Aguadilla, Puerto Rico

Aguadilla, Puerto Rico
Municipality
Flag
Nickname(s): "El Nuevo Jardín del Atlántico", "La Villa del Ojo de Agua", "El Pueblo de los Tiburones"
Anthem: "Playita Aguadillana"
Location of Aguadilla in Puerto Rico
Coordinates:
Country	United States of America
Founded	1775
Founded by	Luis de Córdova
Government
• Mayor	Carlos Méndez Martínez (NPP)
• Senatorial dist.	4 - Mayagüez/Aguadilla
• Representative dist.	17
Area
• Total	76.3 sq mi (197.7 km2)
• Land	36.6 sq mi (94.7 km2)
• Water	39.0 sq mi (100.9 km2)
Elevation	326 ft (99 m)
Population (2010)
• Total	60,949
• Density	800/sq mi (310/km2)
Demonym(s)	Aguadillanos
Racial groups
• 2010 Census	83.0% White 7.4% Black 0.3% American Ind/AN 0.2% Asian 6.8% Some other race 2.4% Two or more races
Time zone	AST (no daylight saving time) (UTC-4)
Zip code	00603, 00604, 00605, 00690
Website	aguadilla.gobierno.pr

Aguadilla (Spanish pronunciation: [aɣwaˈðiʝa]), founded in 1775 by Luis de Córdova, is a city and municipality located in the northwestern tip of Puerto Rico bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, north of Aguada, and Moca and west of Isabela. Aguadilla is spread over 15 wards and Aguadilla Pueblo (The downtown area and the administrative center of the city). It is a principal city of the Aguadilla-Isabela-San Sebastián Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History

According to sources, a Taíno settlement called Amamón was located close to the Culebrinas River.

The present territory of Aguadilla was originally part of the territory of Aguada. In 1775, the foundation of Aguadilla by Don Luis de Córdova was approved. But it wasn't until 1780 that the territory was properly segregated, making the founding of the town official. Originally, Aguadilla was constituted by the Victoria and Higüey wards. This region was already inhabited and known as Aguadilla before 1770. In 1776, Fray Íñigo Abbad y Lasierra in his description of the towns of the island, mentioned it as the "new Town of San Carlos of the Aguadilla." Nevertheless, according to Dr. Agustín Stahl in his Foundation of Aguadilla, it was not until 1780 that the town was officially founded. The construction of a new church and the proceedings to become an independent village began in the 1775.

Aerial view of downtown Aguadilla.

The population in the Village of Aguadilla continued to increase constantly mainly due to its excellent port and strategic location in the route of the boats. In 1776, when Santo Domingo became independent for the first time, the Spanish descended loyals emigrated to Puerto Rico, mainly to Aguadilla, which caused the population to continue increasing significantly. In 1831, according to Don Pedro Tomás de Córdova, the party of Aguadilla belonged to Aguada. At this time, the territorial organization of Aguadilla was as follows: Pueblo Norte (North Town), Pueblo Sur (South Town), Ceiba Alta, Ceiba Baja, Montaña, Malezas, Aguacate, Dos Palmas, Camaseyes, Plainela, Borinquen, Arenales, Higüey, Corrales, Victoria, and Mangual.

Don Pedro Tomás de Córdova mentions the road of Aguadilla formed by Punta Borinquen and San Francisco, as the "fordeadero of the ships that travel from Europe to Havana and Mexico". He adds that its "port is the most frequented in the Island due to the proportions that it offers to refresh all class of ship."

