Salinas, Puerto Rico

Like all municipalities of Puerto Rico, Salinas is subdivided into barrios. The municipal buildings, central square and large Catholic church are located in a barrio referred to as "el pueblo".[6][7][8][9]

1. Aguirre
2. Lapa
3. Palmas
4. Quebrada Yeguas
5. Río Jueyes
6. Salinas barrio-pueblo[10]

Barrios (which are like minor civil divisions)[10] and subbarrios,[11] in turn, are further subdivided into smaller local populated place areas/units called sectores (sectors in English). The types of sectores may vary, from normally sector to urbanización to reparto to barriada to residencial, among others.[12][13][14]

Children of Las Mareas community welcoming "Tuque the manatee"

Comunidades Especiales de Puerto Rico (Special Communities of Puerto Rico) are marginalized communities whose citizens are experiencing a certain amount of social exclusion. A map shows these communities occur in nearly every municipality of the commonwealth. Of the 742 places that were on the list in 2014, the following barrios, communities, sectors, or neighborhoods were in Salinas: Las Mareas, Playita, el Coco, Comunidad Aguirre, El Coquí, Parcelas Vázquez, San Felipe, Sector Borinquén, and Sector Villa Cofresí.[15]

Climate chart for Salinas

According to data provided by the Aguirre weather station, Salinas has a tropical savanna climate (Köppen: Aw). The annual average temperature of Salinas is 78.3 °F (25.7 °C), of which August is the hottest month with an average temperature of 81.0 °F (27.2 °C), and January is the coolest month with an average temperature of 75.2 °F (24.0 °C).[16] There are about 105 days with a temperature above 90 °F (32 °C) every year, and there are 4 hot days with a temperature above 95 °F (35 °C) every year; at the same time, there are also 4 nights with a temperature below 60 °F (16 °C) every year.[17] The annual precipitation in Salinas is 40.37 inches (1,025 mm), of which the rainy season is from May to November, and the precipitation accounts for about 82.5% of the whole year.[16] Among them, September is the wettest, and the precipitation can reach 6.85 inches (174 mm).[16] The temperature extremes ever recorded in Salinas ranged from 51 °F (11 °C) on December 3, 2013 to 100 °F (38 °C) on September 18, 2016.[17]

Picking tomatoes in Salinas

Salinas is one of the main agricultural producers on the southern coast of Puerto Rico. It has large banana and papaya farms in its Lapa and Aguirre barrios. The Río Jueyes barrio is one of the main producers of beef in the south, counting with La Hacienda Las Carolinas which supplies Ganaderia Santiago, a slaughter house, with meat. Salinas also is headquarters for Canto Alegre, a company which specializes in poultry. This company supplies most of Puerto Rico's supermarkets with fresh poultry.

• Apparel
• Commercial fishing: Salinas has a private marina with a hotel and convention center.[18]

The Aguirre Sugar Cane Mill was the last operational sugarcane mill in Puerto Rico and closed its doors in 1993. The Central Aguirre Historic District is listed on the National Register of Historic places but there are no current plans to renovate the area and is now mostly in ruins.[19] Some other industries in Salinas include electrical and electronic machinery, plastics, sunglasses.

There are 17 beaches in Salinas.[20] Some of Salina's main attractions are:

• Albergue Olímpico (Olympic Hostel), is a sports complex and hostel with air-conditioned rooms.[21]
• Antigua Central Aguirre (Sugar Cane Mill)
• Camp Santiago
• Montes Oscuros
• Monumento al Jíbaro
• Salinas Sports Museum
• Playa Salinas

Salinas celebrates its patron saint festival in September. The Fiestas Patronales Nuestra Señora de la Monserrate is a religious and cultural celebration that generally features parades, games, artisans, amusement rides, regional food, and live entertainment.[5]

Other festivals and events celebrated in Salinas include:

• Abey Carnival – February to celebrate Abey – Cacique (Chief) of Yucayeque, a former Taino village in the area of Abeyno, Salinas
• Pescao Festival – June
• Festival Del Mojo Isleño

On a green rectangular field, five white isosceles triangles equal in size, placed in the center of the flag and forming a row that covers the extent of the background. The green represents the land and the triangles hills of salt from which the name of the town is derived.[32]

The shield uses the traditional colors of the town; green and silver. The salt knolls indicate in graphical form the name of the town: Salinas. The fish refer to the fishing. The sugar cane leaves that surround the shield, symbolize the sugar cane plantations.[32]