Cartagena city officials announce plans to protect and preserve the city's colonial history as part of a plan to boost tourism, reported local media Thursday.
The scheme, presented by Cartagena's mayor along with the Institute of History and Cultural Heritage, will regulate and establish procedures for urban development and restoration in cultural and historical areas.
Cartagena's beaches and coastal areas will also be improved. The plan calls for a joint effort between the public and private sector to establish safe, clean, controlled public sites for leisure and recreation by limiting vendors, controlling noise, and increasing police presence.
"The implementation of [the plan] will stimulate Cartagena's economy by developing responsible and sustainable processes for recovering the cultural heritage of a city that is definitely the main tourist destination of Colombia," the mayor of Cartagena told a local newspaper.
