Ponce is both a city and a municipality on the southern coast of Puerto Rico. The city is the seat of the municipal government.
Caja de Muertos is an uninhabited island off the southern coast of Puerto Rico, in the municipality of Ponce. The island and its surrounding waters are protected by the Caja de Muertos Nature Reserve, because of its native turtle traffic and ecological value of its dry forests and reefs. Hikers and beachgoers are often seen in the island, which can be reached by ferry from the La Guancha Boardwalk sector of Ponce Playa. Together with Cardona, Ratones, Morrillito, Isla del Frio, Gatas, and Isla de Jueyes, Caja de Muertos is one of seven islands ascribed to the municipality of Ponce.
Río Inabón is one of one of the 14 rivers in the municipality of Ponce, Puerto Rico. With a length of some 32.01 kilometers (19.89 mi), it is Ponce's second longest river after Río Jacaguas. It is fed by the Río Anón, Río Guayo and the Emajagua Brook. It is also fed by Río Bacas and Río de las Raices. Originating at an altitude of approximately 4,100 feet (1,200 m), it forms at a higher altitude than any of the other 13 rivers in the municipality, and at one of the highest points of any river in Puerto Rico. With a watershed area covering 38.18 square miles, Río Inabón also has the second largest basin area of any of the municipality's 14 rivers after Río Jacaguas.
Barrio Playa, also known as Playa de Ponce, Ponce Playa, or La Playa, is one of the thirty-one barrios that comprise the municipality of Ponce, Puerto Rico. Along with Bucaná, Canas, Vayas, and Capitanejo, Playa is one of the municipality's five coastal barrios. Barrio Playa also incorporates several islands, the largest of which is Caja de Muertos. It was founded in 1831.
Parque Familiar Julio Enrique Monagas is Puerto Rico's largest passive park. It is located in barrio Bucaná, Ponce, Puerto Rico, on the banks of the Bucaná and Portugués rivers. The park was named after Julio Enrique Monagas, "the father of Puerto Rican Olympic sports". In November 2017, the park was severely damaged by Hurricane Maria and, as of today, remains closed.
The Policía Municipal de Ponce is the main police force for the municipality of Ponce, Puerto Rico, with jurisdiction in the entire municipality, including all 31 barrios of Ponce. It was created in 1867 and reorganized in 1977.
The Ponce Municipal Band, also known as Centenaria Banda Municipal de Ponce, is the band of the municipality of Ponce, Puerto Rico. The band is the oldest continuously-performing band in the Caribbean and the oldest music group in Puerto Rico. It has performed its open-air concerts for over 125 years. The current director is Juan García Germaín. It has 42 members between 25 and 83 years old. It operates within the jurisdiction of the Oficina de Desarrollo Cultural of the autonomous municipality of Ponce. Its headquarters are located at the Centro Integrado para el Fortalecimiento de las Artes Musicales, next to Teatro La Perla.
Porta Caribe is a tourism region in southern Puerto Rico. It was established in 2003 by the Puerto Rico Tourism Company, an agency of the Government of Puerto Rico. When created in 2003 it consisted of 14 municipalities in the south central zone. With the creation of the neighboring Porta Cordillera zone in July 2012, the municipalities of Adjuntas and Jayuya were transferred to the newly created Porta Cordillera zone and Porta Caribe became a 12-municipality tourism region. The name Porta Caribe translates to "Doorway to the Caribbean." Its executive director is Maritza W. Ruiz Cabán.
Isla Cardona, also known as Sor Isolina Ferré Island, is a small, uninhabited island located 1.30 nautical miles south of the mainland Puerto Rican shore across from Barrio Playa, on the west side of the entrance to the harbor of Ponce, Puerto Rico. The small island is considered part of barrio Playa. It is home to the 1889 Cardona Island Light, which is listed in the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. Together with Caja de Muertos, Gatas, Morrillito, Ratones, Isla del Frio, and Isla de Jueyes, Cardona is one of seven islands ascribed to the municipality of Ponce. The island gained notoriety in 2010 when the Puerto Rican Bird Society made it a target for the eradication of the black rat.
The Parque Ecológico Urbano, also known as Parque Ecológico de Ponce, is a passive park in Ponce, Puerto Rico. The park was designed by Bonin Orozco Arquitectos and was inaugurated on 19 September 2012. The park is unique in that it was designed to create a "green lung" in the city by using ecological mindset in its entirety, from the construction materials used to the design and other areas as well. Except for one tree that got relocated within the project, the new park made use of all the existing trees and shrubs as they existed on the site prior to the development of the park.
The Parque Lineal Veredas del Labrador, also known as Parque Lineal de Ponce, Veredas del Labrador, or just Parque Lineal, is a passive park in Ponce, Puerto Rico. The park links to, but it is different from, a neighboring park also currently under construction called Parque Ecológico Urbano. The park runs along the Río Portugués and Río Bucaná rivers in the city of Ponce.
The Justas de Atletismo y Festival Deportivo de Puerto Rico —better known as Las Justas Intercolegiales or simply as Las Justas — is an intercollegiate sports competition held annually in Puerto Rico where Puerto Rican colleges and universities compete against each other in different sports. The event is sponsored by the Liga Atlética Interuniversitaria de Puerto Rico (LAI). The event usually include competitions in softball, basketball, beach volleyball, judo, table tennis, swimming, cheerleading, women's football, and athletics.
Villa Pesquera is a sea-front fishing village in barrio Playa, in the municipality of Ponce, Puerto Rico. The site is one of the tourist attractions in the municipality of Ponce.
The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Ponce, Puerto Rico.
The Complejo Recreativo y Cultural La Guancha is a recreational complex in barrio Playa in Ponce, Puerto Rico, with family recreational and cultural facilities that opened on 23 June 1998. The highlight of the complex is the Paseo Tablado La Guancha, which is flanked by a beach, an observation tower, an amphitheater, and 24 open-air kiosks. It was developed during the administration of Mayor Rafael Cordero Santiago. In October 2017, after Hurricane Maria, it closed to the public to undergo repairs but, as of January 2020, when the area suffered severe damage due to the 2020 Puerto Rico earthquakes, no repairs had been made and, as of 17 June 2020, it remained closed. By late 2020 arrangements were made for the merchants that operated from waterfront kiosks to reopen their businesses out of provisional facilities at a temporary location away from the waterfront while reconstruction of the waterfront area takes place.
Nightlife in Ponce, Puerto Rico includes government and regulatory aspects, societal and cultural attitudes, and age- and gender-centric issues relative to adult and family life after dark in the city of Ponce. It focuses on all entertainment that is available and generally more popular from the late evening into the early hours of the morning. It includes activities like parties, bands and live music, concerts, and stand-up comedies, and venues such as pubs, bars, cabarets, nightclubs, cinemas and theaters. These venues and activities are often accompanied by the serving and drinking of alcoholic beverages in addition to non-alcoholic drinks for the family. Nightlife venues often require a cover charge for admission.
Starting on December 28, 2019, and progressing into 2020, the southwestern part of the island of Puerto Rico was struck by an earthquake swarm, including 11 that were of magnitude 5 or greater. The largest and most damaging of this sequence was a magnitude 6.4 , which occurred on January 7 at 04:24 AST (08:24 UTC), with a maximum felt intensity of VIII (Severe) on the Modified Mercalli intensity scale. At least one person was killed and several others were injured.
