20-499: Aguas Buenas , ( Spanish pronunciation: [ˈaɣwas ˈβwenas] , local pronunciation: [awaʔ ˈβwenaʔ] ), popularly known as " La Ciudad de las Aguas Claras " or " The City of Clear Waters ", is a town and municipality of Puerto Rico located in the Central Mountain Range , north of Cidra , south of Bayamón , Guaynabo and San Juan ; east of Comerio ; and north-west of Caguas . Aguas Buenas
40-719: A certain amount of social exclusion . A map shows these communities occur in nearly every municipality of the commonwealth. Of the 742 places that were on the list in 2014, the following barrios, communities, sectors, or neighborhoods were in Aguas Buenas: Vázquez neighborhood, Las Parcelas in Bayamoncito barrio, Sonadora barrio, Cagüitas Centro, Pajilla sector in Centro Urbano, Jagüeyes Abajo, Las Corujas, and Parcelas Santa Clara in Sumidero barrio. Some of
60-408: A municipality. A resident, Julian López, offered part of his estate to be used for the construction of a town square, a church, the city hall, and the priest house. The town was officially founded on May 25, 1838, and the name was changed to Aguas Buenas . Francisco de Salas Torres was declared the first mayor. Initially, the economy of the town relied on coffee plantations and commerce. At the end of
80-641: A reconstructed roof, but with a blue tarp for a roof. The hurricane winds and rain damaged infrastructure and caused the entire electrical system to collapse. The terrain is moderately mountainous located in the northern edge of the Cayey mountain range ( Sierra de Cayey ), part of the Cordillera Central in Puerto Rico . The highest peaks are La Peña, Santa Bárbara, La Tisa, and La Marquesa. Several rivers flow through Aguas Buenas. Some of them are
100-508: A sol sembrando nuestros frutos El orgullo labrado en nuestra tierra La siega de un futuro va anunciando El brillo de la solitaria estrella. Que se levanta en medio del combate Por negarse a ser solo una quimera Raices firmes que en el pecho laten Afirmando la patria y la conciencia. Aguas Buenas, estirpe de valientes Pedazo del terruño borinqueño Un pueblo que se une en la conquista De lo que es ser un buen puertoriqueñio. Yo soy Aguas Buenas! To reach
120-776: 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 Aguas Buenas include the Salsa , Bomba & Plena Festival held in late summer, an Agricultural festival held in May and the Festival Folklórico de Campo y Pueblo held in January. An annual Carnival is held in March. After its foundation,
140-541: Is equally divided by gender (49% are males, while 51% are females). Finally, 25% of the population is under 18 years old. The next biggest percentage of population (19.4%) is between 35 and 49 years old. All municipalities in Puerto Rico are administered by a mayor, elected every four years. The current mayor of Aguas Buenas is Javier García Pérez, of the New Progressive Party (PNP). He was elected at
160-548: Is spread over 9 barrios and Aguas Buenas Pueblo (the downtown area and the administrative center of the city). It is part of the San Juan-Caguas-Guaynabo Metropolitan Statistical Area . The name Aguas Buenas translates to "good waters". The town 's and municipality's original names were Aguabuena ("good water"), originally a barrio or district of Caguas , and Aguas Claras ("clear waters"). These names and some of
180-536: The 2016 general elections . However, on May 5, 2022, García Pérez was arrested by the FBI on corruption, bribery, and extortion charges. and was subsequently removed from his position. Since 2011, the city belongs to the Puerto Rico Senatorial district I , which is represented by two Senators. In 2012, José Nadal Power and Ramón Luis Nieves were elected as District Senators. The following have been
200-986: The Bayamón River , and several small rivers that are part of the Río Grande de Loíza , like Bairoa , Caguitas , and Cañas . Like all municipalities of Puerto Rico, Aguas Buenas is subdivided into barrios . The municipal buildings, central square and large Catholic church are located in a small barrio referred to as "el pueblo" , near the center of the municipality. Barrios (which are like minor civil divisions ) and subbarrios, are further subdivided into smaller areas called sectores ( sectors in English). The types of sectores may vary, from normally sector to urbanización to reparto to barriada to residencial , among others. Comunidades Especiales de Puerto Rico (Special Communities of Puerto Rico) are marginalized communities whose citizens are experiencing
