Renewal Sought For Historic Mexico City District

"The huge square known as the Zocalo is no longer the beating heart of Mexico city, as it was in Aztec times. But it is surrounded not just by a maginficent cathedral but by nine square kms (3.5 square miles) of Spanish-colonial houses, churches and public buildings, some dating back to the 16th century. This should be one of the most compelling architectural destinations in the Americas. Instead, much of it is a slum of gutted buildings, dark and dirty streets blocked by milling vendors, and garbage-strewn vacant lots."