Miramar (Puerto Rico)
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Miramar is one of the forty subbarrios of Santurce, San Juan, Puerto Rico. It has many Spanish-style homes with patios and gardens.


History

The neighborhood is under the legal jurisdiction of Santurce in the municipality of
San Juan San Juan, Spanish for Saint John, may refer to: Places Argentina * San Juan Province, Argentina * San Juan, Argentina, the capital of that province * San Juan, Salta, a village in Iruya, Salta Province * San Juan (Buenos Aires Underground), ...
, Puerto Rico. It first appears in the 16th century as a spring that fed water to the Spanish outpost of Old San Juan. In the 17th century a wide public street, the Central Highway, (today Ponce de León Avenue) was built that ran through the spring. Commerce flourished since goods that arrived at the port of San Juan had to pass Miramar on their way to the rest of the island. Today two set of bridges known as San Antonio and Dos Hermanos connects the adjoining areas of Old San Juan and Condado. Its land area measures 0.24 sq. miles (0.62 km²), and has a resident population of 5,440 according to the
2000 United States Census The United States census of 2000, conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States on April 1, 2000, to be 281,421,906, an increase of 13.2 percent over the 248,709,873 people enumerated during the 1990 ce ...
. Miramar, since its beginnings had large wooden plantation-style homes with expansive land lots. In the 1950s well known architects from the time period built extravagant homes in Miramar that are still preserved. Miramar is home to several structures registered at the National Register of Historic Places, such as Casa Aboy-Lompré, a cultural center that was declared a historic building in the year 1989, focusing on the preservation and creation of photographic art. Another example is the Our Lady of Lourdes Chapel, declared a historic building in the year 1984.www2.pr.gov
United States Department of the Interior National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Retrieved 2016-10-26.
'' MADMi.jpg, Museum of Art and Design in Miramar Nuestra-senora-de-lourdes-4.JPG, Our Lady of Lourdes Chapel


Location

Miramar is situated on the northwestern part of Santurce, adjacent to Isla Grande where the
Puerto Rico Convention Center The Dr. Pedro Rosselló González Puerto Rico Convention Center (PRCC) (or ''Centro de Convenciones de Puerto Rico Dr. Pedro Rosselló González'' in Spanish), or simply Puerto Rico Convention Center, is a convention center located in Isla Gran ...
is located to the west. Baldorioty de Castro Boulevard and
Condado Lagoon Condado Lagoon ( es, Laguna del Condado) is located in San Juan, Puerto Rico. It is an effluent body of water that flows freely between the Condado and Miramar neighborhoods of Santurce, a barrio of San Juan. Background Its tributary stream o ...
are to the north, Alto del Cabro barrios and Gandul are to the east, and Hoare Street is to the south of Miramar.


Demographics

In
2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...
, Miramar had a population of 5,540. In 2010, Miramar had a population of 4,412 and a population density of 18,383.3 persons per square mile.


