Playas de Rosarito
Encyclopedia
Rosarito Beach is a coastal resort city in the Mexican state of Baja California
Baja California
Baja California officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Baja California is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is both the northernmost and westernmost state of Mexico. Before becoming a state in 1953, the area was known as the North...

 located approximately 35 minutes south of the U.S. border in Rosarito Beach Municipality. Its beaches and dance clubs are a popular destination for young people from the United States during the Memorial Day
Memorial Day
Memorial Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the last Monday of May. Formerly known as Decoration Day, it originated after the American Civil War to commemorate the fallen Union soldiers of the Civil War...

 and Labor Day
Labor Day
Labor Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the first Monday in September that celebrates the economic and social contributions of workers.-History:...

 weekends. Rosarito Beach is the seat of the municipality
Municipio
Municipio and Município are terms used for country subdivisions. They are often translated as municipality.-Overview:...

 of Rosarito Beach. The city is the second largest in the Tijuana metropolitan area
Tijuana metropolitan area
The Tijuana metropolitan area, and in Spanish the Zona Metropolitana de Tijuana, is located on the Pacific Ocean in Mexico. According to the 2005 census, the Tijuana metropolitan area was the sixth-largest in Mexico, with a population of 1,483,992. The 2010 Census placed the Tijuana metropolitan...

 and southern beach city of the San Diego–Tijuana international metropolitan region. Additionally, it is the westernmost municipal seat in Mexico, slightly further west than neighboring Tijuana, which lies inland to its north-northeast.

Prehistory

Evidence of the presence of Paleo-Indians in the region has been dated as early as 2,000 B.C. By 1,000 B.C., a group emerged that is recognizable as the Yuman ancestors of the Kumeyaay
Kumeyaay
The Kumeyaay, also known as Tipai-Ipai, Kamia, or formerly Diegueño, are Native American people of the extreme southwestern United States and northwest Mexico. They live in the states of California in the US and Baja California in Mexico. In Spanish, the name is commonly spelled...

, who continued to inhabit the northern portion of the Baja California Peninsula
Baja California Peninsula
The Baja California peninsula , is a peninsula in northwestern Mexico. Its land mass separates the Pacific Ocean from the Gulf of California. The Peninsula extends from Mexicali, Baja California in the north to Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur in the south.The total area of the Baja California...

 at the time of European contact.http://www.sycuan.com/history.html The Kumeyaay referred to the area now known as Rosarito Beach as Wa-cuatay, which translates to "big houses" in the Kumeyaay language
Kumeyaay language
Kumeyaay , also known as Central Diegueño, Kamia, and Campo, is the Native American language spoken by the Kumeyaay people of southern San Diego and Imperial counties in California. Hinton suggested a conservative estimate of 50 surviving Kumeyaay speakers...

.

European arrival and missions

After conquering the Aztec Empire, Hernán Cortés
Hernán Cortés
Hernán Cortés de Monroy y Pizarro, 1st Marquis of the Valley of Oaxaca was a Spanish Conquistador who led an expedition that caused the fall of the Aztec Empire and brought large portions of mainland Mexico under the rule of the King of Castile in the early 16th century...

 sent expeditions to explore what he believed to be the Island of California
Island of California
The Island of California refers to a long-held European misconception, dating from the 16th century, that California was not part of mainland North America but rather a large island separated from the continent by a strait now known instead as the Gulf of California.One of the most famous...

. In 1533, mutineer Fortún Ximénez
Fortún Ximénez
Fortún Ximénez was Spanish sailor who led a mutiny during an early expedition along the coast of Mexico and is the first European known to have landed in Baja California....

 was the first European to land in Baja California, at La Paz, Baja California Sur
La Paz, Baja California Sur
La Paz is the capital city of the Mexican state of Baja California Sur and an important regional commercial center. The city had a 2010 census population of 215,178 persons, but its metropolitan population is somewhat larger because of surrounding towns like el Centenario, el Zacatal and San Pedro...

. In September 1542, Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo
Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo
Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo was a Portuguese explorer noted for his exploration of the west coast of North America on behalf of Spain. Cabrillo was the first European explorer to navigate the coast of present day California in the United States...

 passed through the Rosarito Beach area on his way from Ensenada
Ensenada, Baja California
Ensenada is a coastal city in Mexico and the third-largest city in Baja California. It is located south of San Diego on the Baja California Peninsula. The city is locally referred to as La Cenicienta del Pacífico, or, The Cinderella of the Pacific...

 to San Diego Bay
San Diego Bay
San Diego Bay is a natural harbor and deepwater port adjacent to San Diego, California. It is 12 mi/19 km long, 1 mi/1.6 km–3 mi/4.8 km wide...

