Arima, officially The Royal Chartered Borough of Arima is the easternmost and second largest in area of the three boroughs of

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago (, ), officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tobago, and numerous much smaller islands, it is situated south of ...

. It is geographically adjacent to Sangre Grande and Arouca at the south central foothills of the Northern Range. To the south is the

Caroni–Arena Dam The Caroni–Arena Dam is the largest dam in Trinidad and Tobago. It is located in the Arena Forest Reserve, south of Arima Arima, officially The Royal Chartered Borough of Arima is the easternmost and second largest in area of the three b ...

. Coterminous with Town of Arima since 1888, the borough of Arima is the fourth-largest municipality in population in the country (after

Port of Spain Port of Spain (Spanish: ''Puerto España''), officially the City of Port of Spain (also stylized Port-of-Spain), is the capital of Trinidad and Tobago and the third largest municipality, after Chaguanas and San Fernando. The city has a municip ...

, Chaguanas and

San Fernando San Fernando may refer to: People *Ferdinand III of Castile (c. 1200–1252), called ''San Fernando'' (Spanish) or ''Saint Ferdinand'', King of Castile, León, and Galicia Places Argentina *San Fernando de la Buena Vista, city of Greater Buenos ...

). The census estimated it had 33,606 residents in 2011. In 1887, the town petitioned

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 21 ...

for municipal status as part of her

Golden Jubilee A golden jubilee marks a 50th anniversary. It variously is applied to people, events, and nations. Bangladesh In Bangladesh, golden jubilee refers the 50th anniversary year of the separation from Pakistan and is called in Bengali ''"সু ...

celebration. This was granted in the following year, and Arima became a Royal Borough on 1 August 1888. Historically the third-largest town of Trinidad and Tobago, Arima is fourth since Chaguanas became the largest town in the country.

Geography

Climate

The borough has a

tropical rainforest climate A tropical rainforest climate, humid tropical climate or equatorial climate is a tropical climate sub-type usually found within 10 to 15 degrees latitude of the equator. There are some other areas at higher latitudes, such as the coast of southea ...

( Köppen ''Af''), bordering on a

tropical monsoon climate An area of tropical monsoon climate (occasionally known as a sub-equatorial, tropical wet climate or a tropical monsoon and trade-wind littoral climate) is a tropical climate sub-type that corresponds to the Köppen climate classification category ...

, characterised with little seasonal variations due to its close proximity to the Northern Range. Temperatures typically range from 20 to 31 degrees Celsius, and annual rainfall averages around 2000 millimeters. The wet season lasts from June to November, and although there is no true dry season, there is a noticeably drier stretch from January to April.
Climate Arima, Climate-Data.org Hail has occurred in the town but is rare.

Culture and entertainment

Arima hosts an annual Borough Day anniversary celebration in August. The celebration incorporates Carnival-style street parades and usually coincides with the staging of the Santa Rosa Carib Community annual festival. The annual Arima Carnival includes street parades of masqueraders on Carnival Tuesday, J'ouvert bands on Carnival Monday, as well as a local calypso competition.

Demographics

Ancestry

Transportation

Highways and roads

The major land transportation arteries are the Churchill–Roosevelt Highway,

Eastern Main Road The Eastern Main Road is a major road in Trinidad and Tobago running from Port of Spain in the west to Manzanilla in the east. The towns of the East–West Corridor are strung along its route. Until the construction of the Churchill–Roosevelt ...

and the

Priority Bus Route The Priority Bus Route (or PBR) is a public transit corridor roadway on Trinidad island in Trinidad and Tobago. It is dedicated for use only by buses, maxi taxis, and emergency vehicles. Other vehicles can only use this road if the owner posses ...

which all link Arima with major towns and cities along the East–West Corridor metropolitan area. Among other important routes are the Arima Bypass, Cocorite Street, Tumpuna Road and O'Meara Road which links neighbourhoods around the town to the Town Center.

Transit

Arima plays an important role for north-eastern Trinidad as a multi-modal transportation hub for many of the towns and neighbourhoods on the eastern side of the island. A bus terminal provides service by the PTSC Bus network to Sangre Grande, Mundo Nuevo,

Blanchisseuse Blanchisseuse (pronounced, in the local English dialect, "blan-chee-shears") is a village in Trinidad and Tobago. It is located about midway along the north coast of Trinidad on the northern slope of the Northern Range, about 24 km north o ...

, Carapo,

Malabar Malabar may refer to the following: People * Malabars, people originating from the Malabar region of India * Malbars or Malabars, people of Tamil origin in Réunion Places * Malabar Coast, or Malabar, a region of the southwestern shoreline o ...

, Morne La Croix,

La Horquetta La Horquetta is a mixed neighbourhood in south Arima, 9 km (5 mi) south of the Arima town center in east Trinidad, Trinidad and Tobago. It is located in the south-eastern corner of the Tunapuna–Piarco region. La Horquetta is bounded b ...

Wallerfield Wallerfield is a residential and industrial area east of Arima in Trinidad and Tobago. It served as Waller Air Force Base, and since the closure of U.S. Army base in May 1949 it became the informal home of various types of racing (using former ai ...

Brasso Seco and to the capital

. Maxi taxis (private, owner-operated minibuses) operate throughout

as a kind of semi-public transport. They operate along fixed routes, have fixed fares and meeting points, but do not operate under a fixed schedule. These maxi taxis provide services from the town center to

via the

and Churchill-Roosevelt Highway, making stops along the East–West Corridor. They also provide transport to Sangre Grande.

