Distrito Nacional

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Distrito Nacional
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic capital
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic capital
Coat of arms of Distrito Nacional
Location of the Distrito Nacional
Location of the Distrito Nacional
Country Dominican Republic
District since1932
Government
 • TypeSubdivisions
 • Body1 municipalities
0 municipal districts
 • Congresspersons1 Senator
18 Deputies
Area
 • Total104.44 km2 (40.32 sq mi)
Population
 (2022)
 • Total1,029,110[1]
Time zoneUTC-4 (AST)
Area code1-809 1-829 1-849
ISO 3166-2DM-01
Postal Code10100 to 10699
Websitehttp://www.adn.gob.do

The Distrito Nacional (Spanish pronunciation: [disˈtɾito nasjoˈnal]; D.N.) is a subdivision of the Dominican Republic enclosing the capital Santo Domingo. It is not in any of the provinces, but in practice, it acts as a province on its own. Before October 16, 2001, the Distrito Nacional was much larger, including what is now known as Santo Domingo Province. Published statistics and maps generally show the former, larger, Distrito Nacional. The Distrito Nacional has no rural or underdeveloped areas.

Points of interest[edit]

Poligono Central[edit]

The Poligono Central is the central area of Santo Domingo. Upscale neighborhoods of Naco, Piantini, and Paraiso are located within this central polygon. Most of the financial activity in Santo Domingo is also located in the Poligono.

Central Government[edit]

The Distrito Nacional houses the central government's executive branch Presidential Office (Palacio Nacional), the national congressional building (Congreso Nacional) and the top judicial court building (Suprema Corte de Justicia). It also houses all the nationwide public office's main buildings, called Ministerios (formerly Secretarías de Estado).

Ciudad Colonial[edit]

For the main article, please select Ciudad Colonial.

The Ciudad Colonial (lit. "Colonial City") is the oldest continually occupied European settlement in the Western hemisphere, established by Bartholomew Columbus and the Spanish explorers in the New World. It has several historic landmarks and is declared as World Heritage Site by the UNESCO.

Nightlife[edit]

There are various nightlife activities available inside the Distrito Nacional. Upscale nightclubs, casinos, hotels, restaurants with international bars are widely available. Discothèque DJs and live performances caters both local sounds (merengue, salsa or bachata) and dance music (house, techno, trance, reggaeton, drum and bass, etc.) Most nightclubs alternate between the two main genres; some other clubs stick almost exclusively to either one. Several chain restaurants are available serving dinner up to midnight. Most restaurants within hotels don't close at all, and the majority of casinos serve complimentary snacks all night. Most restaurants are specialized on the following cuisines: Local, Italian, French, Steakhouse, Mexican, Spanish, Seafood, Chinese and Japanese). There are several movie cinemas that play movies in English (with subtitles) and are on par with worldwide premiers. Jazz music outlets, live theater, live concerts and sports events are available throghtout the whole week.

Parks[edit]

Distrito Nacional has several urban parks, the largest one, Parque Mirador Sur, overlooking the Caribbean Sea from a high cliff from the Avenida Mirador Sur (also called Avenida de la Salud - Health Avenue). It has several miles of open road designed for picnic, jogging and cycling. Roller skating and even Kendo are regularly practiced in areas of the park.

Other places in the area include:

Shopping[edit]

There are several shopping malls that represent international brands of clothing, electronic goods, gifts and the like. Banks, barber shops, internet cafés, travel agencies, dental offices and supermarkets can all be found under a single roof.

Schools[edit]

There are plenty of public (government funded) and private schools that offer teaching in both Spanish and English. Among the public universities is the first university of the Americas, Universidad Autónoma de Santo Domingo, located near the center-south of the city. The first private university, Pontificia Universidad Católica Madre y Maestra, has a campus nearby.

Transportation[edit]

Metro de Santo Domingo[edit]

The Distrito Nacional boasts the first and only underground public transportation system in the country. The first line connects the Distrito Nacional with Santo Domingo Norte.

