ancient cities

Despite positive aspects of this growth in terms
of localized urban management, the fact that the
city has now spread over three different states
means that it has been increasingly difficult to
manage and plan a city so administratively divided.
Moreover, systematic urban planning was nonexistent
until the 1970s, with restrictions on urban
growth and land use determination being dictated
by individual policies or politicians. Since then,
plans for national urban development have largely
been concerned with decentralization and the creation
of development poles away from Mexico
City. Despite continuing administrative challenges,
developments in urban planning over this period
have been largely positive in terms of decentralization,
a plurality of political parties, and governments
willing to experiment. This in fact has been
reflected by national government policy, such as
the decentralist New Federalism introduced by the
Zedillo government (1994–2000), which has given
greater autonomy to individual states.
At a national level, perhaps the most important
political change in recent years in Mexico has been
the ousting of the long-ruling PRI in the presidential
elections of 2000, which was the culmination
of a series of state-level victories for rival parties
since 1989. In terms of the political administration
of Mexico City, a hugely significant development
was the reform in 1997 of the anomalous law that
allowed the residing government to choose the
governor of Mexico City, rather than its people as
was the case in other Mexican cities. Since they
Santa Fe
Mexico City, Mexico
The modernizing ambitions of the controversial President Salinas (1988–1994) are nowhere more evident than in
the ostentatious Santa Fe financial development, located away from the center in the west of the city. Planned
during his presidency and during a time of great economic optimism in Mexico, it was to be a world-class, ultramodern
business, residential, and commercial district. Although the economic crisis of the mid-1990s put plans
on hold, the development was revived in 2000, and today it hosts many major multinational corporations including
Nokia, Sony, General Electric, and the Ford Motor Company, along with key Mexican companies such as
Televisa and Grupo Bimbo and three universities and colleges. However, it has been a controversial development
from the outset and has arguably fallen short of expectations. Its location has meant displacement and disruption
for the low-income population of Pueblo de Santa Fe, particularly those who lived near and around the rubbish
dump on which the new development was constructed: This poor community has been totally dispossessed.
Furthermore, in terms of the development itself, it has been criticized for being extremely car-centric, yet lacking
sufficient access roads, as being both isolated and isolating by design, and as lacking commercial success.
515
were given the right to vote for their governor, the
people of Mexico City have elected the left-wing
PRD party in every election. As of 2000, each of
the delegations in Mexico City is headed by an
elected representative. While still nascent, it can be
said that a more pluralistic democratic political
system both in Mexico City and the country as a
whole has developed in recent years.
Economy
Despite the emergence of regional economic hubs,
Mexico City remains the country’s most economically
important center and the wealthiest urban
agglomeration in Latin America. Today, the city
relies less on traditional industry and more on the
service and commercial sectors, accounting for
about 45 percent of the country’s commercial
activity. Financial services are also concentrated
here, with all the main banks, the country’s stock
exchange, and the central bank, the Bank of
Mexico, all being located in the city. At the beginning
of the 1980s, the city absorbed more than a
fifth of national labor power.
An import substitution industrialization strategy
was implemented in Mexico in the 1940s, creating
conditions of stability and prosperity that made
Mexico City the most important industrial center in
the country. In the second half of the twentieth century,
heavy industry began to be relocated away
from the city, although some plants still remain in
the northern district. The most important industries