Abstract

MONCADA GONZALEZ, Gisela. Municipal management: How to administrate the squares and markets of Mexico City? 1824-1840. Secuencia [online]. 2016, n.95, pp.41-62. ISSN 2395-8464.  https://doi.org/10.18234/secuencia.v0i95.1377.

This text analyzes the management of public services in Mexico City and, in particular, the administration of squares and markets through contracts with hired individuals. The problem centers on the difficulties faced by the municipal administration in regulating urban commerce. The documentary source used here are the Ordenanzas municipales of 1840 and a detailed study of the commissions comprising the Mexico City Government between 1810 and 1840. The research concludes that the lack of a legal framework to regulate municipal management resulted in poor organization and planning of the city’s public services. Thus, contracts, which appeared to be an efficient solution for the municipal administration, ended up becoming a business arrangement between individuals, due to the government’s inability to oversee and regulate it, as well as the lack of economic resources to sustain it.

Keywords : squares; markets; urban commerce; hiring; municipal management.