Clean Beach Committee seeks to sustain clean beach certification
By José Antonio Pérez
Nov. 15, 2017. Public and private entities across Puerto Peñasco have reached an agreement to pursue procedures to sustain the area’s Clean Beach Certification of March 2nd, for a stretch of beach along Playa Hermosa and Sandy Beach. In a recent session of the Clean Beach Committee, members reaffirmed steps to strengthen efforts for the upcoming environmental audit, from Nov. 28th – Dec. 2nd, to ensure compliance with the Mexican Norms for Beach Sustainability. Among other agreements, members seek to strengthen steps to maintain certification by providing follow-up to clean-up campaigns, assigning three lifeguards and three motorbikes to care for swimmers, use resources for the purchase of lifesaving equipment, and cover audit expenses. It’s worth recalling Puerto Peñasco made history on March 2nd this year, in becoming the first in Sonora to achieve Clean Beach Certification for a stretch of 500 lineal meters of coastline, as well as the longest stretch of certified clean beach in the country.
First Business & Franchise Gathering
By José Antonio Pérez
Nov. 15, 2017. To encourage investment, new business patterns, and job creation, Puerto Peñasco was recently host to the 2017 Business and Franchise Gathering. The event, which brought over 20 franchises together to present opportunities on how to promote their companies, also provided the chance for free seminars and workshops open to the public, along with information on obtaining credit through the Sonora Financial Economic Development Office (FIDESON). For Puerto Peñasco specifically, the goal is to explore setting up franchises in the city through the participation of local investors, which will help sustain Sonora’s economic growth that currently stands at 6th in the nation.
Road maintenance on agenda for Puerto Peñasco – Sonoyta Highway
By José Antonio Pérez
Nov. 9, 2017. In response to reiterated calls from across the region, maintenance is scheduled for the Puerto Peñasco-Sonoyta highway, along with work in other parts of the state, reported Javier Hernández Armenta, delegate from the Ministry of Communications and Transport in Sonora. Hernández was confident the roadwork would be completed in the coming year, and also that funds would be put into reactivating work on the Peñasco cruise ship Home Port sometime in 2018.
Puerto Peñasco holds first same-sex marriage for 2017, second formal same-sex union in city
By José Antonio Pérez
Nov. 6, 2017. Civil Registrar Claudia Lugo Gámez reports Puerto Peñasco’s second same-sex marriage was to take place on November 8th, becoming the second official same-sex union in the city since April of last year. This second marriage, uniting two women, comes after the couple filed a legal action of protection (amparo) to be able to marry as the Sonora State Constitution does not formally allow for same-sex marriage. The Civil Registrar indicated another four same-sex marriage requests are currently underway.
Lugo Gámez recalled the first legal same-sex marriage in Puerto Peñasco was held in April of last year, between Tony Christofano and Martín Granados, via a resolution reached by the Federal Courts. She stresses same-sex unions have the same validity and characteristics as those between heterosexual couples.
Puerto Peñasco now part of Ministry of Tourism National Development Plan
By José Antonio Pérez
Nov. 3, 2017. The Secretary of Tourism has included Puerto Peñasco, along with seven new destinations that join an existing 12, in the 2017 Promotion and Development of Tourism Competitiveness program, which is part of the 2013-2018 National Development plan. A work group to promote and develop competitiveness for Puerto Peñasco has been formed to align actions and incentives of the Ministry of Tourism (SECTUR) with the National Tourism Promotion Fund. The goal is to build a local strategy for the development of comprehensive sustainable tourism, which fosters and strengthens growth in the tourism sector. The 7 new destinations within the plan are: Puerto Peñasco, Sonora; Cancún, Cozumel and the Riviera Maya in Quintana Roo; Huatulco, Oaxaca; Tampico, Tamaulipas, and Mazatlán, Sinaloa. These join existing tourism destinations of the plan: Acapulco and Ixtapa Zihuatanejo, Guerrero; Ensenada and Tijuana, Baja California; Mérida, Yucatán; Guadalajara and Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco; Riviera Nayarit, Nayarit; Morelia, Michoacán; Manzanillo, Colima; and Los Cabos, Baja California Sur.