being repaired, but the workers assured that these tasks are not related to the recovery of Paseo Anauco.
*Also read: Maduro prepares the electoral ground for 2024 with the “rescue” of public services
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