In 1860, Aguadilla was officially declared a village. Several years later, when the island was territorially organized into seven departments, Aguadilla became the head of the third department that included the municipalities of Aguada, Isabela, Lares, Moca, Rincon, and San Sebastián. In January 1841 a Royal Order transferred the judicial party from Aguada to Aguadilla. In 1878, according to Don Manuel Ebeda y Delgado, the territorial organization of Aguadilla had varied a little. At this time Plainela, Higüey, and Mangual wards are not mentioned. The Dos Palmas ward appears as Palmar. Also at this time, three new wards are mentioned: Guerrero, Caimital Alto, and Caimital Bajo. In 1898, even with the change of sovereignty in the island, the territorial organization of Aguadilla is the same to that of 1878. Nevertheless, in the Census of 1899, downtown Aguadilla appears constituted by Higüey, Iglesia, Nueva, Santa Barbara, and Tamarindo wards. Malezas ward appears subdivided into Maleza Alta and Maleza Baja. From that time, the territorial organization of Aguadilla did not change, until 1948, when the Puerto Rico Department of Planning prepared the map of the city and its wards, and following instructions of city authorities, Higüey and parts of Caimital Alto wards are annexed to Downtown Aguadilla.

Ramey

Aguadilla was the site of the U.S. military's Ramey Air Force Base for almost five decades. During this period, Aguadilla was home to the Strategic Air Command 72d Bombardment Wing, Heavy equipped with B-52s, a very strategic facility during the Cold War. During the early years of the base and throughout World War II, Puerto Ricans in the area became more Americanized than in remote locations, and the after effects are still apparent in Aguadilla, and other towns like Aguada, Moca and Isabela.

The military and Puerto Ricans from the surrounding communities generally had good formal relations, but the undercurrent of resentment in many aspects of the relationship was always just below the surface. Many Americans stationed in the area did not even realize that the people all around them were even American citizens.

Though the infrastructure still exists, it was handed over to the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico in 1973. The aerial facilities are now civilian controlled by the Puerto Rico Ports Authority. The facilities now make up the Rafael Hernandez International Airport. The barracks now host the Faro Inn Suites, a 79-room hotel. The Officer's Club now hosts the Faro Conference Center, a 22,000-square-foot (2,000 m²) meeting facility. The hospital is now the Courtyard by Marriott Punta Borinquen Resort & Casino, a 150-room hotel with a casino and the first Marriott in Puerto Rico out of the San Juan Metropolitan Area.

Ramey also hosts the University of Puerto Rico - Aguadilla Campus and the Friedrich Froebel Bilingual School (K-9). The High School became Ramey Job Corps Campus and the elementary school became the Esther Feliciano Mendoza Middle School. Centro de Adiestramiento y Bellas Artes (CABA) since 1979 has being the only plublic school of arts in Puerto Rico (7-12). Ramey is also the site of the new Ramey Skating Park and a new "mariposario" (butterfly farm).

There is still an active part of the base that hosts the Coast Guard Borinquen Air Station. There are also other government agencies based at Ramey. They include the United States Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs & Border Protection's Office of Air and Marine and Office of Border Patrol, the Fuerzas Unidas de Rápida Acción (United Forces for Rapid Action) of the Puerto Rico Police Department and the Puerto Rico National Guard.

There is also a post office, the Centro de Servicios al Conductor (Driver's Services Center), a bakery, and a Banco Popular de Puerto Rico location.

San Antonio

Aguadilla in 1910

The beginning of San Antonio Village was back in the mid-19th century. It was composed by 60 families. Originally the place where these families were located was known as Bajura de Vadi, place later to be known as San Antonio.

In 1918, as a consequence of the 1918 San Fermín earthquake, the village was totally destroyed by a tsunami. The families suffered the struggles cause by this natural disaster, due by the proximity of the village to the shore.

The residents of the village decided re-localize the village in a higher area further from shore. The new location was what today is known as Ramey.

At this new location prosperity was not to be delayed. Various leaders and commercial owners of the time, took a step to carry the village forward. Most of the poor houses disappeared.

The village's infrastructure started its evolution. Luis R. Esteves and Juan Garcia established the first two theaters in the area. A new was social club form, known as "Luz del Porvenir" (Light of the Future). A new school system was the pride of the village because it offered them the opportunity to give their children an education without having to go 9 miles (14 km) south downtown. There was also a new bakery and a post office, among other facilities. At this time, the village also began its Patron Festival.

The clothing industry was a major source of employment.

