Alajuela (canton)

Canton in Alajuela province, Costa Rica

Canton in Alajuela, Costa Rica

Alajuela canton

10°09′50″N 84°15′52″W / 10.163979°N 84.2645463°W / 10.163979; -84.2645463Country Costa RicaProvinceAlajuelaCreation7 December 1848Head cityAlajuelaDistrictsGovernment • TypeMunicipality • BodyMunicipalidad de Alajuela • MayorRoberto Hernán Thompson Chacón (PLN)Area • Total391.62 km² (151.21 sq mi)Elevation942 m (3,091 ft)Population • Total254,886 • Estimate 322,143 • Density650/km² (1,700/sq mi)Time zoneUTC−06:00Canton code201Websitewww.munialajuela.go.cr

Alajuela is a canton in the Alajuela province of Costa Rica.^[1][2] Its head city is the provincial capital city of Alajuela.

Alajuela was created on 7 December 1848 by decree 167.^[2]

Alajuela has an area of 391.62 km² (151.21 sq mi)^[3] and a mean elevation of 942 m (3,091 ft).^[1]

Northward from the city of Alajuela, the canton continues along the border with the province of Heredia to its east, encompassing a strip of the Cordillera Central (Central Mountain Range) between Poas Volcano and Barva Volcano. On the Caribbean side of the mountains, the canton takes in a portion of the Sarapiquí area. The Río Poás (Poas River) forms the major portion of the canton's western border, finally giving way to the Río Poasito as the territory ascends into the Cordillera Central.^{[citation needed]}

Southwest of the city of Alajuela, the canton of Alajuela ends at the confluence of the Río Grande (Great River) and the Río Virilla (Virilla River).^{[citation needed]}

According to Costa Rica's Municipal Code, mayors are elected every four years by the population of the canton.^[4] As of the latest municipal elections in 2024, the National Liberation Party candidate, Roberto Hernán Thompson Chacón, was elected mayor of the canton with 22.73% of the votes, with Sofía Marcela González Barquero and Elías Mateo Chaves Hernández as first and second vice mayors, respectively.^[5]

Mayors of Alajuela since the 2002 elections^[6]

Period	Name	Party
2002–2006	Fabio Molina Rojas	PLN
2006–2010	Joyce Mary Zurcher Blen
2010–2016	Roberto Hernán Thompson Chacón
2016–2020
2020–2024	Humberto Soto Herrera
2024–2028	Roberto Hernán Thompson Chacón

Like the mayor and vice mayors, members of the Municipal Council (called regidores) are elected every four years. Alajuela's Municipal Council has 11 seats for regidores and their substitutes, who can participate in meetings but not vote unless the owning regidor (regidor propietario) is absent.^[4] The current president of the Municipal Council is the Let's Renovate Alajuela Party member, Francisco Javier Sánchez Gómez, with National Liberation Party member, Mercedes Gutiérrez Carvajal, as vice president.^[7] The Municipal Council's composition for the 2024–2028 period is as follows:

Current composition of the Municipal Council of Alajuela after the 2024 municipal elections^[8]

Political parties in the Municipal Council of Alajuela
Political party			Regidores
			№	Owner	Substitute
	National Liberation Party (PLN)		3	Marvin Venegas Melendéz	Luis Emilio Hernández León
				Mercedes Gutiérrez Carvajal(VP)	Argerie María Córdoba Rodríguez
				Eder Francisco Hernández Ulloa	Luis Porfirio Campos Porras
	Social Christian Unity Party (PUSC)		2	Jorge Arturo Campos Araya	Marvin Alberto Mora Bolaños
				Kathia Marcela Guzmán Cerdas	María Fernanda Marten Rodríguez
	Let's Renovate Alajuela Party (PRA)		1	Francisco Javier Sánchez Gómez(P)[a]	Ananias Fuentes Navarro
	Social Democratic Progress Party (PSD)		1	Sergio Murillo Picado	Eduardo Naranjo Muñoz
	Our Town Party (PNP)		1	Germán Vinicio Aguilar Solano	Humberto Soto Herrera
	Costa Rica Rules Here (ACRM)		1	Bernal Alonso Soto Saborío	Osvaldo Alpizar Núñez
	Alajuela's Awakening (DA)		1	Ana Patricia Guillén Campos	Marlene Garita Santamaría
	Progressive Liberal Party (PLP)		1	Yadu Graciela Fuentes Araya	Katia Vanessa Arroyo Vargas

In the center of Alajuela, next to Parque de Alajuela, also known as "Parque de los Mangos", is Alajuela Cathedral, whose main feature is its red dome. This park is a popular place for locals to socialize, especially in the afternoons. One block west of the park is the Mercado Central de Alajuela, a bustling shopping centre.^{[citation needed]} Poás Volcano National Park is about 37 kilometres (23 mi) north of Alajuela city and is known for its five waterfalls at La Paz Waterfall Gardens.^[9]

To the north of the Central Park is the Museo Histórico Cultural Juan Santamaría. This museum, situated in a building built in 1894-45, which was formerly a prison in the barracks of Alajuela, contains many historical maps, artifacts and portraits of the 1856-1857 campaign. In 1977 it became the headquarters of the Centro de Investigación para el Perfeccionamiento Técnico (CIPET), an institution of the Ministry of Public Education.^[10]

The canton of Alajuela is subdivided into the following districts:

1. Alajuela
2. San José
3. Carrizal
4. San Antonio
5. Guácima
6. San Isidro
7. Sabanilla
8. San Rafael
9. Río Segundo
10. Desamparados
11. Turrúcares
12. Tambor
13. Garita
14. Sarapiquí

Historical population

Census	Pop.	±% p.a.
1864	11,521	—
1883	15,247	+1.49%
1892	19,300	+2.65%
1927	25,656	+0.82%
1950	37,376	+1.65%
1963	64,398	+4.27%
1973	96,325	+4.11%
1984	127,472	+2.58%
2000	222,853	+3.55%
2011	254,886	+1.23%
2022	322,143	+2.15%
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos[11] Centro Centroamericano de Población[12]

Alajuela was estimated to have 322,143 inhabitants in 2022, an increase from its 254,886 at the time of the 2011 census.^[13][14]

Alajuela had a Human Development Index of 0.784 in 2022,^[15] the highest score in its province and 19th among all cantons in Costa Rica.

The canton is covered by the following road routes:

The Interurbano Line operated by Incofer goes through this canton.

It is a major area for the production of coffee, strawberries and ornamental plants.^[16][17] The Doka Estate lies within the canton, in Sabanilla District, and is a major coffee producing estate, supplying directly to Starbucks.^[18]