What interests me most is the founding of Merida. Well, that and old maps. Most accounts say something like, “Francisco Montejo (either “The Younger” or “El Mozo”) founded Merida and you can still see his house.”

For some reason, that’s not enough for me. I’ve read four or five books looking for more details. Most copy one another without adding much more. I’ve got another stack of books I will go through. How did they live? Why tear down the pyramids rather than build upon them? (like in Izamal?) etc etc

And after that, I want to learn more about the Mayan pyramid where the Franciscans built their monastery, San Francisco (surprise!). Apparently, there were Mayan arches similar to the famous Labna arch and incorporated into their monastery. http://mayaruins.com/labna/y1_109.html

The early history of Merida is fascinating to me. I’d love to find something about the Mayan city itself, but virtually nothing can be found. Who built it (which ruler)? When? Why? Was it a satellite of Dzibilchaltun, one of the longest occupied areas on the peninsula? etc, etc….
And then, maps, maps, maps…

There is a brand new government agency handling this… it is called the Consejo Consultivo para el Desarrollo de la Zona Costera de Yucatán ((Codecy), and it is headed by a man named Víctor Cervera Hernández. The office is located in Progreso. From what I understand, they are working right now on the projects in and around the Malecon in Progreso and are going to start a “study” on the rest. I’m sorry that I don’t have an address or phone number for the office, but I’m sure the restaurant owners know how to get in touch with them. Hope this helps.

Thanks,

Phil

Also – re: beach roads… the State of Yucatan has just announced (early March, 2009) that there is going to be a new emphasis on completing beach roads in order to support the future development of coastal areas. So – I guess that means the new roads are “coming soon.”