Prosperity and happiness came to an end, when the news that the Federal Government needed the land to build an air base that came to be known as Ramey Air Force Base. In September 1939, some 3,796 acres (15.4 km²) covered by sugar cane, was expropriated for the military at the cost of $1,215,000.

Since the foundation, the village has suffered three expropriations as a result of expansions to Ramey Air Force Base. This expropriations delayed and ended the plans to turn San Antonio into a town.

Today, the population of San Antonio consists of approximately 10 thousand people. It has a modern square, a Puerto Rico State Police Station, a coliseum, an industrial park, public housing, a baseball park, a public school system, shops, and many other, charasteristics of a small town. Also, as a characteristic of a town, has a flag and an emblem. The creation of the flag and emblem was done by Roberto Román Acevedo.

Tragedy on election day in 1944

On the early morning hours of November 7, 1944, Puerto Rico suffered the most violent railroad accident in its history in Aguadilla. Train No. 3 was traveling from San Juan to Ponce carrying passengers to their different hometowns for the island general elections to be held that same day. It stopped at the Jimenez Station in Aguadilla for a routine engineer and boilerman exchange with Train No. 4 which was heading towards San Juan. The engineer assigned to Train No. 3's ride from Jimenez Station to Ponce was Jose Antonio Roman, an experienced freight train engineer, but who had never worked in passenger travel. When the train left the station at 2:00 am, it was hauling 6 passenger cars with hundreds of commuters and two freight cars.

At 2:20 a.m. the train started to descend a hill section known as Cuesta Vieja (Old Hill) in Aguadilla at what some witnesses described as an exaggerated speed. When the train reached the leveling-off point at the bottom of the hill it derailed. The steam locomotive crashed into a ditch where it exploded and one of the freight cars crashed into one of the passenger cars, killing many inside. Witnesses described the scene as horrendous, with some accounts stating that parents were throwing their children out the windows to save them from the wreckage. Chief of Police Guillermo Arroyo stated that the locomotive (No. 72), the express car, and three second class passenger cars were completely destroyed. Oscar Valle, an Aguadilla correspondent to the local El Mundo newspaper, summarized the scene in a more dramatic way: "The locomotive suffered a terrible explosion as it derailed, and the impact was so strong that 3 passenger cars were converted into a fantastic mound of wreckage. In the end, 16 passengers lost their lives, including the engineer and the boilerman, and 50 were injured in the crash.

Geography

Aguadilla is located in the northwest coast of the island of Puerto Rico, in the Western Coastal Plains. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean in the north, the municipalities of Isabela on the east, and Moca and Aguada in the south.

The area of the municipality is 35.5 square miles. It is mostly plain, with some notable hills being Jiménez (728 feet) and Viñet (689 feet). It has only one river, the Culebrinas, which separates Aguadilla from Aguada. Also Cedro Creek which separates Aguadilla from Isabela in the north.

Temperature of sea

Aguadilla

Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
25 °C (77 °F)	24 °C (75 °F)	25 °C (77 °F)	25 °C (77 °F)	26 °C (79 °F)	27 °C (81 °F)	29 °C (84 °F)	29 °C (84 °F)	30 °C (86 °F)	29 °C (84 °F)	28 °C (82 °F)	26 °C (79 °F)	26.0 °C (78.8 °F)

Cityscape

Barrios

• Aguacate
• Aguadilla Pueblo
• Arenales
• Borinquen
• Caimital Alto - El seis
• Caimital Bajo
• Camaseyes
• Ceiba Alta
• Ceiba Baja
• Corrales - Urbanizacion Cristal
• Guerrero
• Maleza Alta
• Maleza Baja
• Montaña
• Palmar
• Victoria

Tourism

Aguadilla is part of the Porta del Sol touristic region in Puerto Rico. The Porta del Sol website highlights Aguadilla's beaches for surfing.

According to the Department of Natural Resources, Aguadilla has the most beaches in the island, with nineteen. Some of the beaches are considered among the best for surfing, like Surfer's Beach, Gas Chambers, Crash Boat, Wilderness, among others. Because of this, Aguadilla has served as host to surfing competitions, like the ISA World Championship in 1988.

