Soap opera heads to beach

Sonora has a variety of unique characteristics that has allowed for great back drops during the filming of numerous soap operas, highlighting how “filmable” Sonora is, expressed well known producer Pedro Damián.
During a press conference, Damián stated Puerto Peñasco in particular has lighting and clarity that benefits film making, which is why during two weeks the city’s beaches provided the backdrop for the soap opera “Niña de mi corazón” (Girl of my heart). The Mexican soap opera recently filmed 20 episodes and 125 scenes in Peñasco, which were to air during the month of June.
For two weeks, approximately 50 people from Televisa, among them lead actors, their nemeses and secondary actors, directors, cameramen, technicans and support staff worked on the filming. This included the use of natural locations including the beach, Pinacate Biosphere Reserve, urban settings, La Cholla, and the marina, among others. Read more…

Binational gathering of rescue responders

In order to join efforts in emergency care, Peñasco recently hosted a binational gathering of rescue responders from Arizona, Sonoyta, and Puerto Peñasco.
A local hotel was host to this gathering, which included the participation of nearly 100 emergency responders from Mexico and 35 paramedics from the U.S.
Eleazar García, coordinator of Binational Programs of the Southeast Arizona Educational Health Center, remarked that this is the tenth annual conference of this non-profit organization, and represents coordinated work with the University of Arizona.
He noted this is the seventh time Puerto Peñasco has served as host and the objective is to strengthen the collaboration that has always existed between Peñasco and Arizona.
Eleazar García stated that, although they had expected negative repercussions due to problems surrounding Arizona’s law SB 1070 set to go into effect at the end of July, this did not impact the course or results of the binational exchange. Read more…

strong>”Smile, they’re watching us” campaign launched

Promoting a culture of clean-up among all sectors of the community, particularly youth, is the objective of the campaign “Smile, they’re watching us,” recently launched by the Municipal administration.
Within the framework of the first Civic Wednesday out in the community, Mayor Alejandro Zepeda made note of these efforts to improve the image of Puerto Peñasco by presenting a cleaner look to the entire urban area.
The first session of “Smile, they’re watching us,” which will be held at least once a week, was carried out in the area of Nueva Esperanza and included the participation of neighborhood residents and a brigade of at least 300 people.
Buttons denoting the program, and the painting of a wall at a park, were symbolic actions marking the launch of the clean-up campaign that encourages Peñasco residents to pick up around the front of their homes, deposit trash in appropriate Read more…

Sewer projects, totaling nearly 20 million pesos, will be done in the city thanks to resources approved by the State Government, announced Mayor Alejandro Zepeda Munro.
The Mayor indicated steps to extend sewer systems will be done principally in the northwestern part of the city, in the neighborhood of Nueva Esperanza, which is one of the sectors lacking this service.
He stated these actions are prior to road paving projects that are part of an ambitious program currently under negotiation.
Mayor Zepeda Munro detailed during a recent trip to Hermosillo authorization was given for two parts of resources, one for 12 million pesos and the other for nearly 8, totaling 20 million pesos, which will be used essentially for the sewer system. Read more…

Denial that city projects are being slowed down

The state government will support the local municipality to achieve a financial reengineering to resolve adverse financial problems passed down from the former administration, reported Roberto Romero López, State Executive Technical Secretary.
During a press conference held after a city tour alongside the mayor and other city officials, Romero López denied that given the city’s adverse situation they are holding back city projects for Puerto Peñasco.
He underscored the administration of Sonora Governor Guillermo Padrés is focused on municipalities, and therefore they are working closely with cities so that together they may achieve beneficial results for the majority.
He noted municipal finances are not great, with outstanding debts of up to 230 million pesos, thus the importance of getting out from under these problems in order to provide results to the community.
Romero López indicated there are currently talks of a financial reengineering in order to obtain better terms from creditors and raise the credit rating of the municipal government. Read more…

Goal to reduce response times

As of last month, new strategies were put into effect to unify the local police department while devising new sectors in order to improve monitoring and surveillance work, reported Erick Landagaray Macías, city Police Chief.
Chief Landagaray Macías reported they have already been able to see positive results with this new strategy, substantially reducing response times to calls while reinforcing police presence in neighborhoods.
He detailed through the reorganization of logistics and operatives, all municipal agents are now members of Police and Transit without the prior distinction of those serving in the police department and others under Municipal Transit.
In addition, he stated, they have established new sectors consisting of three specific zones: tourism sector, central, and outskirts. These were defined following a study of calls, where they were able to determine the best division of the city’s sectors. Read more…

Plan to call for intervention from SEDENA

In order to prevent tragedies such as that which took place in recent days on the outskirts of the city when a firework warehouse blew up, leaving one person dead and another seriously injured, a firmer hand will be implemented to control the administration and sale of fireworks in the city, reported Mayor Alejandro Zepeda Munro.
A week after the tragedy, which took place at (powder) warehouse number 1 on the outskirts of the city in the neighborhood of Nueva Esperanza, the Mayor indicated that although it is not the direct responsibility of local authorities to do verification on behalf of Civil Protection, he plans to request intervention of the Secretary of National Defense (SEDENA).
Mayor Zepeda Munro indicated a factor to take into account in this matter is that tourists enjoy using fireworks, therefore they Read more…

Call for stricter judicial guidelines

Puerto Peñasco recently hosted the “2010 Community Environmental Forum,” organized by the State Congress, and included the participation of nearly 100 people from diverse sectors of the city, and a call for stricter environmental guidelines.
Construction of a landfill in line with appropriate regulations, the elimination of oxidation lagoons, recycling and use of minerals such as calcium from marine shells, as well as the construction of a waste water treatment plant, among other themes, were part of the proposals presented during the event that drew participation from the community.
State Congress President, Gerardo Figueroa Zazueta, and Representative César Augusto Marcor Ramírez, president of the Energy and Environment Commission, lead the forum held in Peñasco, which is the fifth of its kind to be held in Sonora.
The State Congress President, along with Mayor Alejandro Zepeda Munro, welcomed participants and explained environment impact and conditions revolving around circumstances for people and all living beings. Read more…