 This last fire badly damaged the stelae in the site core.In 1998, the mayor of San José oversaw the improvement of the road to Motul de San José, which involved surfacing the road with gravel and opened the archaeological site to easier access, resulting in increased tourism at the site.The Proyecto Arqueológico Motul de San José (Motul de San José Archaeological Project) has been investigating Motul de San José and its satellites from 1998 to 2008, under the direction of Antonia Foias of Williams College and Kitty Emery of the Florida Museum of Natural History.