San Juan City

For the capital city of Puerto Rico, see San Juan, Puerto Rico. For other uses, see San Juan (disambiguation).

City of San Juan
Lungsod ng San Juan
Seal

Map of Metro Manila showing the location of San Juan. Coordinates: 14°38' N, 121°2' E Country Philippines Region National Capital Region Districts Lone District of San Juan City Barangays 21 Incorporated (town) 1623 Incorporated (city) June 16, 2007 Government - Mayor Joseph Victor "JV" Ejercito PMP/GO - Vice Mayor Leornardo G. Celles PMP/GO Area - Total 7.77 km² (3 sq mi) Elevation 17.0 m (56 ft) Population (2000) - Total 125,338 Time zone PST (UTC+8) Area code(s) 2 Website: Official Website of San Juan City

The City of San Juan (Filipino: Lungsod ng San Juan) or simply San Juan is a city in Metro Manila in the Philippines. Before the creation of Metro Manila, it was part of Rizal Province. Currently Metro Manila's smallest city in terms of area, San Juan is one of the smallest among the cities and municipalities in the metropolis, second only to Pateros. This was the site of the first battle of the Katipunan, the Filipino revolutionary organization, against the Spanish colonizers.

1 Etymology
2 Government
3 Location
4 History
5 Sangguniang Panglungsod
6 Barangays
7 Transportation
8 Education
9 Culture
10 Sister Cities of San Juan City
11 References
12 External links

Etymology

The city is named after St. John the Baptist, who is also the city's patron saint.

Government

Mayor: Joseph Victor "JV" G. Ejercito

Vice Mayor: Leonardo G. Celles

City Councilors:

Vincent Rainier M. Pacheco
Domingo M. Sese
Dante E. Santiago
Ferdinand Velasco
Angelino Mendoza
Edgar Soriano
Francis Keith Peralta
Francis Javier Zamora
Grace V. Cortez-Pardines
Andoni Carballo
Rolando Bernardo
Jana Ejercito Surla

Ex-officio Councilors:

(Ramon Nakpil - ABC President)
(Joseph Christopher Torralba - SK President)

District Representative: Ronaldo B. Zamora

Location

San Juan City is located at the approximate geographical centre of Metro Manila. It is bordered by Quezon City on the north and east, Mandaluyong City on the south, and the city of Manila on the west. Among the many interesting places in San Juan are the Pinaglabanan Shrine, which marks the first battle of the Katipunan, the Greenhills Shopping Center, one of the metro's popular bargain places, especially for electronics, clothing and other merchandise.

History

Although not officially known, the tiny city of San Juan could also be called the "Town of Philippine Presidents." Of the last nine presidents since the country became a Republic in 1946, four of them were official residents of San Juan when they assumed the reins of national office. The four are/were the Macapagals, pere et fille, Diosdado Sr. (1961-1965) and the incumbent, his daughter Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo (2001-2010). The other two were Ferdinand Marcos (1965-1986) and Joseph Estrada (1998, until his ouster in 2001's EDSA II). Also, the second President of the 3rd Republic, Elpidio Quirino (1948-1953) retired to this town after leaving his service at Malacañang Palace until his death in 1956.

Former President Joseph Estrada served as mayor of San Juan.

On June 16, 2007 voters in San Juan ratified the conversion of the municipality into a highly urbanized city, pursuant to Republic Act No. 9388 (An Act Converting the Municipality of San Juan into a Highly Urbanized City to be known as the City of San Juan). Congressman Ronaldo B. Zamora sponsored the Cityhood Bill at the House of Representatives and worked for its approval.[1]

Sangguniang Panglungsod

The Sangguniang Panglungsod of San Juan is headed by Vice-Mayor Leonardo G. Celles. The City Councilors are:

District I Hon. Vincent Pacheco, Hon. Domingo Sese, Hon. Dante Santiago, Hon. Ferdinand Velasco, Hon. Angelino Mendoza, Hon. Edgardo Soriano

District II Hon. Francis Keith Peralta, Hon. Francisco Javier Zamora, Hon. Grace Cortes-Pardines, Hon. Andoni Miguel Carballo, Hon. Rolando Bernardo, Hon. Jana Ejercito-Surla

Barangays

San Juan is politically subdivided into 21 barangays:

Addition Hills
Balong-Bato
Batis
Corazon De Jesus
Ermitaño
Greenhills
Halo-halo (St. Joseph)
Isabelita
Kabayanan (The Champions DaRe Devils)
Little Baguio
Maytunas
Onse

Pasadeña
Pedro Cruz
Progreso
Rivera
Salapan
San Perfecto
Santa Lucia
Tibagan
West Crame

Transportation

Road R-6 passes through San Juan as Aurora Boulevard, as does the C-3 (Araneta Avenue). Less major routes include Nicanor Domingo (more known as N. Domingo), which heads towards Cubao in Quezon City and Pinaglabanan/Santolan, which leads towards Ortigas Avenue and eventually Quezon City.
The Purple Line of the Manila LRT also briefly passes through the city while running over Aurora Boulevard (R-6), serving the stations at V. Mapa and J. Ruiz.
Numerous jeepney routes operate through the area, heading towards Cubao, Divisoria, Crame (via Santolan), Taytay and other destinations. A bus route from Quiapo heading towards Cainta and Taytay passes through San Juan.

Education

Here is a list of some notable scholastic institutions in the city, both public and private.

The San Juan National High School, which was established in 1969 during the time of then Mayor Joseph Estrada, is the lone public high school in the City.

Aquinas School- a Catholic school established by the Dominicans
Asian Institute of Journalism and Communication- the country's premiere institute for graduate studies in Communication Management and Journalism
Dominican College
Fountain International Academy
Immaculate Conception Academy-Greenhills, an all-girls private Catholic school for Chinese Filipinos
Montessori De San Juan
O.B. Montessori Center
Pinaglabanan Elementary School
St. John's Academy
Xavier School- an all-boys private school run by the Society of Jesus for Chinese Filipinos

Culture

San Juan is famed for its celebration of the feast of their patron, St. John the Baptist. The locals celebrate by dousing the streets - along with passers-by and vehicles - with water (as is done in baptism).

San Juan also has a significant Filipino-Chinese population, as well as a notable Muslim population.