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Comerío.- The municipal government of Comerío plans to build a window to La Plata River by developing a boardwalk overlooking the river. This body of water, the longest on the island, is known to cause severe flooding in the towns through which it flows.

According to the mayor, José “Josian” Santiago Rivera, the goal of the project is to create an open space that encourages recreation for locals and visitors alike, in one of the most beautiful natural settings that the region has. Moreover, the project seeks to eliminate the risks faced by several buildings that are affected by the river’s overflowing.

Likewise, City Hall intends to include businesses in the area to stimulate the municipality’s economy, in a plan that has already been designed and that was funded with federal money from the City Revitalization Program.

“We have already discussed it with federal agencies, and we have the green light. Our envisioned project is an open space concept, so that if the river overflows and the space floods, once the waters subside, we can return, give it some love, and reopen everything,” highlighted the mayor.

He stated, however, that “bureaucracy is a real problem for us when it comes to federal funds, since every project that is related to a river somehow, requires the endorsement of several government agencies.”

“We are well into the acquisition process of six structures that will be demolished, in terms of appraisal and negotiation with the owners. This also includes performing a lead detection study,” he said.

Likewise, he explained that the design includes the installation of sculptures honoring the musical work of singer, composer and guitarist Claudio Ferrer, as well as the figure of cacique Comerío, the namesake of the town, also called “la perla del Plata” (pearl of La Plata).

“There’s an artist from Comerío named Fernando Cerpa, who created a sculpture depicting the cacique after whom the town is named, cacique Comerío, and we want to include it in the project. The piece would be placed at one end of the boardwalk,” he mentioned.

“Our town is also the birthplace of Claudio Ferrer, who has added many songs to the Puerto Rican repertoire, for example, ‘cumpleaños puertorriqueño,’ as well as a body of work that includes nearly 600 pieces. That other piece will be at the other end (of the boardwalk); a tribute that will contain the lyrics of some of his most important songs. We are working with artist Arnaldo Alicea on the design,” he said.

Santiago Rivera highlighted the intention to include local businesses in this project, which will be located downtown, “so that this area can come back to life.”

“The goal is for people to come for a walk, to enjoy the river landscape, but at the same time, to stimulate the local economy because there will be businesses. They will be located in buildings on the other side of Georgetti Street, which is our main street,” he explained.

The Comerío boardwalk is one of two designs that will be made with an approximate amount of $8 million, using funds from the City Revitalization program, which is funded by the Community Development Block Grant for Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR).

The other project includes the reconstruction of a historic building dating from 1915, where a municipal theater will be established.

“There is a preliminary design, and another one that is nearly finalized in order to move on to the auction process. It’s already approved. The design maintains the façade because it’s a historical building; it is already more than 100 years old. In its interior, a café theatre space is being created. We don’t want fixed chairs, as it would limit the usage,” he stressed.

Among the activities that he plans to carry out in the space, he mentioned “film screenings and student plays from the Escuela de Bellas Artes, because we want the space to serve as a workshop for our students. In fact, we serve over 200 students in extended hours.”

On the other hand, City Hall is also working on the construction of the first municipal aquifer, in order to address the lack of drinking water during emergencies. According to the mayor, it should be operational in August.

The project will be located in the Services Pavilion that houses the Office of Emergency Management.

“Our goal is to have aquifers in the northern and southern parts of the town. We already have all the permits and we are about to start construction. There are municipal funds, as well as ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act) funds that can be used to fund drinking water projects. My goal is to have it up and running before August,” he added.

“The tests showed that, indeed, the water is drinkable. The well has already broken ground, and we’ll be working on the structure to install the water tank and the electric generator so that everything is ready in case of emergency. We want people to be able to go to the place to stock up on water, and we’ll be able to fill the town’s tanker trucks, which distribute water to our communities,” he concluded.