Río Grande, Puerto Rico


Río Grande is a municipality of Puerto Rico located in the Northern Coastal Valley, north of Las Piedras, Naguabo and Ceiba; east of Loíza and Canóvanas and west of Luquillo. Río Grande is spread over eight wards and Río Grande Pueblo. It is part of the San Juan-Caguas-Guaynabo Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History

Río Grande was founded on July 16, 1840, by Desiderio and Quilimaco Escobar, with the approbation of governor Miguel López. It was named after the Río Grande and is located where the Río Grande and the Río Espíritu Santo join.
In 1894, there were two sugar cane haciendas and 256 estancias growing minor fruits.

Hurricane Maria

on September 20, 2017 triggered numerous landslides in Río Grande with the significant amount of rainfall.

Geography

Río Grande is on the northeastern coast and Sierra Luquillo Mountains.

Barrios

Like all municipalities of Puerto Rico, Río Grande is subdivided into barrios. The municipal buildings, central square and a large Catholic church are located in a small, central barrio called barrio-pueblo or simply Pueblo.
  1. Ciénaga Alta
  2. Ciénaga Baja
  3. Guzmán Abajo
  4. Guzmán Arriba
  5. Herreras
  6. Jiménez
  7. Mameyes II
  8. Río Grande barrio-pueblo
  9. Zarzal

    Sectors

Barrios in turn are further subdivided into smaller local populated place areas/units called sectores. The types of sectores may vary, from normally sector to urbanización to reparto to barriada to residencial, among others.

Special Communities

Of the 742 places on the list of Comunidades Especiales de Puerto Rico, the following barrios, communities, sectors, or neighborhoods are in Río Grande: Sector Montebello and Sector El Hoyo in Malpica, Las Dolores, La Ponderosa, Villa Realidad, Estancias del Sol, and Hong Kong.

Demographics

In 1894, while a Spanish colony, the population of Río Grande was 6,237.
The United States took control of Puerto Rico from Spain in the aftermath of the Spanish-American War under the terms of the Treaty of Paris of 1898. In 1899, the United States conducted its first census of Puerto Rico in 1899 finding that the population of Río Grande was 12,365.

Tourism

Río Grande is home to one of the largest secluded areas with beach access on the entire island. Major hotels in the area include Wyndham Grand Rio Mar Resort and Hyatt Regency Grand Reserve. Every March, Hyatt Regency Grand Reserve plays host to the PGA Tour's Puerto Rico Open.
Within a ten-minute drive is El Yunque National Forest, the only tropical rain forest within the United States National Forest System.

Hotels

There are 27 beaches in Río Grande.
Main attractions of Río Grande are:

Agriculture

Fruits, ornamental plants, vegetables, and cattle.

Business

Local retail stores are aside highway PR-3. Large shopping centers were not present mainly due to the closeness of the Canóvanas shopping district area. However, there is one large shopping mall located on 65th Infantry expressway and 956th street. Because it is relatively new, many of its spaces are not leased yet. Together both cities are growing economically very fast and becoming the eastern economic bloc of the northeastern area of Puerto Rico attracting hotels, shopping malls, sport venues among others. Another thing that is making Río Grande more attractive to tourists and businesses alike is the newly constructed and opened Route 66, which makes it a lot more accessible and more appealing to home buyers.
In 2019, volunteers and police who formed a group called Consejo Comunitario de Seguridad de Río Piedras celebrated their 32nd year aiding local businesses with security issues. This group works to ensure the safety and security of business patrons in the downtown area of Río Piedras.

Industry

Manufacture of textiles.

Culture

Festivals and events

Río Grande celebrates its patron saint festival in July. The Fiestas Patronales de Nuestra Señora del Carmen is a religious and cultural celebration that generally features parades, games, artisans, amusement rides, regional food, and live entertainment.
Other festivals and events celebrated in Río Grande include:
Baseball, basketball and handball are popular sports in Río Grande.

Government

Like all municipalities in Puerto Rico, Río Grande is administered by a mayor. The current mayor is Angel "Bori" González, who was elected in a special election on September 14, 2014. González is replacing Eduard Rivera Correa, who was elected at the 2004 general election. However, Rivera Correa stepped down from office after being indicted on federal charges.
The city belongs to the Puerto Rico Senatorial district VIII, which is represented by two senators. In 2012, Pedro A. Rodríguez and Luis Daniel Rivera were elected as District Senators.

Transportation

There are 48 bridges in Río Grande.

Symbols

Flag

The Río Grande flag consists of two horizontal stripes of equal size, upper one is green with lower one been blue, and united by a white triangle placed on the side of the mast. On the white triangle is a Puerto Rican parrot.

Coat of arms

In a silver field, two Puerto Rican parrot, accompanied by a waving blue stripe, a green mountain with three peaks. The top portion of the shield is blue, with an opened silver book, accompanied on each side by five gold coins. Topped by a three tower gold crown outlined in black with green openings.

Gallery