By The Star Staff
It’s no secret that the economy of Puerto Rico is in the midst of a fitful recovery; onerous debt combined with global inflation is not a good recipe, after all. While the road to economic recovery can seem frustratingly slow, any good news that can be taken most certainly will be.
Mayagüez, a city on Puerto Rico’s western coast, where fewer people overall live and many residents have either moved elsewhere on the island or to the mainland United States, is no exception. With fewer people around to spend money, less money moves around the city. As of late last week, however, there was good news coming out of “La Sultana del Oeste.”
The acting mayor of Mayagüez, Jorge L. Ramos Ruiz, presented the city’s report on finances and administrative activities for fiscal year 2022-2023 to the municipal legislature on Thursday, which revealed income in the amount of $57,669,690 and showed expenses of $45,480,766, reflecting an operational balance of $12,188.00.
“Based on the most recent Audited Financial Statement, a balance of $12,995,718 is evident, an action that reduces the accumulated deficit of the municipality to the amount of $1,372,254, which, without a doubt, demonstrates a hopeful fiscal outlook for Mayagüez,” Ramos Ruiz stated in his message to legislators, municipal employees and residents at the Mayagüez Theater.
The municipal executive maintained that “thanks to the effective planning of the Department of Finance and in accordance with the established plans, and initiated and completed economic development projects, we have been able to achieve fiscal stability, so I also anticipate that for the current fiscal year the municipality will completely eliminate the budget deficit, once again placing itself among the municipalities with the best fiscal health in Puerto Rico.”
In his message, Ramos Ruiz provided a breakdown of the projects and improvements that have been carried out in Mayagüez in road infrastructure, recreational areas in dozens of communities, as well as the city’s revitalization program and Sila María Calderón Port. The acting mayor also detailed a series of improvements to sports facilities in rural and urban communities, among which Paseo Litoral Costero stands out, as well as Isidoro García Stadium, Nuevo Milenio Park, Rosa Carrero, the construction of a passive water park and improvements to the Germán Wilkins Vélez Palace of Recreation and Sports.
Regarding public safety in Mayagüez, Ramos Ruiz said security cameras have been installed in the urban area to make it safer for citizens, and state and municipal personnel have been increased in a combined effort. Meanwhile Edgardo González, who currently directs the criminal investigation corps in the Aibonito region, will be an important support component in the city’s municipal police force in conjunction with the work carried out by Lt. Col. Janice Rodríguez Collado as area commander.
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