San Juan is a

district A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municip ...

of the Santa Bárbara canton, in the Heredia province of

Costa Rica Costa Rica, officially the Republic of Costa Rica, is a country in Central America. It borders Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, as well as Maritime bo ...

. The district consists of two major neighborhoods: San Juan Arriba (Upper San Juan), and San Juan Abajo (Lower San Juan).

History

Like the rest of the canton, before the Spanish settlers came, Santa Bárbara was originally occupied by the Huetares, an indigenous tribe. The Huetare King, Cacique Garabito, dominated the area. When the Spanish arrived, they originally called the area Churruca or Surruco. Heredia, Barva, and

Alajuela Alajuela () is a district in the Alajuela (canton), Alajuela canton of the Alajuela Province of Costa Rica. As the seat of the Municipality of Alajuela canton, it is awarded the status of city. By virtue of being the city of the first canton of ...

, three neighboring cities, were populated and settled in the late 1700s. As trade increased between the three cities, the canton developed. In 1836, an Englishman named John Hale sold his land to residents of what is now San Juan. The land was bought using profits from the sugarcane that was grown at the time. On 7 December 1848, the fourth canton of Heredia was created, with San Juan as a founding district. In 1852, Horacio Morales helped build the first chapel in San Juan, although many parishioners still went to Santa Bárbara. By 1885, the district educated as many boys as girls, with schools for both. San Juan inaugurated the canton's first

hydroelectric plant Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies 15% of the world's electricity, almost 4,210 TWh in 2023, which is more than all other renewable sources combined and also mo ...

in 1914 along the Porrosatí River that separates the districts of Santa Bárbara and San Juan. During

Ricardo Jiménez Oreamuno Romualdo Ricardo Jiménez Oreamuno (6 February 1859 – 4 January 1945) was a Costa Rican lawyer and statesman who served as President of Costa Rica on three separate occasions: 1910–1914, 1924–1928, and 1932–1936. A prominent figure in ...

second term in office, between 1924 and 1928, water delivery systems were installed in San Juan using water from the Potrerillos River.

Economy

San Juan's main economic activity is agricultural production, particularly

coffee Coffee is a beverage brewed from roasted, ground coffee beans. Darkly colored, bitter, and slightly acidic, coffee has a stimulating effect on humans, primarily due to its caffeine content, but decaffeinated coffee is also commercially a ...

. In 1973, 1,074 kilograms of coffee were produced in San Juan. Because of a sawmill in the district, another important activity was lumber production. There are various commercial businesses in San Juan, including restaurants and corner stores. There is a coffee processing facility in San Juan which serves many local farmers. San Juan is locally known for a

ceviche Ceviche, cebiche, sebiche, or seviche () is a cold dish consisting of fish or shellfish marinated in citrus and seasonings. Different versions of ceviche are part of the culinary cultures of various Latin American countries along the Pacific O ...

restaurant near its central plaza.

Culture and education

San Juan was featured in an episode of Repretel's "Informe Once" (Eleven Report). The episode described several cottage industries in the district, including an agricultural producer and an ice-cream maker, as well as a country house in the traditional Costa Rican adobe and cane style. There are two private schools in San Juan: Colegio Bilingüe Nueva Esperanza (New Hope Bilingual High School), where 590 students attended in 2009, and Puente Verde (Green Bridge). Colegio Bilingüe Nueva Esperanza, founded in 1993, was the first private technical school in the country, meaning students received specialized in computer skills. The main public elementary school is Tranquilino Saenz Rojas. Students from San Juan usually attend Colegio Santa Bárbara High School,Ministerio de Educación Pública
Santa Bárbara , Ministerio de Educación Pública
, accessdate: 27 May 2014 but may also go to the high schools in

. In 2012, resident Noelia Villalobos Solórzano received the

Panama Panama, officially the Republic of Panama, is a country in Latin America at the southern end of Central America, bordering South America. It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, and ...

nian Rubén Darío Prize for her work in education.

Administration

San Juan is served by the police force of Heredia. An EBAIS, Equipo Básico de Atención Integral en Salud (Basic Medical Care Center), is located in San Juan, serving residents and non-residents of the district. In addition, there is a private

nursing home A nursing home is a facility for the residential care of older people, senior citizens, or disabled people. Nursing homes may also be referred to as care homes, skilled nursing facilities (SNF), or long-term care facilities. Often, these terms ...

located in the district. The canton has investigated the possibility of making

microbusiness A micro-enterprise (or microenterprise) is generally defined as a small business employing nine people or fewer, and having a balance sheet or turnover less than a certain amount (e.g. €2 million or PhP 3 million). The terms microenterprise and ...

outreach to the residents of San Juan, especially toward women and artisans. The canton's first priority, however, is to build a police station within the district.

Geography

San Juan has an area of km² and an elevation of metres. It has the lowest elevation of the canton. It is directly south of the municipality of

Santa Bárbara de Heredia Santa Bárbara is one of the six districts that make up the canton of Santa Bárbara, Costa Rica. The district of Santa Bárbara is commonly referred to as ''Santa Bárbara de Heredia'', and is the seat of the municipality of Santa Bárbara, and ...

, divided into two main neighborhoods: San Juan Arriba (Upper San Juan), and San Juan Abajo (Lower San Juan). In addition, there are other neighborhoods: Cinco Esquinas (Five Points), Villa Margarita, Tierra Santa (Holy Land), Calle Zapote (Zapote Street), and several developments. Routes 123 and 119 pass through San Juan. The Zanjón River, Quebrada la Claudia, and Porrosatí River run through San Juan. During the rainy season, San Juan is subject to flooding, as was the case in May 2014 when more than 100 houses were affected by clogged drainage systems. Like much of Costa Rica, San Juan is part of a high-risk zone, according to the Comisión Nacional de Prevención de Riesgos (National Risk Prevention Commission).

Demographics

For the 2011 census, San Juan had a population of inhabitants.

Transportation

Road transportation

The district is covered by the following road routes: * CR RNS 119

National Route 119 * CR RNS 123

National Route 123

References

Populated places in Heredia Province Districts of Costa Rica Geography of Heredia Province Districts of Heredia Province {{Districts of Heredia Province