Guaynabo, Puerto Rico
| Guaynabo, Puerto Rico | |||
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| Nickname(s): Ciudad de los Conquistadores", "Pueblo del Carnaval Mabó", "Primer Poblado de Puerto Rico | |||
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| Coordinates: | |||
| Country | United States | ||
| Territory | Puerto Rico | ||
| Founded | 1769 | ||
| Government | |||
| - Mayor | Hon. Héctor O'Neill Garcia (PNP) | ||
| - Senatorial dist. | 1 - San Juan | ||
| - Representative dist. | 6 / 9 | ||
| Area | |||
| - Total | 27.1 sq mi (70.2 km2) | ||
| Population (2000) | |||
| - Total | 100,053 | ||
| - Density | 3,691.3/sq mi (1,425.2/km2) | ||
| - Gentilic | Guaynabeños | ||
| Time zone | AST (UTC-4) | ||
| Website | http://www.guaynabocity.gov.pr | ||
| Anthem – "Guaynabo, pueblo querido" | |||
Guaynabo (Spanish pronunciation: [ɡwaiˈnaβo]; is a municipality in the northern part of Puerto Rico, located in the northern coast of the island, north of Aguas Buenas; south of Cataño; east of Bayamón; and west of San Juan. Guaynabo is spread over 9 wards and Guaynabo Pueblo (the downtown area and the administrative center of the suburb).
Guaynabo is considered, along with its neighbors - San Juan and the municipalities of Bayamón, Carolina, Cataño, Toa Alta, Canovanas, Caguas, Toa Baja, and Trujillo Alto - to be part of the Área Metropolitana (Metropolitan Area) of San Juan (the largest MSA in Puerto Rico; many Puerto Ricans erroneously consider it the only metropolitan area in the Commonwealth). It is also part of the larger San Juan-Caguas-Fajardo Combined Statistical Area. The municipio has a land area of 70.26 km² (27.13 sq mi) and a population of 100,053 as of the 2000 census.
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History
Guaynabo was founded in 1769 by Pedro R. Davila (P.R.), after a struggle for division from the municipality of Bayamón. Previously, the municipality was known as "Buinabo", a name that means in Taíno "Aquí hay otro lugar de agua dulce" or "Here is another place of fresh water."
Barrios (Districts/Wards)[1]
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Government and infrastructure
The United States Postal Service operates two post offices, Guaynabo and Caparra Heights, in Guaynabo.[2][3]
The Federal Bureau of Prisons operates the Metropolitan Detention Center, Guaynabo in Guaynabo.[4]
Health facilities
Professional Hospital Guaynabo located on Felisa Rincón Avenue (formerly Las Cumbres Avenue), is the newest hospital infrastructure built in Puerto Rico. Guaynabo is the only city in Puerto Rico to have a hospital specialized in advanced vascular surgery.[5] Some of the first and newest procedures performed in Puerto Rico during 2009 were done in Professional Hospital Guaynabo, including the first AxiaLIF surgery for lumbar fusion.[6]
Economy
Long considered to be just a mostly rural, drive-by town for drivers who were going from San Juan to the western part of Puerto Rico, Guaynabo went through a large economic revitalization in the 1950s and 1960s. As a consequence, parts of the city have also served as a San Juan suburb preferred by upper-middle and high-income families. Today, Guaynabo has the highest per capita income in Puerto Rico. The neighborhoods of Garden Hills, Torrimar, San Patricio and Tintillo are among the upper class neighborhoods located in Guaynabo that were built in the 1950s and 1960s, with the notable exception of Villa Caparra and Suchville, San Juan's first wealthy suburbs, which were built in the 1920s. Residential construction continued between the 1970s and 1990s, where hundreds of new upper middle class developments were built: Parkville, Mallorca, Tierra Alta, Prado Alto, Villas Reales, Ext. Villa Caparra, Mansiones de Guaynabo, Mansiones Reales, and Palmas Reales, among many others.
As a result of the proliferation of upper middle class and wealthy neighborhoods, several prominent private schools were founded in Guaynabo, including Academia San José, Colegio Marista, Colegio Adianez, and which mainly instruct in Spanish, although most private schools extensively cover English to levels comparable to those of the mainland; and Parkville School, American Military Academy, Baldwin School, in the Guaynabo-Bayamón border, and Wesleyan Academy, which mainly instruct in English. The first modern shopping mall built in the Caribbean and Latin America, San Patricio Plaza, was built in Guaynabo in 1963, in the San Patricio sector next to Villa Caparra.
Guaynabo's skyline is filled with over a hundred high-rise buildings. Most are residential condominiums, but the buildings also include various major headquarters for banks and other businesses.
When Alejandro Cruz was Guaynabo's mayor, many sport facilities were built, such as Mario "Quijote" Morales Coliseum (then called Mets Pavilion). In addition, many manufacturing plants, such as the Hanes' plant, were established in Guaynabo. Guaynabo has, at different times, been voted the Most Picturesque and Cleanest Town in Puerto Rico.
