Pétion-Ville ( ht, Petyonvil) is a
commune
A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to:
Administrative-territorial entities
* Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township
** Communes of ...
and a suburb of
Port-au-Prince
Port-au-Prince ( , ; ht, Pòtoprens ) is the capital and most populous city of Haiti. The city's population was estimated at 987,311 in 2015 with the metropolitan area estimated at a population of 2,618,894. The metropolitan area is define ...
,
Haiti
Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and ...
, in the hills east and separate from the city itself on the northern hills of the Massif de la Selle. Founded in 1831 by president
Jean-Pierre Boyer
Jean-Pierre Boyer (15 February 1776 – 9 July 1850) was one of the leaders of the Haitian Revolution, and President of Haiti from 1818 to 1843. He reunited the north and south of the country into the Republic of Haiti in 1820 and also annexed ...
, it was named after
Alexandre Sabès Pétion (1770–1818), the Haitian general and president later recognized as one of the country's four founding fathers.
The district is primarily a residential and touristic area. It had a population of 283,052 at the 2003 Census, which was officially estimated to have reached 376,834 in 2015.
Many diplomats, foreign businessmen, and wealthy citizens engage in business and reside in Pétion-Ville.
Despite the distance from the capital and the general affluence of the district, the lack of administrative enforcement has led to the formation of shantytowns on the outer edges of the district, as poor locals migrate upward and have settled there in search of job opportunities. On 28 or 29 August 2020, Haitian Lawyer
Monferrier Dorval was assassinated in front of his home. On 7 July 2021, Haitian president
Jovenel Moïse
Jovenel Moïse (; ; 26 June 1968 – 7 July 2021) was a Haitian entrepreneur and politician, who served as the 43rd President of Haiti from 2017 until his assassination in 2021. He was sworn in as president in February 2017 after winning the ...
was assassinated at his private residence between 1:00-2:00 AM local time.
Culture and nightlife
The gated and privately guarded neighborhoods of Pétion-Ville resemble a Haitian version of
Beverly Hills
Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Bev ...
, but with barbed wire. The community is very stable, with nightlife and business conducted with an appearance of western normality, in striking contrast to many other parts of greater Port-au-Prince.
The hillside suburban town is filled with nightclubs, beauty salons, fitness gyms and restaurants. Businesses which cater to tourists are commonplace, and parties and get-togethers often take place at night. Establishments often host considerable numbers of expatriates and foreigners.
The "El Rancho" hotel is in Pétion-Ville. It was built from the private estate of Albert Silvera, a sports and luxury car collector who was one of the pioneers of Haiti's hotel industry.
2010 earthquake
On 12 January 2010, around 5:53 pm,
a 7.0 earthquake struck the Pétion-Ville area. The earthquake caused the collapse of a hospital in the city.
The 7.0-magnitude earthquake destroyed many buildings in Port-au-Prince, and a lot of homes in the Montana area, including the
Hôtel Montana
The Hôtel Montana is a four star luxury hotel in Haiti. It is located on Rue Frank Cardozo, Bourdon on one of the only three main roads connecting the capital to its southeastern outskirt city Pétion-Ville.
It was one of the most luxurious hot ...
.
The ''Club de Pétion-Ville'' golf course was converted into a tent city by the US Army and housed 50,000 to 80,000 Haitians in 2010. Its tennis courts hosted elements of the US
82nd Airborne division. The club was built in the 1930s and had around 300 members at the time.
[Golf.com]
"Once a club with 300 members, Haiti's lone golf course is now a refugee camp"
, Farrell Evans, 20 January 2010 (accessed 31 January 2010) The golf clubhouse was turned into a field hospital.
[National Post]
Sheldon Alberts, 23 January 2010 (accessed 31 January 2010)
In early February 2010, the Israeli-based humanitarian organization,
IsraAid, opened a child education center in the Pétion-Ville tent city, in conjunction with other agencies, such as
Operation Blessing. The center was set up initially in the tents from the
Israel Defense Forces
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; he, צְבָא הַהֲגָנָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the Israel, State of Israel. It consists of three servic ...
’ field hospital.
[Heyman, Jeffre]
"The resilience of the people is stronger than we expected"
(10 February 2010), i
''Israel 21c Innovation News Service''
Retrieved 2010-02-11
The "Muncheez" pizza restaurant was turned into a community
soup kitchen
A soup kitchen, food kitchen, or meal center, is a place where food is offered to the Hunger, hungry usually for free or sometimes at a below-market price (such as via coin donations upon visiting). Frequently located in lower-income neighborhoo ...
