Zocalo Puebla Square

The idea is to name parts of Park Avenue “Puebla Zocalo'' (the intersection with Pequonnock St, right)
and “Oaxaca Plaza”, after the states from which these immigrants came from. The Mexican business
owners on eastern side of Park Avenue hail from the Mexican state of Puebla (Ex: La Poblanita
Restaurant), the western side, & both El Mexicanito and Garibaldi owners are from Zaachila, Oaxaca.

Preface:
Here in Bridgeport, CT, United States, no one ancestry ethnic group makes up more than 30% of
the city’s population. Bridgeport, by many standards and according to various studies, is among the most
diverse cities in the United States, linguistically, ethnically, and cultural-wise. Bridgeport is, according to
the 2020 U.S. Census, 42% Hispanic or Latino, making it the largest group in the city based on race or
ethnicity. Of those, most are Puerto Ricans, 20.0% of Bridgeport’s total population (28,944 people), and
Bridgeport is known to have the 7th largest Puerto Rican population in the country by sheer numbers, tens
of thousands during the mass exodus from the island to cities in the Northeast, to work in Connecticut’s
tobacco industry, and in Hartford and Bridgeport in particular for now long gone industrial jobs. Next on
that list as the 2nd largest Latino group, and the focus of this proposal, 5.8% of Bridgeport’s population
according to the 2020 American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates, or 8,479 people, are listed to
be of Mexican origin. These numbers, keep in mind, are incredibly incoherent, as the 2022 ACS 1 year
estimate reports just 3,999 people of Mexican origin. Likewise the ACS 5-year reported in 2019 ___
people of Mexican origin and . If the numbers for 2020, as well as most previous years are to be believed,
Bridgeport has the largest Mexican population of any place in the 6 New England states and for a while
now, even larger than that of Boston’s and New Haven’s by a small margin. Largely from Puebla and
Zaachila, Oaxaca, Bridgeport’s Mexican population numbered in the tens until in the 90s. Migrants came
to the region mostly from the South-central states of Puebla, and to a lesser extent Oaxaca. Waves of
Mexicans arrived from Puebla to the New York City area, making half of all Mexicans there. After NYC,
many settled in Passaic, NJ, Yonkers, Newburgh, Port Chester and New Rochelle, and the 5 NYC
boroughs. Tlaxcalans settled in New Haven, and finally Mexicans settled in Bridgeport
 Zocalo Puebla Square

Proposal: The intersection of North Avenue, Park Avenue, and Pequonnock Street in Bridgeport serve as
the meeting point for three city neighborhoods, the Hollow to the southeast, the most densely populated
section of Bridgeport, the West Side, to the southwest, and Brooklawn/St.Vincent neighborhood, which is
north and is the most populated. This part of the city is a heavily trafficked area, with two of the city’s
major thoroughfares (once the site of the famed King’s Cole’s Supermarket, now replaced by a budget
chain supermarket, small chain stores, a McDonald’s and an M&T Bank branch). Right next to the
Hollow, with Portuguese immigrants , primarily from the Tras Os Montes region, Cape Verdeans and
Brazilians. This intersection, though not the only one with various Mexican restaurants, has a notable
Mexican presence.
The plan? To grant parts of this intersection an official designation, commission a welcome sign
(Welcome to Puebla Square in English, Spanish, and the native languages of Zapotec, Nahuatl, Mayan
and Mixteco) and special street signs (rename this strip of Park Ave “Oaxaca Plaza”, the state of origin for
those businesses), turning the concrete/asphalt sidewalk intersection of Pequonnock and Park into into a
park known as “Puebla Zocalo”, after the Zocalos, or town Squares, in Mexico, or, and decorate the place,
purchase a 45ft pole for a large Mexican flag, perhaps paint the sidewalks red and green.

The intersection, to the left, which I propose to be Puebla Zocalo Square, or whatever name is voted upon
by local businesses. A large welcome sign in the middle of Park Ave along the green area, would really
revitalize this section without pricing out residents. It preserves the historic landscape while adding in
new flavor already brought by some of her newer residents, keeping and completing older architecture.
 Zocalo Puebla Square

Looking South from Park Avenue on the intersection with North Avenue. Mexican stores to the left, and
at the following intersection with the stop lights, to the right, as well as on Pequonnock street.
Zocalo Puebla Square
 Zocalo Puebla Square

A crucial part of the plan is to GET THE LOCAL BUSINESSES INVOLVED!

