The Puerto Rico Convention Center District Authority introduced a new identity, Harbor District, on Thursday, October 22, to group its initiatives and developments from Bahía Urbana, in the islet of San Juan, to waterfront lands in Miramar that the agency has yet to redevelop. Executive Director Veronica Ferraiuoli announced the brand at a press conference outside the Convention Center, saying the San Juan Bay connects the area and that officials want to project an integrated, modern and dynamic district.
It will be paired with the slogan "work, play, live", which Ferraiuoli said reflects what the district has become: multiple workplaces, an expanding entertainment hub and a housing component with luxury projects such as Opus Miramar and One Distrito. The connection will be literal for pedestrians and cyclists once a current project is completed: a route for walking, running or rolling, including a 1,140-foot waterfront promenade in Puerta de Tierra.
The project, which also includes improvements to Avenida Fernández Juncos, pedestrian access and electrical wiring management, is funded with $130 million from the Investment Portfolio for Growth (IPG), one of the CDBG-DR federal recovery funds programs. The works are being carried out by an entity affiliated with local developer Interlink, which also advances private investment projects on district parcels in Puerta de Tierra.
Ferraiuoli said the Authority is in a competitive process to select private investment projects for the pending redevelopment lands, adding that she wants parks and public spaces, and noting the historic Miraflores fort must be preserved and construction there is limited by airspace.