“Santa Cecilia” house in Mérida will be turned into a hotel

Grupo Meca, owner of the Villa Mercedes hotel, will begin the construction of a  hotel boutique in the residence ” Santa Cecilia “, located on Avenida  Colón and sadly famous because a double murder that was committed there in May 2016.

Since 2018, Italian investors have presented to the Mérida City Council the restoration and renovation project of the “Santa Cecilia” house on Colón avenue, an architectural jewel that will add 124 rooms to the hotel offer in the Yucatecan capital.

The site will have an investment of 15 million dollars and is expected to start operations in 2021.

Umberto Pinazzi, president of Grupo Meca, explained that a group of specialists, in coordination with the authorities, seeks to highlight the splendor of this large house whose interior and exterior will not undergo any modification.

“We want to preserve the architectural details to make it more attractive to tourists who visit during their stay, it will be in the back of the house where the 124 new rooms will be built,” he said.

Architectural gem

The house of “Santa Cecilia”, although it is not classified as a Historical Monument, is located in an area of ​​Historical Monuments of Mérida by federal decree of 1982 and since 2004 the space in which the house is located was declared a Cultural Heritage Zone of the Municipality of Mérida.

The house has a great value for its neoclassical Porfirian architectural characteristics. Its finishes and details in the interiors are practically intact.

Double homicide

Unfortunately, the place became relevant in 2016, after the discovery of the elderly couple Juan Manuel “N”, 91 years old, and his wife Lucely “N”, 87, who were murdered inside the house.

A few days later, the State Attorney General’s Office (FGE) arrested the two alleged murderers whose motive for the double homicide was robbery.

The detainees were identified as José Rodrigo “N” and Pedro Pablo “N”, who had already been imprisoned on more than two occasions for the robbery of houses.

The first investigations indicated that both were drunk and possibly under the influence of drugs, so when they were discovered by the elderly couple, Juan “N” and Lucely “N”, they attacked and murdered them. 

The man, who was a violinist in life, was killed with a knife and the woman was strangled.

However, three years after their arrest, in October 2019, the Second Trial Court acquitted both detainees, who had been sentenced to 30 years in prison in 2017, accused of the double murder.

The Court made up of Fabiola Rodríguez Zurita, Nidia Celis Fuentes and Kenny Martins Burgos Salazar issued the ruling of not guilty by unanimity of votes since there was no conclusive evidence that placed the subjects at the scene of the crime on the day of the crime.

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