Sports

The major national super-league team, FC Santa Rosa and Arima Football League, which is based at the

Arima Velodrome The Arima Velodrome is an outdoor velodrome in Arima, Trinidad and Tobago. The velodrome is an open outdoor velodrome serving the Borough of Arima and its suburbs. It hosts grass and concrete surface. From 2017 it was to become the home stadium f ...

. Abilene Wildcats Athletic Club, Trinity College East Athletics Club, Silver Bullets Athletic Club, D'Abadie Progressive Athletic Club, and Spartans High Speed Performance Athletic Club are also based in Arima. Most suburbs, communities and neighbourhoods around the Borough have their own sporting complexes and community swimming pools. The three major sporting arenas in Arima are: * The Larry Gomes Stadium *

*Santa Rosa Race Track *

Sunil Narine Sunil Philip Narine (born 26 May 1988) is a Trinidadian cricketer who plays internationally for the West Indies. He made his One Day International (ODI) debut in December 2011 and Test match debut in June 2012. Primarily an off-spin bowler, he ...

and

Larry Gomes Hilary Angelo Gomes (born 13 July 1953) is a Trinidad and Tobago and West Indies cricket team, West Indian former cricketer. Cricket career Gomes toured England with the West Indian youth team in 1970 and made his first-class cricket, first-cla ...

are West Indies cricket players born in Arima.

Attractions

* Asa Wright Nature Centre, located in Arima Valley, it has a nature walk and swimming at a natural stream pool. * Santa Rosa Carib Centre, located on Paul Mitchell Road, off De Gannes Street in Arima, it contains items from Arima's native Carib history and is the headquarters of the

Carib Queen The Carib Queen is the leader of the indigenous community in Trinidad and Tobago. The Queen, whose title was established in 1875, is based at the Santa Rosa First Peoples Community in Arima, Trinidad and Tobago. The position is a lifetime appoin ...

. It also has displays about Carib descendants in Arima. Native items are also available for purchase. *Cleaver Woods, it has nature walks and Amerindian exhibits. * Princess Royal Park (Arima Savannah) is a wide, open, savannah, surrounded by Pro Queen Street to the east, Robinson Street to the south, Queen Mary Avenue to the west and the Arima Velodrome to the north.

Utilities

Electric generation is handled by Powergen, while electrical distribution is handled by the

Trinidad and Tobago Electricity Commission Trinidad and Tobago Electricity Commission (T&TEC) is the sole retailer of electricity in Trinidad and Tobago. It is responsible for the design, construction, operation and maintenance of the country's electrical transmission and distribution netw ...

(T&TEC). Powergen has natural gas fired generation plants at Point Lisas, Penal, and Wrightson Road in Port of Spain. Additional power can be supplied from power generation facilities controlled by Inncogen at Point Lisas. Telecommunications are regulated by the Telecommunications Authority of Trinidad and Tobago (TATT). It has been working to break up the monopoly, granting several new licences in 2005 to new companies in the market. Fixed-line telephone service is a monopoly controlled by Telecommunications Services of Trinidad and Tobago (TSTT). Licenses have been granted for competition in this area, but start-up is a while away. Wireless telephony is controlled by TSTT and bmobile, as well as

Digicel Digicel is a Jamaican and Caribbean mobile phone network and home entertainment provider operating in 33 markets worldwide. Digicel has operated in several countries, including Guyana, Fiji, Haiti, Trinidad and Tobago, St. Lucia, Suriname, and Ja ...

, which came later. Licenses have been granted for a private company, Laqtel, to offer wireless service in competition with TSTT and Digicel. However, Laqtel had its licence revoked, and is undergoing severe financial difficulties. Digital cable television is provided by Flow. High-speed internet service of up to 100Mbit/s and digital landline telephone service are all available in Arima. Water and sewerage are under the purview of the Water and Sewerage Authority of Trinidad and Tobago (WASA).

Education

There are several primary (private and public) and secondary educational institutions in Arima, and some post-secondary level technical training institutes. St. Joseph's Convent in Arima was closed many years ago and the building now houses a retreat centre called Emmaus Centre. Schools ''Primary'' *Arima Hindu Primary School *Arima Boys' Government Primary School *Arima Boys' R.C. Primary School *Arima Centenary Government Primary School *Arima Girls' Government Primary School *Arima Girls' R.C. Primary School *Arima New Government Primary School *Arima Presbyterian Primary School *Arima West Government Primary School *Christian Primary Academy *EdenWay Pre-Primary Christian School *Giuseppi Preparatory *Malabar Government Primary School *Malabar R.C. Primary School *New Dawn Preparatory *Santa Rosa Government Primary School *St. Hilary's Preparatory ''Secondary'' *

Arima Government Secondary School Arima Central Secondary School formerly called Arima Government Secondary School (commonly referred to as "Central" or "ACSS") is a co-educational secondary school on Roberts Street in Arima in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. The school is ...

*Arima Senior Comprehensive (now Arima North Secondary School) *Holy Cross College *Arima Central Secondary School ''Post-secondary Institutions'' *Ambi's Career Institute *College of Professional Studies *Zenith Educational Institute

Gallery

File:TnT Arima Bus Terminal.jpg, Bus terminal File:TnT Arima Velodrome 1.jpg, Arima Velodrome File:TnT Arima Velodrome 2.jpg, Arima Velodrome

References

External links

Arima Borough Corporation
Official website

marking Arima's 112th anniversary as a borough.

marking Arima's 109th anniversary as a borough.
Some pictures of Arima from TriniView.com
showing many streets.

Santa Rosa Carib Community

{{Authority control Populated places in Trinidad and Tobago Municipalities of Trinidad and Tobago Populated places established in 1757 1757 establishments in the Spanish West Indies