Originally, a plaza is made to serve as the city’s center. At the heart of most Spanish colonial cities was a central plaza, with the main church, town council (cabildo) building, residences of the main civil and religious officials, and the residences of the most important residents (vecinos) of the town built there. The principal businesses were also located around this central plan. Radiated from the main square were streets in at right angles, a grid that could extend as the settlement grew, impeded only by geography. Architecturally, the Public Plaza becomes the centerpiece of the city pattern or also known as La Traza. The La Traza or city layout was the pattern on which Spanish American cities were built beginning in the colonial era.
