Dispute over who pays for sin bin gentrification
Dispute over “sin bin” gentrification
THE TERRAPLEN (embankment) area leading into Casco Viejo, was recently cleared of kiosks, which were a happy hunting ground for handymen looking for spare parts for machinery or outdated equipment
For over a hundred years it has also been a hunting ground for men seeking the services of prostitutes but with the redevelopment and gentrification of the area, the inhabitants of the brothels that operate there, could disappear or have to sell.
“We know that over time the buildings are going to be transformed, with enough lighting and new restaurants, among other activities, that will force them to make changes in their facades,” Mayor José I., Blandon told El Siglo, speaking generally of the buildings in the sector and responding to Rubén Darío Olivares, administrator of the La Bocatoreña, cantina which occupies a location that has operated since 1906.
Blandon says that he does not intend to force the owners of the brothels to remodel their buildings, because they are private areas. However, he added that the owners of these establishments will be the ones who will decide if they make changes to the structures of their façades, because with the bidding project in February, no compensation is contemplated.
Olivares said that the buildings are kept in poor condition and does not believe that any businessman dares to make an economic investment, so that tourists come to a place to visit only a pedestrian area
‘Many people live here who do not have enough economic resources and who have needs. Mayor Blandón, will sell these buildings through the use of intermediaries, “.
He recalled that in 1948 the Old part of San Felipe was the playground of high end citizens and great personalities.
Over the years the ‘rabiblancos’, moved to Bella Vista, El Cangrejo and other areas of the capital city and that likely will happen in the area of the Embankment as it is upgraded.
A century of history
The Bocatoreña’. cantina was inaugurated in 1906, under the name of ‘El Mercadito’, then it became ‘La Chepanita’ and in 1982, ‘La Bocatoreña’, reports El Siglo.
“Today it is a popular place for men of all ages who are looking for a place of entertainment, fun and even to have sex with some of the sex workers, who are now all foreigners” says El Siglo