. It served approximately 1,000 free meals a day. Before the quake, the restaurant chain was a place where few even in Pétion-Ville could afford to eat. After the quake, owners realized that the food stored at the three restaurants would spoil before it would get back into business and decided to give it all away. Although still living in the streets, the cooks still came to cook for the masses. Owners distributed blue bracelets throughout Pétion-Ville, one bracelet for one meal. They selected one of the outlets to become the soup kitchen and moved all 105 employees to that site to cook. When food ran out after two days, the
Hôtel Montana
The Hôtel Montana is a four star luxury hotel in Haiti. It is located on Rue Frank Cardozo, Bourdon on one of the only three main roads connecting the capital to its southeastern outskirt city Pétion-Ville.
It was one of the most luxurious hot ...
donated what could be salvaged from their freezers. When they began running out of fuel, cooking oil and food, a convoy from relatives of the owners in the Dominican Republic arrived, funded by donations with more food and fuel.
USAID
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is an independent agency of the U.S. federal government that is primarily responsible for administering civilian foreign aid and development assistance. With a budget of over $27 bi ...
supplied fuel, cooking oil and food to cook, and
World Vision
In its most general sense, the term "world" refers to the totality of entities, to the whole of reality or to everything that is. The nature of the world has been conceptualized differently in different fields. Some conceptions see the worl ...
supplied
bulgur
Bulgur (from tr, bulgur, itself from fa, بلغور, bolġur (bolghur)/balġur (balghur), groats ), also riffoth (from biblical he, ריפות, riffoth) and burghul (from ar, برغل, burġul ), is a cracked wheat dish found ...
and
lentil
The lentil (''Lens culinaris'' or ''Lens esculenta'') is an edible legume. It is an annual plant known for its lens-shaped seeds. It is about tall, and the seeds grow in pods, usually with two seeds in each. As a food crop, the largest pro ...
s.
Electricity was restored to some sectors at the beginning of February and to most of the rest of the city later.
2021 assassination of Jovenel Moïse
On 7 July 2021, then-President of Haiti
Jovenel Moïse
Jovenel Moïse (; ; 26 June 1968 – 7 July 2021) was a Haitian entrepreneur and politician, who served as the 43rd President of Haiti from 2017 until his assassination in 2021. He was sworn in as president in February 2017 after winning the ...
was
assassinated
Assassination is the murder of a prominent or important person, such as a head of state, head of government, politician, world leader, member of a royal family or CEO. The murder of a celebrity, activist, or artist, though they may not have a ...
by a group of 28 gunmen while sleeping in his private residence located in Pétion-Ville.
Facilities
The ''Club de Pétion-Ville'' country club was built in the 1930s and has Haiti's only golf course, a nine-hole course.
[ It also contains tennis courts and swimming pools.][ The "Club de Pétion-Ville" is not in the suburb of Pétion-Ville but is located in the northwest of the foothills.
]
Education
Union School Haiti
Union School is a private, co-educational, and non-sectarian Pre-K to 12 institution established in Pétion-Ville, Port-au-Prince Arrondissement, Haiti for the purpose of providing an American accredited program of studies in both English and Fre ...
is in Pétion-Ville.
See also
*Cabane Choucoune
Cabane Choucoune, is a cabaret and thatch-roofed club in Pétion-Ville, Haiti. It was built on 8 December 1940 by Max Ewald. It is known as one of the best méringue dance clubs. Historically, it has featured Haitian artists such as Nemours Jean ...
, famous cabaret and thatch-roofed dance club
*Don Bosco FC
Don Bosco Football Club de Pétion-Ville is a professional football club based in Pétion-Ville, Haiti.
The club won their first Haitian championship in 1971, and second in 2003, winning the league's Ouverture.
Honours
*Ligue Haïtienne: 5
:: ...
, a professional football club
*Festival du Rhum Haiti
The Festival du Rhum Haiti (English: ''Haiti Rum Festival'') is an international festival promoting rum and related alcoholic beverages organized by J'Organise; collaborated and held in the El Rancho Hotel in Pétion-Ville, Haiti. The three-day e ...
, annual international festival
*Signal FM
Signal FM is a Haitian French language radio station based in the Port-au-Prince suburb of Pétion-Ville. It is a popular station, providing news updates and other information on Haiti. Mario Viau is owner and general manager.
The station rema ...
, a radio station
References
External links
*
* Reuters
"Pétion-Ville atlas of building damage assessment"
2 March 2010
{{DEFAULTSORT:Petionville
Communes of Haiti
Populated places in Haiti