. 1697 saw the establishment of the first permanent European settlement in Baja California in a Jesuit mission at Loreto
Loreto, Baja California Sur
Loreto was the first Spanish settlement on the Baja California Peninsula. It served as the capital of Las Californias from 1697 to 1777, and is the current seat of the municipality of Loreto in the Mexican state of Baja California Sur...

. Rosarito would soon be caught in a power struggle between Jesuits, Dominicans, and Franciscan monks for decades.

In 1773, a frontier was defined separating Nueva ("new") or Alta ("upper") California, under the jurisdiction of the Franciscans, from Antigua ("old") or Baja ("lower") California, which was entrusted to the Dominicans. In 1788, Luis de Sales, a Dominican priest, redrew the boundary, extending Baja California to the Rosarito Arroyo
Arroyo (creek)
An arroyo , a Spanish word translated as brook, and also called a wash is usually a dry creek or stream bed—gulch that temporarily or seasonally fills and flows after sufficient rain. Wadi is a similar term in Africa. In Spain, a rambla has a similar meaning to arroyo.-Types and processes:Arroyos...

, known at the time as the Barrabas Arroyo. In 1817, Dominican missionary Tomás de Ahumada founded the Misión San Miguel la Nueva
Misión El Descanso
Mission El Descanso was founded in 1817 among the Kumeyaay by Dominican missionary Tomás de Ahumada at a site 22 kilometers south of the present-day city of Rosarito, Baja California, Mexico....

 among the Kumeyaay people 22 kilometers to the south of the present-day Rosarito Beach.

Ranching era

The property of El Rosarito Ranch, granted to Don José Manuel Machado on 1825, was the first ranch in the modern-day Rosarito region. Subsequently his son, Don Joaquín Machado, applied for title to the land to President
President of Mexico
The President of the United Mexican States is the head of state and government of Mexico. Under the Constitution, the president is also the Supreme Commander of the Mexican armed forces...

 Porfirio Díaz
Porfirio Díaz
José de la Cruz Porfirio Díaz Mori was a Mexican-American War volunteer and French intervention hero, an accomplished general and the President of Mexico continuously from 1876 to 1911, with the exception of a brief term in 1876 when he left Juan N...

. On May 14, 1885, Machado received his title and registered it in Ensenada, then the capital city of the state of Baja California. May 14 is now recognized and celebrated as Rosarito's Foundation Day by the Historical Society of Rosarito.

City status & evolution

On December 1, 1995, Rosarito was converted from a suburb of Tijuana, to an independent city. Hugo Torres Chabert, current owner of the Rosarito Beach Hotel led the incorporation drive and was subsequently appointed to a three year term as Mayor. The territory surrounding the city became the fifth municipality of the State of Baja California.

The geographic city limits of Rosarito Beach Municipality are quite large, abutting the Tijuana city limits to the north, and Ensenada to the south along the coast and inland.

Rosarito's evolution was marked with further construction and the development of shopping centers and more restaurants and shops were established along the main street. This street has been renovated and enlarge to encompass four lanes and a lighted meridian strip and was officially designated Boulevard Benito Juárez in the year 1989.

During the 1970s and early 1980s, Rosarito's growth was moderate but constant. The mid-1980s, however, was marked with the strong development of tourist-related businesses of obviously considerable investment.

In the early 1990s appreciable economic growth was achieved by the construction and competition of numerous hotels (such as Las Rocas) in 1989, condominiums and shopping centers.

The impact of cityhood on modern Rosarito Beach cannot be understated. Prior to incorporation, all tax revenue was filtered through the coffers of Tijuana. Post incorporation has marked major improvements in infrastructure. Due to rapid growth, some streets are indeed still unpaved, however the vast majority of streets have been improved with pavement, curbs and street lights. The city announced in late 2008 that the Baja water and sewer utility was expediting completion of major projects and paving would soon be complete. The major downtown corridor, Boulevard Benito Juárez, is on a steady rejuvenation plan, where all-new period street lights, wide sidewalks, curbs and gutters are being constructed.

On the site of the city fairgrounds in North Rosarito, a new "Rosarito Pabellion" (Pavilion) shopping center began construction in late 2007. Said to become the largest shopping center in Baja California, it includes major anchors, (Home Depot, Wal-Mart, Coppell, Ashley's Furniture) Cineopolis multi-plex theaters, and chain restaurants such as Burger King, Subway, Applebee's and VIPs.

South of the commercial center along Boulevard Benito Juárez, a new, widened four lane Boulevard Popotla is rapidly developing a reputation as a target area for hand-crafted "rustico" furniture, metal sculpture, and
boutique art studios and galleries. Fox Studios
20th Century Fox
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation — also known as 20th Century Fox, or simply 20th or Fox — is one of the six major American film studios...