Several businesses have their headquarters or local Puerto Rican branches in Guaynabo. El Nuevo Día, Chrysler, Santander Securities, Puerto Rico Telephone, and many sales offices for large US firms (such as Texaco, Microsoft, American Airlines, Dell and others) have their Puerto Rican headquarters in Guaynabo. WAPA-TV (Televicentro) and Univisión de Puerto Rico have their main studios in Guaynabo.
Iberia's San Juan-area offices are in Guaynabo.[7]
Mayors
The Recent Mayors of Guaynabo
| Mayor | Term | Party |
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| Santos Rivera | 1969–1979 | New Progressive Party |
| Alejandro Cruz Ortiz | 1979–1993 | New Progressive Party |
| Héctor O'Neill García | 1993–present | New Progressive Party |
Mayors of Guaynabo from 1782 to 1969
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Term Name 1782 Cayetano de la Sarna 1800 Pedro Dávila 1812 Dionisio Cátala 1816 Angel Umpierre 1818 Juan José González 1821 Joaquín Goyena 1822 José María Prosis 1823 Simón Hinonio 1825 José R. Ramírez 1827 Antonio Guzmán 1828 Genaro Oller 1836 Andrés Degal 1836 Agustín Rosario 1840 Francisco Hiques 1844 Martínez Díaz 1848 Tomás Cátla 1849 Andrés Vega 1852 Justo García 1856 José Tomás Sagarra 1857 Manuel Manzano 1859 Juan Floret 1859 José Francisco Chiques 1862 Segundo de Echeverte 1862 José de Murgas 1869 Juan J. Caro 1873 Benito Gómez 1874 Manuel Millones 1876 José Otero 1891 Juan Díaz de Barrio 1914 José Ramón 1914 José Carazo 1919 Narciso Val Llovera 1924 Zenón Díaz Valcárcel 1936 Dolores Vldivieso 1944 Augosto Rivera 1948 Jorge Gavillán Fuentes 1956 Juan Román 1964 José Rosario Reyes
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Tourism
Landmarks and places of interest
- Baldorioty de Castro Statue
- Bellas Artes Center
- Caparra Ruins
- Caribe Recreational Center
- La Marquesa Forest Park
- Mets Pavilion
- San Patricio Plaza
- Caparra Country Club
- Garden Hills Plaza
- Luis Vigoreaux Statue at the Luis Vigoreaux Boulevard
Festivals and events
- Three Reyes Festival - January
- Mabó Carnival - March
- Mothers Tribute - May
- Patron Festivities - May
- Salsa National Day - June
- Bellas Artes Camp - June
- Bomba & Plena Festival - October
- Christmas Lighting - November
- Christmas Balls Giveaway - December
Sports
Guaynabo's old BSN team, the Guaynabo Mets, won national championships in 1980, 1982 and 1989, commanded by the player whom the Mario Morales Coliseum was named after, Mario "Quijote" Morales. The Conquistadores de Guaynabo, or Guaynabo Conquistadores, are the Guaynabo Mets replacement and still play in the Mario Morales Coliseum. The Mets de Guaynabo are the local women's volleyball team that play in the LVSF, or The Liga de Voliebol Superior Femenino. They have not won eny championships yet. They also play in the Mario Morales Coliseum. Guaynabo Fluminense FC is Guaynabo's professional soccer team that plays in the Puerto Rico Soccer League. The league started in 2008 and Guaynabo's current position in the league is 4th place. Guaynabo Fluminense FC play their matches at the Jose Bonano Stadium that was originally made for baseball, but became a soccer arena after the Puerto Rico Baseball League was cancelled for the 2008 season. It was at the same year that the Puerto Rico Soccer League was starting to take place. In the 2009 season, Guaynabo Fluminense FC moved to the Sixto Escobar Stadium
- Mets de Guaynabo (Women's Volleyball) LVSF
- Guaynabo Conquistadores (Basketball) Baloncesto Superior Nacional
- Guaynabo Fluminense FC (Soccer) Puerto Rico Soccer League
Diplomacy
Guaynabo serves as a host city three foreign consulates with business in Puerto Rico:
References
- ↑ http://welcome.topuertorico.org/maps/guaynabo.pdf
- ↑ "Post Office™ Location - GUAYNABO." United States Postal Service. Retrieved on May 19, 2010.
- ↑ "Post Office™ Location - CAPARRA HEIGHTS." United States Postal Service. Retrieved on May 19, 2010.
- ↑ "MDC Guaynabo Contact Information." Federal Bureau of Prisons. Retrieved on January 12, 2010.
- ↑ "New hospital and medical building developing in Guaynabo" Caribbean Business Newspaper, Issued : 06/12/2008, By : LISA NIDO NYLUND
- ↑ "Avanza la cirugía de la columna" Primera Hora Newspaper, Alejandra M. Jover Tovarra - 10/02/2009
- ↑ "Iberia Around the World." Iberia. Accessed September 11, 2008. "In the rest of the world -> Puerto Rico" - "San Juan de Puerto Rico. City office - Metro Office Park Calle 1 Lote 3 Oficina 102 Guaynabo, Puerto Rico 00968."
External links
- Autonomous Municipality of Guaynabo (Spanish)
- Guaynabo and its barrios, United States Census Bureau
- Historic Places in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, a National Park Service Discover Our Shared Heritage Travel Itinerary
- Guaynabo tourist attractions
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