220-479: The 19th century, the town's population was close to 7,000. In 1906, mayor Don José E. Morales bought nearly six acres of terrain from Don Guillermo Díaz Delgado. In these lands, the sectors of La Pajilla, El Pueblito and El Guanábano were established, expanding the town's area. The epicenter of the 2010 Aguas Buenas earthquake , popularly known as the Nochebuena Earthquake , was centered between
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#1732773371438240-555: The Mayors of the Aguas Buenas Municipality, from its foundation to the present: The municipio has an official flag and coat of arms. The flag of Aguas Buenas features a blue triangle with the base at the hoist. The triangle has a solitary white star, like the national banner. A second triangle appears interposed with the first one, in yellow, with its point reaching the other end of the flag. The main field of
260-446: The agriculture was the primary source of income for the town. In the lower left panel, there are four maracas and a güicharo, typical instruments of the "jibaros" of Aguas Buenas and Puerto Rico. The crown, as with other municipalities of Puerto Rico , consists of three towers. Bajo el azul del cielo de mi patria En el oriente de la Cordillera Aguasbonenses forjando la historia Defendiendo el honor de su bandera. De sol
280-442: The barrios Juan Asencio , Mulita and Sonadora . Hurricane Maria on September 20, 2017, triggered numerous landslides in Aguas Buenas with the significant amount of rainfall. Between1,000 and 3,000 homes in Aguas Buenas were destroyed or suffered significant damage as a result of the hurricane. A year after the hurricane struck, many older residents refused to leave their damaged homes and continued to live in their homes, without
300-401: The economy of Aguas Buenas relied mostly on coffee plantations. According to the 2020 census, Aguas Buenas has a population of 24,223. This represents a decline of 15.5% or over 4,000 inhabitants in comparison to the 2010 census. According to the 2010 Census, 72.5% of the population identifies themselves as White , and 12.6% as African-American . Also, according to the census, the population
320-467: The flag, under both triangles, is color green. Designed by Francisco Diaz Rivera in 1975, the coat of arms features a four-paneled shield. The upper left panel shows the Virgin of Monserrate , while the upper right panel features a Taíno , a symbol of the original inhabitants of this region. At the bottom right panel, lies a cornucopia containing the native fruit of Aguas Buenas. This panel represents how
340-1053: The landmarks and places of interest in Aguas Buenas are located in its town square. Places of interest in Aguas Buenas include: To stimulate local tourism during the COVID-19 pandemic in Puerto Rico , the Puerto Rico Tourism Company launched the Voy Turistiendo (I'm Touring) campaign in 2021. The campaign featured a passport book with a page for each municipality. The Voy Turisteando Aguas Buenas passport page lists Viva La Cosecha ( agritourism ), Hacienda Cascada (agritourism), Centro Recreativo La Charca , and Paseo Mirador as places of interest. Aguas Buenas has an amateur baseball team called Los Tigres de Aguas Buenas . Aguas Buenas celebrates its patron saint festival in September. The Fiestas Patronales Nuestra Señora de la Monserrate
360-624: The municipality's nicknames such as Ciudad de las Aguas Claras ("city of clear waters") and Oasis de Puerto Rico (" Puerto Rico 's oasis ") are a reference to the number of natural water springs that can be found in the municipality, particularly those founds around the Aguas Buenas Cave and Caverns System Nature Reserve (Spanish: Reserva Natural Sistema de Cuevas y Cavernas de Aguas Buenas ). In addition to aguasbonenses , citizens and residents of Aguas Buenas are often referred to as Mulos ("mules") or Ñocos ("amputees"). Aguas Buenas
380-720: The town of Aguas Buenas, visitors must take the Puerto Rico Highway 52 to the city of Caguas . From there, PR-156 leads directly into the downtown square. Other minor roads lead to nearby towns such as Comerío . There are 13 bridges in Aguas Buenas. There are around 14 public schools in Aguas Buenas. As with all other municipalities, education is handled by the Puerto Rico Department of Education . These are divided as follows: Elementary Schools Junior High Schools Aguas Buenas barrio-pueblo Too Many Requests If you report this error to
400-422: Was originally a sector of Caguas known as Aguabuena . In 1798, a group of residents started establishing their houses near some of the rivers in the area and started calling the sector Aguas Claras . The quantity of residents incremented with time and on July 25, 1832, they organized a meeting and commissioned Francisco de Salas Torres and Ramón Díaz to do the necessary arrangements for the region to be declared
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