Other attractions of the town are Las Cascadas Water Park and the Aguadilla Ice Skating Arena, which is the only ice skating complex in the Caribbean.

Landmarks and places of interest

• 

  Aguadilla City Hall

• 

  Banyan Treehouse

• 

  Campanitas de Cristal Fountain

• 

  Roman Catholic Parish Church San Carlos Borromeo

• 

  Columbus Cross

• 

  El Merendero

• 

  El Parterre

• 

  Fisherman's Monument

• 

  Jardin del Atlántico Sq.

• 

  Paseo Miguel Garcia Mendez

• 

  Punta Borinquen Golf Course

• 

  Punta Borinquen Lighthouse

• 

  Punta Borinquen Lighthouse Ruins

• 

  Rafael Hernández Monument

• 

  Old Courthouse

• 

  Board Walk

• 

  Crash Boat Beach

• 

  Aguadilla Ice Skating Arena

• Aguadilla City Hall - Originally built in 1918. Reconstructed after the 1918 earthquake.
• Banyan Treehouse - Wooden House around a banyan tree. Any of its parts touches the tree.
• Campanitas de Cristal Fountain
• Cathedral San Carlos Barromeo
• Christopher Columbus Monument - Consists of a cross originally made of marble. It also had to be rebuilt after the earthquake.
• Cristobal Colón Park
• El Merendero
• El Parterre Jose de Jesus Esteves "Ojo de Agua"
• Fisherman's Monument
• Jardin del Atlántico Square
• Las Cascadas (The Waterfalls) Water Park
• Old Sugar Pier
• Paseo Miguel Garcia Mendez
• Punta Borinquen Golf Course - Is an 18-hole golf course, originally built for President Dwight D. Eisenhower.
• Punta Borinquen Lighthouse
• Punta Borinquen Lighthouse Ruins
• Rafael Hernández Monument
• Rafael Hernandez Square
• Ramey Skate Park New
• Tribunal Supremo (Old Courthouse)
• Youth Fountain Juan Ponce de León Park

Beaches

• Crash Boat Beach
• La Ponderosa Beach
• La Poza Beach
• La Saldinera Beach
• Surfer's Beach
• Wilderness Beach (Las Ruinas)
• Rompeolas Beach

Culture

Events and festivals

Aguadilla is the site of several yearly celebrations and festivals. The most notable are:

• Velorio de Reyes - Celebrated mostly in January, they are a religious ceremony held as gratitude to the Three Kings for some answered prayer. They usually consist of hymns, prayers, and other religious expressions.
• Kite Festival - Held in April, it includes kiosks, music, and kite flying.
• Fiestas San Antonio - April
• Verbena de Corrales - May
• Beach Festival - June
• Festival del Atún - Celebrated in July, it is a festival dedicated to the fishing of the tuna.
• Festival de la Música - July
• Fiestas Patronales San Carlos - October

Sports

Aguadilla is home to several professional and amateur sports teams. The most notable are the Aguadilla Divas of the Female Superior Volleyball League, and the Aguadilla Sharks of the Superior Baseball League (Double-A). The Divas play their home games in the Luis T. Diaz Coliseum in Downtown Aguadilla from January to March, while the Sharks play their home games at Luis A. Canera Marquez Stadium from February to May.

Club	League	Sport	Venue
Aguadilla Sharks	Superior Baseball League	Baseball	Luis A. Canera Marquez Stadium
Aguadilla Divas	Female Superior Volleyball League	Volleyball	Luis T. Diaz Coliseum

Aguadilla also had a professional basketball team called the Aguadilla Sharks, that played for the BSN league. This team was merged into the Cangrejeros de Santurce in 1998.

Aguadilla is also a place where many famous baseball players originate from. There are plans for a future ECHL Minor League Hockey franchise for the city.