, where scenes from the movie Titanic
Titanic (1997 film)
Titanic is a 1997 American epic romance and disaster film directed, written, co-produced, and co-edited by James Cameron. A fictionalized account of the sinking of the RMS Titanic, it stars Leonardo DiCaprio as Jack Dawson, Kate Winslet as Rose DeWitt Bukater and Billy Zane as Rose's fiancé, Cal...

were filmed, is located here.

Geography

Rosarito Beach lies on the coast of the Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...

 on the Baja California Peninsula
Baja California Peninsula
The Baja California peninsula , is a peninsula in northwestern Mexico. Its land mass separates the Pacific Ocean from the Gulf of California. The Peninsula extends from Mexicali, Baja California in the north to Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur in the south.The total area of the Baja California...

. The city is positioned between the foothills of the Peninsular Ranges
Peninsular Ranges
The Peninsular Ranges are a group of mountain ranges, in the Pacific Coast Ranges, which stretch from southern California in the United States to the southern tip of Mexico's Baja California peninsula; they are part of the North American Coast Ranges that run along the Pacific coast from Alaska...

 and the ocean. It maintains a relatively uniform topography and displays few variances in terrain.

Cityscape

Urbanization in 1950 marked the beginning of Rosarito's contemporary-era development as planning and construction of streets and city blocks took place. As land sales soared, coupled with the construction of small restaurants, some shops and two hotels, the city began to take shape its present day appearance. In the 1960s, Rosarito entered the commercial and industrial era with the constructions of a large thermoelectric power plant and the later installations of Pemex, the state-owned petroleum company.

The city maintains luxury resorts that take the form of skyscrapers on its coast. The majority of these buildings are located on Boulevard Benito Juárez, also the city's main Boulevard. Residential and commercial highrises continue to go up along the coast, towards both Tijuana and Ensenada.

Climate

Rosarito Beach's climate is similar to that of much Southern California
Southern California
Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...

 as it experiences a Mediterranean climate
Mediterranean climate
A Mediterranean climate is the climate typical of most of the lands in the Mediterranean Basin, and is a particular variety of subtropical climate...

.

Tourism

Rosarito Beach has a largely tourist-based economy. As a result its highrises are predominantly hotels and resorts. Rosarito offers more than 900 hotel rooms from 25 resorts such as Las Rocas Resort, Grand Baja and Festival Plaza Hotel; golf courses and spas. The Popotla Boulevard area in south Rosarito is developing a reputation for original art and furniture manufacturing. Within a few years, scarcely a piece of oceanfront property large enough for a condominium resort was left unsold to developers. Even Donald Trump associated his name with a condo-hotel project north of Rosarito Beach in Playas de Tijuana
Playas de Tijuana
Playas de Tijuana is the westernmost borough of the municipality of Tijuana, Baja California.-Location:The borough of Playas de Tijuana is located in the city of Tijuana, bordered by the Pacific Ocean to the west, the United States to the north, the municipality of Playas de Rosarito to the south...

; while the developers insist the project will still be built, they announced a loss of financing in November 2008 due to the worldwide financial crisis. In August 2008 the Rosarito Beach Hotel opened a new condo-hotel tower.

The well-known lobster village, Puerto Nuevo
Puerto nuevo
Puerto nuevo is a 1936 Argentine musical film drama directed and written by Luis César Amadori and Mario Soffici. It is a tango film. The music was performed by Uruguayan musician Francisco Canaro.-Main cast:*Pepe Arias*Alicia Vignoli*Charlo...

 arose in the 1970s and 80s, just fifteen minutes south of central Rosarito, originally as a fishermen's neighborhood who would offer the daily catch in their living room, and now is a tourist/culinary destination. Lobster, rice, and beans, washed down with Margaritas is the "comida del dia." Lobster "Puerto Nuevo Style" can be advertised anywhere in Baja, where the recipe is lobster, doused with butter and grilled, although if a customer insists it will be prepared in the traditional method.

Real estate

The real estate market has been driven by equity-rich North American Baby Boomers looking for a second home. When the real estate market slumped in 2007 and led to the Great Recession, its impact was felt in Baja leaving most developers to bide their time until the market is yet again rising. The market slow-down, financial crisis, and negative publicity about crime in the area has also led to a general downturn in tourism and investments.

Farming

Rosarito's farming history began with the inception of Ejidos, common land for farming, when, on August 17, 1930, General Lázaro Cárdenas
Lázaro Cárdenas
Lázaro Cárdenas del Río was President of Mexico from 1934 to 1940.-Early life:Lázaro Cárdenas was born on May 21, 1895 in a lower-middle class family in the village of Jiquilpan, Michoacán. He supported his family from age 16 after the death of his father...

