Comunicados de Prensa

Puerto Rico Governor Pedro R. Pierluisi and Secretary of Housing William Rodríguez Rodríguez announced today the signing of an agreement with the ENLACE del Caño Martín Peña Project Corporation (ENLACE), providing $46 million in recovery funds to support the development of two affordable housing projects.

The allocation is under the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG-MIT) Multi-Sector Mitigation Program (MSC) for the Quisqueya 125 and Barbosa 211 projects, both located on Quisqueya Avenue in San Juan.

“My commitment to rebuilding and modernizing our infrastructure to provide our people with a more efficient and safe environment is known to all. This particularly includes prioritizing housing projects, as there is a pressing need to increase our affordable housing stock in Puerto Rico. Today is an important day for advancing my administration's priority agenda of promoting the development of decent and affordable housing for our people,” said Pierluisi, who was accompanied by several G8 representatives.

For his part, the Secretary of Housing commented that “for many years, the Caño Martín Peña community has been recognized for its self-management and its determination to protect and preserve their community. With this grant, we are helping hundreds of families in this area have access to safe housing so they can focus on supporting their families.”

The governor reported that the agreement establishes that the grant will cover the conceptualization, design, and construction of the Quisqueya 125 multi-family housing complex, which will benefit 115 low- to moderate-income families. Similarly, the Barbosa 211 multi-family housing project is proposed, which will be located in the former General Services Administration (ASG) facilities at 11 Barbosa Avenue, San Juan. The number of families to benefit from this second project will be determined during the planning and design process, which will be carried out consecutively with that of Quisqueya 125.

Both projects will include the design and development of recreational and communal elements to promote the habitability of the space and the quality of life for residents. Resilient housing designs will also be incorporated to reduce risks to life and property resulting from potential future natural disasters.

Meanwhile, ENLACE Executive Director Mario Núñez Mercado stated that "these funds will allow us to continue developing new housing, making the construction of basic infrastructure projects viable, providing options for communities to remain and provide justice to the residents of Caño Martín Peña."

With a budget of $300 million, the MSC Program provides vulnerable communities the opportunity to carry out a Participatory Design process with resources provided by the Department of Housing. Through this process, community residents are involved in decision-making regarding the community elements they would like to include in the design of their new community. Therefore, this Program's mission is to keep communities united, which is why it requires that submitted Community Relocation Proposals have the support of at least 60 percent of the community's residents.

The Martín Peña Canal has more than 20,000 residents and is made up of eight sectors: Las Monjas, Barrio Obrero – San Ciprián, Barrio Obrero – Marina, Buena Vista – Santurce, Buena Vista – Hato Rey, Parada 27, Israel-Bitumúl, and Península de Cantera. This is one of the initiatives the Pierluisi Administration has implemented to benefit the communities that make up the Martín Peña Canal with federal and state funds. In August 2021, Pierluisi allocated $130 million in American Rescue Plan (ARPA) funds for water and sewer projects in the Canal and announced the channelization phase of the Puerto Nuevo River.

In January of last year, Pierluisi announced that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) had approved over $230 million in federal USACE funds for improvements to the Martín Peña Canal, San Juan Bay, and the Culebrinas River. Later, an agreement was announced for the dredging and restoration of the canal.