Neighborhood

Miramar is an exclusive residential neighbourhood where primarily middle to upper-class families reside, characterized by quiet streets lined with large, mature shade trees. There are still a handful of historical residences with the charm and atmosphere from the bygone era including several
Prairie School Prairie School is a late 19th- and early 20th-century architectural style, most common in the Midwestern United States. The style is usually marked by horizontal lines, flat or hipped roofs with broad overhanging eaves, windows grouped in ...
architectural style buildings by internationally renowned architect
Antonin Nechodoma Antonin Nechodoma (1877–1928), was a Czech architect who practiced in Puerto Rico and Dominican Republic from 1905 to 1928. He is known for the introduction of the Prairie Style to the Caribbean and the integration of Arts and Crafts elements to ...
. Miramar's rich architectural legacy is now protected by law as it was designated an historical district of Puerto Rico. The government of Puerto Rico has passed a law declaring Miramar a Historic Town. Miramar's Residents Association has had two legal triumphs in the court system that have helped define zoning laws and development sustainability. The Justice Department of Puerto Rico (which can be seen in the picture, third condo from right to left, dark colored] is located in Miramar, and had plans to expand their facilities. Expropriation processes were begun for adjacent lots. The Association took the matter to court and simultaneously began lobbying in the Puerto Rico Legislature. Their endeavors resulted in the passing of a law declaring the historic value of the area, and officially declaring Miramar a historic district. Thus, the courts ruled such zoning laws pertaining to historic districts prohibited the proposed expansion plans. To this day, the adjacent lots are empty, but the department has abandoned their proposed expansion. The second victory for the Residents was in the halting of construction of a four-lane expressway that was begun on the south part of Miramar. The proposed plans were considered to be an abuse of the environment (hundred-year-old trees would have been cut down), the highway would not meet noise emission levels in regular traffic hours (as established by law for historic districts), and various condos and houses would become isolated from the rest of the town. In an unexpected move, in 2010 Jorge Santini, Mayor Jorge Santini proposed that instead of building the highway, a green concept should be pursued and a light rail program called SaTour was to be built. The plan is part of the San Juan Walkable City proposed plan, which is intended to connect Miramar to the Train system already in place called
Tren Urbano The ''Tren Urbano'' (English language, English: Urban Train) is a List of automated urban metro subway systems, fully-automated rapid transit system that serves the municipalities of San Juan, Puerto Rico, San Juan, Guaynabo, Puerto Rico, Gua ...
. When completed, Miramar will have a direct access through train with Hato Rey, Guaynabo, and Bayamón. Miramar is home to the coeducational Catholic parochial school Academia del Perpetuo Socorro, the
Puerto Rico Convention Center The Dr. Pedro Rosselló González Puerto Rico Convention Center (PRCC) (or ''Centro de Convenciones de Puerto Rico Dr. Pedro Rosselló González'' in Spanish), or simply Puerto Rico Convention Center, is a convention center located in Isla Gran ...
, the
Isla Grande Airport Fernando Luis Ribas Dominicci Airport , also commonly known as Isla Grande Airport, is an airport in Isla Grande, a district in the municipality of San Juan, Puerto Rico. It is owned by the Puerto Rico Ports Authority and is adjacent to the Pu ...
, the Cruise ship Pan-American Cruise Pier, the luxurious yacht harbor of Club Nautico, and the
Puerto Rico Conservatory of Music The Puerto Rico Conservatory of Music ( es, Conservatorio de Música de Puerto Rico) is a public conservatory in San Juan, Puerto Rico.Conservatorio de Musica de Puerto RicoSOBRE EL CONSERVATORIO DE MÚSICA DE PUERTO RICO: Información General d ...
. Miramar is located two miles from Old San Juan, three miles from shopping mecca Condado, and four miles from the international airport Luis Muñoz Marín.


Historical Battles

On 1797 Miramar witnessed the
English Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...
under the reign of
George III of the United Kingdom George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and of Monarchy of Ireland, Ireland from 25 October 1760 until Acts of Union 1800, the union of the two kingdoms on 1 January 1801, after which he was ...
and led by the mighty Abercromby shell of the Fortín de San Gerónimo in Old San Juan.Alonso, Mariá M. and Milagros Flores (1997). ''The Eighteenth Century Caribbean and the British Attack on Puerto Rico in 1797''. San Juan: National Park Service, Department of the Interior, Publicaciones Puertorriqueñas.


Gallery

Miramar, San Juan, 00907, Puerto Rico - panoramio (2).jpg, Street view of Miramar Gustos Coffee Co. Miramar-01.jpg, Street café in Miramar Spanish-style home in Miramar, Santurce, San Juan, Puerto Rico.jpg, Spanish-style home in Miramar Miramar, San Juan, 00907, Puerto Rico - panoramio (3).jpg, View of Miramar Miramar skyline.jpg, View of Miramar from a Condado building terrace


See also

*
List of communities in Puerto Rico In Puerto Rico, there are 78 municipalities and 902 municipio subdivisions made up of 827 barrios and 75 barrios-pueblo. There are also a number of subbarrios and communities. The following is a list of the 902 barrios, some of the subbarrios, i ...


References


External links

*{{Commons category-inline Santurce, San Juan, Puerto Rico