Economy

An entrance to Aguadilla Mall

In the past, Aguadilla's economy relied mostly on commercial fishing. On a 2012 article by El Nuevo Día, several fishermen criticized the way the mayor Carlos Méndez Martínez has handled the business, and commented that he wanted to "bury the fishing business". Other fishermen said that the mayor had "abandoned" them.

Although there is still commercial fishing in Aguadilla, the economy has now shifted towards the industrial sector. The city is currently home to a variety of industrial and pharmaceutical plants like LifeScan, Symmetricom, Honeywell, and Hewlett Packard. Most of them are located at San Antonio Technological Park, while others like Suiza Dairy, Micron Technology and Productos La Aguadillana are located in Camaseyes Industrial Park. Other industries that are based in Aguadilla are rubber, plastics, leather, textiles, steel, wood, machinery, and food processing.

The retail sector is also another source of economy in Aguadilla. Shopping malls like Aguadilla Mall, Aguadilla Shopping Center, Aguadilla Town Center, and others are some of the main commercial and retail centers of the city.

In the fiscal year of 2010-2011, the city had an operational surplus of $346,176. This represented a dramatic decrease from the surplus the city had in 2009-2010 ($1,227,036) Also, from 2008 to 2009, there have been decreases in the city budget, federal funds, tax income, among others. Also, the public debt of the city is $74,368,454, which represents an increase from the past years.

Communication

Radio

• WABA WABA La Grande 850AM is located in Aguadilla.
• WWNA better known as Radio Una 1340AM is located in Aguadilla.
• [WI3XSO] Wapa Radio frequency 1260AM is locates in Aguadilla.

Television

• WOLE-TV Telemundo 12 both in Aguadilla.
• WELU is a religious broadcast company.
• WPRU-LP ABC 20 is an ABC affiliated station.
• WSJP-LD CW 18 is a CW Television Network affiliated station.
• WSJX-LP Fox 24 is a Fox affiliated station.

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.		%±
1960	15,943		—
1970	21,031		31.9%
1980	54,606		159.6%
1990	59,335		8.7%
2000	64,685		9.0%
2010	60,949		−5.8%

According to the 2010 Census, population in Aguadilla is at 60,949. This represents a decrease of more than 3,000 from the 2000 Census.

As a whole, Puerto Rico is populated mainly by people from a Creole (born on the Island of European descent) or Spanish and European descent, with small groups of African and Asian people. Statistics taken from the 2000 census shows that 83.6% of Aguadillanos have Spanish or white origin, 5.0% are black, 0.2% are Amerindian, 0.2% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander, 8.2% were Some other race, 2.8% Two or more races.

On March 2012, unemployment was at 16.2%, which is the same percent it was in November 2010.

Government

City

Main article: Mayoralty in Puerto Rico

All municipalities in Puerto Rico are administered by a mayor, elected every four years. The current mayor of Aguadilla is Carlos Méndez Martínez, of the New Progressive Party (PNP). He was elected at the 1996 general elections. Aguadilla City Government is based at the city hall in downtown Aguadilla.

State

Most state agencies are based at the Government Center Building with the exception of the Corporación del Seguro del Estado (State Insurance Agency) and the Centro de Servicios al Conductor (Driver's Services Center). Most state agencies left their offices after the Senatorial District was taken away from Aguadilla.

Public safety

Aguadilla has its own police department, Policía Municipal Aguadilla (Aguadilla City Police Department), located in Aguadilla Pueblo. The A.C.P.D. only has jurisdiction in the municipality of Aguadilla and provide service and protection to local citizens and travelers alike.

Aguadilla also hosts the Puerto Rico Police Department Command for its Region. This region covers Aguada, Aguadilla, Isabela, Moca, Rincón and San Sebastián. It also hosts the PRPD Highway Patrol Division for its region, the FURA Division of the PRPD, the US Army Reserve Center, PR National Guard, and the Border Patrol. It is also served by another PRPD station in San Antonio Village (Precinct 203 Ramey-San Antonio).

In recent years, Aguadilla has seen an increase in Type I crimes, which include murder, burglary, and theft.

