Travel: Atencion Expatriates in San Miguel de Allende
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Famous worldwide for its mild climate, thermal springs and colonial era architecture, San Miguel de Allende has attracted a large community of foreign residents. Exact figures are difficult to obtain since Medicare, the U.S. public health system, cannot be claimed abroad, and many expatriates return regularly to the United States to receive treatment as well as to maintain their residence status in their home country. Both Democrats Abroad and Republicans Abroad have active chapters in San Miguel de Allende and retain their involvement with U.S. politics. Canadian residents often live six months in Mexico and six months in Canada to maintain their Canadian health coverage.
SMA city government leaders in 2006, as reported in Atención (the local bilingual newspaper), did realize that a population surge of foreigners was growing that year and its size could not be documented. There was a rash in home sales and construction of new housing developments, with rapid profitable turnover of new housing units. However, the slowing of the housing market in the United States in 2006 was also felt in San Miguel.
Many Mexican and foreign residents protested the number of new developments in San Miguel in late 2006 and early 2007. During this time, a major new supermarket, Mega/Comercial Mexicana, opened at one end of the urban area, and another major shopping mall with a SuperGigante supermarket, eight movie theaters, an Office Depot and a McDonald's opened slightly farther away. A 700-space city parking lot was built away from the historic Centro area to help reduce traffic within the city.
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Average Score: 5
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