The Plaza in Las Vegas, New Mexico A Community Gathering Place Jeffrey S. Smith

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The Plaza in Las Vegas, New MexicoA Community
Gathering PlaceJeffrey S. Smith

• Chapter 2 of Hispanic Spaces, Latino Places
• presented by Susan Tomczuk
• April 13, 2005

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PlazasAn Overview

• The author examines the history of several
  plazas in New Mexico and the change in their use
  over the years.
• He addresses the Las Vegas Plaza and the
  Albuquerque Plaza and notes that the Las Vegas
  Plaza is the only plaza that has not been catered
  to the tourist industry it is the only one to
  retain its original function.
• Role of the Plaza
• Defense
• Community Use
• Personal Use
• Commercial Use
• Tourism

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All PlazasDefense
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Defense

• Homes constructed in very close proximity to each
  other and were designed in such a way as to
  enclose a plaza in the middle of them and create
  a fortified wall around them.
• Model of Spanish set-up to convey order and a
  sense of familiarity (Arreola 39) among the
  settlers
• Plaza Mayor was a community space
• Streets from the plaza that extend outward into a
  grid pattern

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• Las Vegas Plaza
• Community
• Personal
• Commercial

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Las Vegas Plaza Uses

• COMMUNITY USE
• Plaza was the center of the community
• Governmentally
• Religiously
• Commercially
• Plaza was the most lively part of a settlement
• Activities
• Humane Society Doggie-Do Days
• Fire Prevention Awareness Week
• Religious celebrations
• 4th of July special celebration
• Parades
• Local music and talent

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Las Vegas Plaza Uses

• PERSONAL USE
• Reading
• Walking dog
• Exercise
• Meeting place
• Eating
• Relaxation
• Conversation
• Resolaneros- Men engaged in conversation

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Las Vegas Plaza Uses

• COMMERCIAL USE
• Regional service center, late-1830s Barrier
  for Native American attacks
• Big commercial trading center, mid-1840s
• Economy developed rapidly
• Use of Wages
• Imports
• Retail businessmen
• Connection center, 1879
• Atchison, Topeka Santa Fe RR
• More settlers
• Development of hotels, department stores
• Agricultural depression, mid-1920s
• Great Depression, 1930s
• Historical Preservation movement
• Residential/commercial/community area, currently
• Merchandise stories, commercial offices,
  apartments

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Historical Significance of the Las Vegas Plaza

• 918 buildings in National Register of Historic
  Places
• Plethora of architectural styles
• The site of first historic preservation movement
  in the 1960s (Arreola 44)
• In 2001, the National Trust for Historic
  Preservation ranked Las Vegas eighth in the
  United States among distinctive destinations
  because of its dynamic downtown, eye-catching
  architecture, and cultural diversity. (Arreola
  44)

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• Other Plazas
• Tourism
• Community sense lost
• Personal sense lost
• Extreme Commercialization

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Albuquerque Plaza

• CHANGE OF COMMUNITY USES
• Community events geared toward tourists
• Government-sponsored, not local-supported
• Wild West shows
• Jewelry
• Arts and crafts
• Arreola 45

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Albuquerque Plaza

• CHANGES IN PERSONAL USE
• The author notes that there is not a personal use
  for the Albuquerque Plaza now
• Locals refrain from using it because it is
  flooded with tourists
• They would rather go to a Wal-mart or a casino
  where they are more likely to encounter a
  neighbor than go to a plaza that is full of
  visitors (Arreola 40)
• Visitors come in tours and come for
  government-sponsored shows

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Albuquerque Plaza

• COMMERCIAL USE
• An example of the commercialization, loss of
  community and personal sense
• Commercial uses for tourists
• 4 Saloons
• 4 Food markets/stores
• 3 Boardinghouses
• 2 Barbershops (One was a post office, the other a
  school)
• Restaurants
• Shops
• Art Galleries

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Other Plazas

• Albuquerque
• Santa Fe
• Taos
• Roles as a community, personal, and commercial
  place for locals has been exploited because of
• Settlement of Anglos
• Greater commercialization
• Expansion of the tourist industry