Federal Budget Excludes Cultural Projects for Acapulco

(Mexico, NA 17 November) Of 16 cultural projects presented by the municipal government of Acapulco, only 4 have been approved for support from the federal budget. Among the requests left unfunded are the Nao Festival 2011, the annual meeting of “Writers of the Pacific” and the completion of the restoration of the hacienda of Juan Álvarez. Of these, the Nao Festival proposal was the highest, at $4 million pesos. Several proposals for support for local theater productions were passed over as well. The head of the city’s Department of Social Development, Citlati Guerrero Morales, said that she would now have to search for funding and support elsewhere for these projects.

Of the four proposals that received a commitment of federal money, the restoration of the historic Fortín Álvarez (the Álvarez Bunker) was most favored with a commitment of $3.75 million pesos. The beautiful Sinfonía del Mar, a seaside amphitheater near La Quebrada, will receive an acoustic shell, valued at $2.2 million. Without the shell, the forum is virtually unusable for presentations, given the noise coming up from the waves breaking below. The next phase of the reconstruction of the Teatro Domingo Soler, also near La Quebrada, will receive $500,000 pesos, and the Jazz Festival will be favored with $1 million pesos in federal funds.