Ex-senator presses DNER for action on abandoned Mayagüez Zoo
Calls for transfer to municipality
By THE STAR STAFF
Former Mayagüez district senator Migdalia González Arroyo urged the Department of Natural and Environmental Resources (DNER) on Wednesday to publicly clarify the status of the former Mayagüez Zoo, which has remained closed and deteriorating for years.
González Arroyo, who serves as vice president of the Popular Democratic Party (PDP), said the agency has shown “no interest” in advancing plans for the site and called on the government to transfer the property to the Municipality of Mayagüez.
González Arroyo noted that on March 8, 2023, then‑DNER secretary Anaís Rodríguez Vega unveiled what she described as a master plan for the future Eco Jardín de Puerto Rico Dr. Juan A. Rivero. The project would eliminate animal exhibits and instead create open spaces for nature walks, environmental education and public recreation.
“Since that date, nothing has happened on that land,” the PDP leader said. “There is no state‑level interest, and our call is for the facilities to be transferred to the Municipality of Mayagüez. We can provide the investment and commitment needed to develop the area.”
She added that the DNER had promised a process to relocate the remaining animals to sanctuaries, estimating that the transition would take several months. Rodríguez Vega later said in a radio interview that the new concept would be completed within two years.
“None of that has happened,” González Arroyo said, emphasizing that the zoo has remained closed since Hurricane Maria struck in 2017. The municipality, she argued, is prepared to allocate resources to rehabilitate the site.
The former senator pointed to other successful examples of municipal management of public facilities, including Sun Bay Beach in Vieques, Punta Santiago Beach in Humacao, and Punta Salinas in Toa Baja, which operates under a shared management agreement.
“These cases show that municipalities can do the work the central government cannot -- or does not want to -- do,” she said.
González Arroyo, who previously chaired the Senate Committee on Western Development, said the Mayagüez property encompasses roughly 87.4 acres (90 cuerdas) in the Miradero sector. She reiterated her support for former Mayor José Guillermo Rodríguez’s proposal to assume control of the land.
“I am convinced the mayor’s proposal is viable and, above all, necessary,” she said. “I hope the central government transfers the facilities to the Municipality.”
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