, then President of Mexico, issued a resolution granting 46.71 square kilometres (over 10,000 acres) of land to a community of local farmers known as Ejido Mazatlán.

Culture

Rosarito has historically been centered around tourism. It began with the Ortiz family's establishment of Rene's (Bar, Restaurant, Trailer Park and Motel) in 1925. Rene served his town holding the position Delegado (Mayor) more than any other politician in Rosarito. Rene, a prominent businessman, helped create Rosarito from a ranch to a town which later became a city. When Rene was not able to serve his people any longer he chose as his successor Hugo Torres Chabert, a friend and owner of Hotel Rosarito.

While Prohibition was the law of the land, many U.S. residents began to cross the border into Mexico, where drinking was still legal. Tijuana seemed to attract a more speakeasy
Speakeasy
A speakeasy, also called a blind pig or blind tiger, is an establishment that illegally sells alcoholic beverages. Such establishments came into prominence in the United States during the period known as Prohibition...

-oriented clientele, and Rosarito became a haven for the more well-heeled and Hollywood set. Rosarito was visited by Hollywood film stars such as Orson Welles
Orson Welles
George Orson Welles , best known as Orson Welles, was an American film director, actor, theatre director, screenwriter, and producer, who worked extensively in film, theatre, television and radio...

 and Dolores del Río
Dolores del Río
Dolores del Río was a Mexican film actress. She was a star of Hollywood films during the silent era and in the Golden Age of Hollywood...

 who were attracted by hunting (deer, quail and rabbit) and fishing (lobster, abalone). While Rita Hayworth
Rita Hayworth
Rita Hayworth was an American film actress and dancer who attained fame during the 1940s as one of the era's top stars...

 was married to Prince Aly Khan
Prince Aly Khan
Prince Ali Solomone Aga Khan , known as Aly Khan was a son of Aga Khan III, the head of the Ismaili Muslims, and the father of Aga Khan IV. A socialite, racehorse owner and jockey, he was the third husband of actress Rita Hayworth...

, son of Aga Khan
Aga Khan
Aga Khan is the hereditary title of the Imam of the largest branch of the Ismā'īlī followers of the Shī‘a faith. They affirm the Imamat of the descendants of Ismail ibn Jafar, eldest son of Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq, while the larger Twelver branch of Shi`ism follows Ismail's younger brother Musa...

, the two would visit the Rosarito Beach Hotel, take over an entire floor, and bring their own staff, including a personal chef. Other Hollywood visitors included Mickey Rooney
Mickey Rooney
Mickey Rooney is an American film actor and entertainer whose film, television, and stage appearances span nearly his entire lifetime. He has won multiple awards, including an Honorary Academy Award, a Golden Globe and an Emmy Award...

, Ava Gardner
Ava Gardner
Ava Lavinia Gardner was an American actress.She was signed to a contract by MGM Studios in 1941 and appeared mainly in small roles until she drew attention with her performance in The Killers . She became one of Hollywood's leading actresses, considered one of the most beautiful women of her day...

, Spencer Tracy
Spencer Tracy
Spencer Bonaventure Tracy was an American theatrical and film actor, who appeared in 75 films from 1930 to 1967. Tracy was one of the major stars of Hollywood's Golden Age, ranking among the top ten box office draws for almost every year from 1938 to 1951...

 and Katharine Hepburn
Katharine Hepburn
Katharine Houghton Hepburn was an American actress of film, stage, and television. In a career that spanned 62 years as a leading lady, she was best known for playing strong-willed, sophisticated women in both dramas and comedies...

. In early 2008, Britney Spears
Britney Spears
Britney Jean Spears is an American recording artist and entertainer. Born in McComb, Mississippi, and raised in Kentwood, Louisiana, Spears began performing as a child, landing acting roles in stage productions and television shows. She signed with Jive Records in 1997 and released her debut album...

made a one day trip to Rosarito in an attempt to avoid the paparazzi; she failed.

A descendant of Maria Luisa Chabert Uriarte, the young wife of Manuel P. Barbachano the founder of Rosarito Beach Hotel, her nephew Hugo Torres Chabert, hand-picked by his friend Rene, led the drive to incorporate the city in 1995, and was appointed to a three-year term as Mayor. In 2007, Torres Chabert ran for election and was overwhelmingly elected to a new three year term. The subject of rising crime rates and police corruption were major issues in the campaign. Torres Chabert, as owner of the Rosarito Beach Hotel, was deeply concerned about the safety of tourists, and pledged strong action to deal with both issues. In early 2008, both federal and state police were ordered into the city (along with neighboring Tijuana) to reinforce the city's efforts.

External links

Official Rosarito Beach Government
General RediscoveRosarito, a grassroots communication project
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