January 20, 2023 – Conchas Chinas, Jalisco – This week, PROFEPA (the federal environmental protection agency), with support of the National Guard, shut down Carmelina construction due to lack of an environmental impact report ( known in Spanish as Resolutivo Favorable de Impacto Ambiental) and violations of urban zoning laws (known in Spanish as Plan Parcial 2012) for Conchas Chinas.

The Urban Zoning Plan 2012 permits buildings in Conchas Chinas to be nine meters in height, which Carmelina construction far exceeds. The government order requires the immediate shutdown of work and will monitor the procedure until the demolition of what was illegally built is achieved.

It has been more than a year and a half since homeowners in Conchas Chinas, with the support of CCHA, filed a lawsuit against the Carmelina developers for violating the urban zoning laws that govern our community, but they continued to build without legal permits. During that time, ridiculous legal hurdles were being used in the hope that the plaintiffs would drop the case.

A legal battle has been underway to stop irregular developments in Conchas Chinas, as the area is classified as a high-risk area prone to landslides, and added pressure and possible collapse of an already obsolete and overburdened infrastructure system; in addition to the fact that the urban zoning laws of 2012 for the area prohibits buildings such as Carmelina. All of this has been denounced before the federal environmental authorities of PROFEPA and the Federal Courts.

“This week was a great week for our community,” said Jeff Wright, CCHA President, after PROFEPA 

closed the Carmelina building thanks to legal actions by Conchas Chinas residents. “Our community will continue to work together to protect the environment, as well as the charm and beauty of our colonia, and to ensure that new developments comply with the urban zoning laws that govern constructions in Conchas Chinas”.

CCHA will also continue to support members of our community with legal actions against illegal constructions in Conchas Chinas, and continue to leverage the legal system to ensure that new developments comply and respect our urban zoning laws. We are confident that we have engaged one of the best attorneys in urban law in Mexico, who represented CCHA and won the lawsuit challenging the City of Puerto Vallarta for changing the zoning law without due legal process. 

Finally, CCHA has been made aware of four additional irregularly-issued building permits in Conchas Chinas that violate the 2012 Plan Parcial. In order to ensure that these developments are not built without the proper permits, and that they comply with urban zoning laws, we must continue to be vigilant, and we ask that you continue to support our legal efforts, which have proven to be effective. To help protect Conchas Chinas from being overbuilt as other communities in Puerto Vallarta, we need your financial support. Please help by donating to CCHA legal fund at conchaschinaspv.com/donations/ .  

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