Mayors

#	Mayor	Term	Party	Notes
1st	Adrián del Valle	1899–1903	None
2nd	José Monserrate Deliz	1903–1905	None
3rd	Luis A. Torregrosa	1905–1907	None
4th	José Francisco Estévez	1907–1911	None
5th	Ramón Añeses Morell	1911–1933	None
6th	Wenceslao Herrera Alfonso	1933–1941	None
7th	José Badillo Nieves	1941–1945	None
8th	Rodolfo Acevedo	1945	None
9th	Fernando Milán	1945–1949	None
10th	Rafael Cabán Peña	1949–1953	None
11th	Rafael A. Guntín López	1953–1957	None
12th	Herminio Blás	1957	None
13th	José Acevedo Álvarez	1957–1969	None
14th	Emilio Cerezo Muñoz	1969–1973	PNP
15th	Conchita Igartúa de Suárez	1973–1977	PPD
16th	Joaquín Acevedo Moreno	1977–1981	PNP
17th	Alfredo González Pérez	1981–1987	PPD
18th	Gustavo Herrera López	1987–1988	PPD	Interim
19th	Ramón Calero Bermúdez	1988–1996	PNP	Died in 1996 while in office
20th	Agnes Bermúdez Acevedo	1996–1997	PNP	Interim
21st	Carlos Méndez Martínez	1997 – Present	PNP	Incumbent; fourth term

Senate

The city belongs to the Puerto Rico Senatorial district IV, which is represented by two Senators. In 2012, María Teresa González and Gilberto Rodríguez were elected as District Senators.

Education

Aguadilla is home to 16 elementary schools, 5 middle schools, and 3 high schools. Mostly owned and operated by the Puerto Rico Department of Education. It also hosts the Head Start Program for Aguadilla, Aguada, Moca, Rincón, and San Sebastián and a number of private institutions.

Higher education

Aguadilla hosts the following universities:

• Metropolitan University - Aguadilla Campus
• Inter-American University of Puerto Rico - Aguadilla Campus
• University of Puerto Rico - Aguadilla Campus
• Automeca Technical College
• Century College
• La Reine Institute of Cosmetology & Esthetics
• Universal Technology College of Puerto Rico (UniTech)
• Puerto Rico Criminal Justice College- Aguadilla Campus (Puerto Rico Police Academy) Ramey Job Corps also serves those who want to attain a higher education.

Aguadilla Library System

There is an existent library in San Antonio Village and another one Downtown Aguadilla.

Health

There are two major medical facilities in Aguadilla.

• Hospital Buen Samaritano (Good Samaritan Hospital)
• Aguadilla Medical Services
• Sala de Urgencias San Francisco (road#2)

There are also a number of private doctor's offices.

Transportation

Rafael Hernandez International Airport - View of the Passenger Terminal

Air

Rafael Hernández Airport is located in the city of Aguadilla. In recent years, it has seen a resurgence as an international airport in the island, with several airlines planning flights to the US from Aguadilla.

Roads

Interstate PR-2 (Rafael Henández Highway). Plans are underway for a new expressway, an expansion to existing Puerto Rico Highway 22 (José de Diego Expressway) from Hatillo and it will probably end at Puerto Rico Highway 111.

Public

King Face Public Transportation Terminal

Notable people from Aguadilla

Due to space limitations it is almost impossible to list all of the people of Aguadilla who have distinguished themselves, therefore a category has been created to this effect:

See also: Category:People from Aguadilla, Puerto Rico

See also

• History of Puerto Rico
• List of Puerto Ricans

External links

• Aguadilla and its barrios, United States Census Bureau
• Alicia Sotomayor, Puerto Rican Watercolor Artist
• Official Government Page of Municipality of Aguadilla
• Aguadilla.com - Portada
• Mi Aguadillita Querida
• Welcome to Puerto Rico Aguadilla
• Map of Aguadilla Puerto Rico
• Aguadilla Web
• Porta del Sol: Aguadilla