Public transportation[edit]

Other means of public transportation include: taxi services, public bus routes, urban transportation by bus, local airports and rent cars. International flights are handled by the nearby Las Américas International Airport and La Isabela airport. It can be reached from the city center through some 20 miles of recently expanded expressway and new suspension bridge (Puente Presidente Juan Bosch).

Politics[edit]

The Distrito Nacional is represented in the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies on the same scale as a Province (a single Senator (Senador), plus one Deputy (Diputado) per 50,000 inhabitants). Its local government is the same as the provincial municipios, without the equivalent of a provincial tier of government.

Sectors of the District.

Sectores (neighborhoods)[edit]

The Distrito Nacional is subdivided in incorporated areas (neighborhoods) called sectores which could be considered as small urban towns. All sectores are serviced directly by the municipal mayor's office (Alcalde).

Some sectores prefixes:

  • Ciudad (city) - applies to the original older parts of town, some dating back to colonial times of Dominican Republic.
  • Ensanche (lit. "widening") - usually, but not always, applied to the more "modern" parts of the city.
  • Villa - the urban outskirts of both the old city of Santo Domingo and the current (smaller) Distrito Nacional.
Bella Vista, Dominican Republic skyline.
Centro de los Héroes neighborhood.
Ciudad Colonial neighborhood.
Gazcue neighborhood, Dominican Republic.
Parque Mirador Sur, Santo Domingo
Sector Population[2]
Altos de Arroyo Hondo 27,692
Arroyo Manzano 19,151
Atala 17,617
Bella Vista 28,253
Buenos Aires-Independencia 14,759
Cacique 14,384
Centro de los Héroes 2,045
Centro Olímpico Duarte 36
Cerros de Arroyo Hondo 24,486
Ciudad Colonial 1,339
Ciudad Nueva 1,423
Ciudad Universitaria 33,812
Cristo Rey 42,140
Domingo Sabio 7,359
El Millón 10,401
Ensanche Capotillo 27,613
Ensanche Espaillat 25,045
Ensanche La Fé 43,765
Ensanche Luperón 14,167
Ensanche Naco 9,227
Gazcue 14,308
General Antonio Duvergé 11,981
Gualey 13,539
Honduras del Norte 9,820
Honduras del Oeste 9,679
Jardín Botánico 21
Jardín Zoológico 177
Jardines del Sur 4,004
Julieta Morales 14,729
La Agustina 14,028
La Esperilla 14,807
La Hondonada 18,795
La Isabela 17,653
La Julia 17,254
La Zurza 11,982
Los Cacicazgos 15,633
Los Jardines 17,599
Los Peralejos 6,651
Los Prados 12,454
Los Restauradores 6,236
Los Ríos 13,886
María Auxiliadora 31,639
Mata Hambre 12,823
Mejoramiento Social 39,889
Mirador Norte 40,104
Mirador Sur 41,927
Miraflores 38,449
Miramar 11,051
Nuestra Señora de la Paz 8,729
Nuevo Arroyo Hondo 20,259
Palma Real 7,803
Paraíso 26,021
Paseo de los Indios 6,697
Piantini 52,483
Puerto Isabela 38,449
Quisqueya 24,933
Renacimiento 21,912
San Carlos 26,008
San Diego 14,063
San Gerónimo 13,987
San Juan Bosco 21,198
Simón Bolívar 39,069
Treinta de Mayo 30,159
Tropical Metaldom 2,601
Veinticuatro de Abril 21,181
Viejo Arroyo Hondo 49,495
Villa Consuelo 54,065
Villa Francisca 49,397
Villa Juana 46,268
Villas Agricolas 2,140
Distrito Nacional 1,402,749

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Provincias Dominicanas" (PDF). Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  2. ^ Consejo Nacional de Población y Familia. "Estamaciones y Proyecciones de la Población Dominicana por Regiones, Provincias, Municipios y Distritos Municipales, 2014" (PDF) (in Spanish). Retrieved 2014-02-02.[permanent dead link]

External links[edit]