Before jumping into some recent news developments around the city, a brief pause is in order to reflect on the recent impressive observation of Día de Muertos here in the city. San Miguel was full of bright cempasúchil (marigold) flowers, creative face-painting, colorful ofrendas and excited visitors.
City officials noted that the Jardín and other public spaces had been planted with marigolds, and that municipal cemeteries (except for San Juan de Dios, which is closed for conservation work) had been cleaned, painted, pruned and prepared for families to visit and decorate the graves of their departed loved ones.
Capping the weekend of celebration was Sunday night’s parade along a jam-packed route from El Cardo to the Jardin via Zacateros. Catrinas and catrines of all ages and descriptions were on hand, along with decorated horses, marching bands and even police officers with painted faces. It would be hard to imagine a more festive and well-attended event.
A long-awaited hotel opening
After eight years of construction, the Marriott Cleviá hotel/residences near Luna de Queso on Josefina Orozco finally opened more of its doors in September after a limited soft opening in April. So far, 30% of the 74 total rooms are available, and 42 residences behind them are expected to be ready later on.
There is currently one restaurant and bar, a pool, meeting and event space and other amenities. Plans call for an additional restaurant to be added. The lobby is quite large and shows numerous designer touches, and it overlooks the bar and restaurant, courtyard pool and the building behind that where the residences are located.
According to an employee, the project had two separate owners during the long construction period, which considerably delayed development. The current owners are a Mexico-based group operating under a licensing arrangement with Marriott’s Cleviá Autograph Collection, which has certain guidelines about what must be offered on-site.
Rates range from around US $250 per night, using points through Marriott’s Bonvoy membership program, to $1,000 per night if the stay is during holidays and special occasions, such as Día de Muertos.
Reviews so far on the Marriott site are limited but nearly all positive about the design, layout, staff and food, although one called it a poor value and another noted potential once a few kinks are worked out.
Hotels are plentiful in San Miguel, but major projects keep coming. A very visible case in point is the Waldorf Astoria on El Cardo, which has pushed back its opening from spring of this year to sometime in 2027. It plans to offer 120 rooms and 24 residences and is being developed by Mexico City-based Skyplus Developments Corp.
Is a downtown restaurant closing?
The popular Italian restaurant Vivali on Hernández Macías across from Bellas Artes has been closed for about a month for no ascertainable reason. There’s a padlock on the door, and someone at a nearby restaurant said she had no idea what’s going on. Nothing about a closure is posted on the door or the Facebook page, and the phone wasn’t being answered.
Since Vivali seemed to have a devoted and diverse clientele (and often live music), the situation has prompted questions. Speculation centers on lack of business, permit problems and/or the catch-all scapegoat of politics.
Whatever the case in this particular instance, restaurants come and go here all the time, while some simply relocate or decide to switch to only catering. Chances are Vivali is simply the latest in a line of ongoing business adjustments, but weMND will update the situation if it changes.
National protest delays local bus
Readers may have seen the recent MND story about farmers setting up roadblocks in Guanajuato and other states and demanding government price supports and subsidies to augment inadequate market prices for their corn. Inflation, drought, extortion and violence have added to the tenuous situation.
While that’s a national story, there were localized impacts involving transportation disruptions and other inconveniences. At least one bus from San Miguel to Guanajuato never arrived in the state’s capital on Oct. 27 — the first day of the roadblocks – because it was said to be “stuck” on the highway in between.
Finally, after the afternoon wore on with no explanation to those waiting, the company borrowed another bus from a different company, and passengers were able to depart for San Miguel about an hour-and-a-half later than scheduled. It was a small reminder that no locality is completely exempt from what happens on the national stage.
Cathy Siegner is an independent journalist based in San Miguel and Montana. She has journalism degrees from the University of Oregon and Northwestern University.