Looking north towards Pequonnock St., where it merges with Park Avenue up north. Mexican good
stores, restaurants, payment centers are to the left, right, and north.

It has been done before as recently as 2013 with the christening of Little Asia in the West Side
along Wood Avenue. It would serve more as a business association, and a place to joyfully parade around
Bridgeport’s Mexicans. I’d argue that the city should work to support Luso-Americans on Madison
Avenue as well as revive the Vietnamese, Thai, Khmer Little Asia.

Budget:
A group could pay the fee for four street signs from the city. A plaque on the site of Puebla Square, and a
45 ft tall pole for a massive 60 by 40 inch Mexican flag.

Examples of cities promoting ethnic neighborhoods and giving these sections character.

Left; Wooster Street, New Haven. Right: Little Italy, San Diego .
 Zocalo Puebla Square

Left: Japantown, San Francisco Right: Peru Square at the heart of Little Lima, Paterson, NJ

Community support and challenges:

My question is whether or not even considering the idea of establishing an official ethnic enclave
in this city is a good idea for starters.
It appears that here in Bridgeport, like elsewhere, immigrants tend to live alongside fellow
foreign-born nationals of their respective country, to build what sociologists call “social capital”, ie,
capital not in the traditional sense of understanding it, but as in the form of networking, the transfer of
ideas and human resources, (ie; finding employees or finding employment), and being with those from a
similar region ease the transition for these new arrivals form a new life in the society in which they now
reside. The issue is that, however, this does make integration into the larger community much more
difficult overtime, and thus limits social mobility in the long run.
My plan is to put together and bring together NGOs (non-governmental organizations) to assist
the newly arrived, many of these organizations already exist in Bridgeport, and aid the processes of
finding a solid home or source of employment. The goal, however, would be to provide non-tuition
English courses to the newly arrived and their children, similar to what we see in our schools. The issue of
course would be A) the issue of time constraints, as more than other groups these newly arrived
immigrants work long hours from dawn to midnight. Then, I’d assume it would be B) lack of motivation
to learn the language or culture. This would have to turn into a marketing campaign, as well as possibly
among the first or largest linguistic campaigns by city organizations to provide access to high quality
English instruction in an American city. Making use of new technology, forming a website or making an
app similar to Coursera, but linked to these organizations, where people may meet teachers one on one. A
second concern of mine would be those that speak Indigenous languages, about 5% of the overall
population of Mexico, but 9.9% and 31.2% of Puebla and Oaxaca’s population, respectively. There, in my
opinion, should be an interest in preserving these languages and aiding the small fragment who cannot
communicate to Spanish speakers effectively, let alone English. As they are often difficult to assist, there
should be an interest in learning the indigenous languages of Mexico, Central, and South America, as well
as traditional African dialects such as Igbo and Hausa, and Asian languages such as Hmong and Thai,
which are languages with proportionally large numbers of speakers in Bridgeport schools and on her
streets.
 Zocalo Puebla Square

Lastly, we would not want to exclude current residents or businesses residing in this area. This
idea, at least the street signs, plaque and park designation would require community support. Support
from the city, the Bridgeport Chamber of Commerce, the Greater Bridgeport Hispanic Chamber of
Commerce, the Metropolitan Council of Government, and perhaps organizations such as Groundwork
Bridgeport and Connecticut Institute for Refugees and Immigrants, as well as every one of these local
storefronts and street vendors, Mexican or not, and input from the community on naming, their primary
languages, etc.

To further this idea please email abrahamlima4321@gmail.com

Or call (203)-526-5012

Potential official name ideas for this intersection/tiny neighborhood (for both the Square and
Plaza)

Mexicotown?
Little Mexico?
La Zona?
_________?
__________?

For the Zocalo/Plaza:

Park Mexico?
Zapotec Square?
Zocalo Maya Square?
Puebla Zocalo?
Puebla Zocalo Square?
Puebla Square?
Mexicotown Zocalo?

________?
________?

For the plaza/street:

Puebla Plaza?
Oaxaca Square?

__________