The Sonoran Star Resort is the 5^th in the family of beachfront resorts designed and built by the Sonoran Resorts Company. Beginning in 2001, this company has shown again and again the high quality and attention to detail that has made our resorts the most popular on the beach. The Sonoran Spa was completed in 2001, followed by the Sonoran Sea in 2003. After that came the Sonoran Sun in 2005, and finally the Sonoran Sky in 2007. Now the company has taken our 21 years of experience and four successful resorts and combined it to come up with the best yet – The Sonoran Star.

In response to the request made Puerto Penasco Mayor, Jorge Pivac Carrillo, to the Customs and Border Protection Office (CBP), they have agreed to extend the hours of crossing the Lukeville/Sonoyta port until 10:00 p.m. on holidays.

From the current schedule of 6:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m, which was reduced in 2020, the hours will be extended to a schedule from 6:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. for United States holidays. This change was in direct response to the request that Mayor Pivac made to the authorities of the CBP Border Port to extend the timeframe so that North American tourists, inhabitants of Sonoyta, and Puerto Penasco can cross in order to make it more convenient.

The director of the Lukeville border port, Peter J. Bachelier, confirmed through a document addressed to Mayor Jorge Pivac the approval of the extension of hours for holiday dates in which a large influx of vehicles is expected.

Mayor Pivac was expressed his gratitude to the authorities of the Customs and Border Protection Office and remarked that the extended hours will offer tourists and other border crossers more time for their safe return to their country of origin.

He remarked that in the last meeting he held with Customs Office personnel he had requested an extension of hours for every day. He had also requested that the longer hours become permanent. The agreement from CBP was not exactly what he had requested, but it is still a win for tourists who want to spend a little more time in our little paradise on the sea

Holidays with extended hours for border crossing from 6:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.

 Friday, February 18 and Monday, February 21 Presidents' Day / "Presidents Day" 2022

 Friday May 27 and Monday May 30 Memorial Day / "Memorial Day" 2022

 Friday June 17 and Monday June 20 day of the abolition of slavery / "Juneteeth" 2022

 Friday June 1 and Monday July 4 Independence Day / "Independence Day" 2022

 Friday September 2 and Monday September 5. Labor Day / "Labor Day" 2022

 Friday, October 7 and Monday, October 10 Columbus Day / "Columbus Day" 2022

 Friday November 11th and Monday November 14th. Veterans Day / “Veterans Day” 2022

An investment of more than 7 million pesos in construction and remodeling works of sports areas, schools, community centers, venues, and public areas was announced Mayor Jorge Pivac Carrillo. The project funds will come from the Municipal Council for Concertation for Public Works (CMCOP) 2022, in which the state and municipal governments participate.

The Mayor reported that the approved package for this exercise will include include 20 different works that will benefit thousands of families in different sectors of the community. Work will begin this week with the state government providing 70 % of the resources, the local municipal government will provide 15%, and the remaining 15% contribution will come from the beneficiaries.

In addition to these important works and investment, it was announced that the administration managed to obtain approval of the CMCOP budget in an amount almost 2 million pesos higher that in 2021, making the total almost 10 million pesos.

"With this resource, 7 more works will be carried out to rehabilitate public areas, school campuses, sports areas, and public security and rescue resources," added the Mayor.

Among the improvement and remodeling works that will be carried out this year, the following stand out:

Demolition and construction in civic plaza at Vicente Guerrero Primary School.

Rehabilitation of a building for a Fire Station in Colonia Nueva Esperanza.

Remodeling of bathrooms in the Arturo Bravo Herrera soccer field.

Construction and installation of lighting in Skate Park La Milla.

Rehabilitation of lighting and facilities at Soft Ball Sandoval Field.

Construction of a multifunctional court in the primary school Article 115.

Remodeling of floors in the main access to the Ana Gabriela Guevara sports center.

Remodeling of floors in Plaza del Camarón.

Upgrades in the central plaza of the Technical Secondary School No 21, San Rafael.

Construction of apartments in the civic square of the First of June School.

Construction of vehicle access in Colegio de Bachilleres de Puerto Penasco.

Construction and placement of shade mesh at Luis Donaldo Colosio Elementary School.

Construction of a shade structure in the Domitila Rojo Ruiz kindergarten.

Construction of metal structure and shade mesh at the Francisco Urrea school

Construction of a multifunctional court in the community center of the San Rafael neighborhood.

Remodeling of central median of Sonora Boulevard between Vicente Guerrero and Rodolfo Campodónico avenues.

Replacement of roof tiles in the Second Apostolic Church of the Faith in Christ.

In the presence of directors, deputy directors, coordinators and heads of the area, the mayor of Puerto Penasco, Jorge Pivac Carrillo, led the first ordinary meeting of the Municipal Planning Committee (COPLAM) with the purpose of following up on the fulfillment of the objectives and goals in these first three months of the new municipal administration.

Accompanied by Maritza Montijo Quintana, coordinator of the Cabinet, Gerardo Celaya Núñez, director of COPLAM, as well as Alberto Ramírez, director of CMCOP, the Mayor made the call to meet all the goals set by each agency and to carry out their jobs with honesty and efficiency for the benefit of the community.

There, the Mayor explained each of the municipal areas with which the municipal plan has been designed. They are:

1.      Efficient, honest and transparent government

2.      Social welfare with gender equity

3.      Penasco before anything else

4.      Sustainable economic development

5.      Living safely and in social peace.

“Through these areas which we have addressed, we will be able to improve the living conditions of the people of Rocky Point, giving them better social development, security, and a better city in which to live and visit. That continues to be my goal and it will be until the last day of this administration. I am a man of my word and I like to meet my challenges. That is why I will give all my effort to deliver what I promise for the good of the city. Penasco is first and foremost”, remarked the Mayor.

The director of the Municipal Planning Committee, Gerardo Celaya Núñez, mentioned the evaluation of the goals achieved by each department, and urged all area directors to give their all to achieve each of the proposals drawn up proactively.

To conclude, the Mayor urged each of them to fulfill these goals and to make the extra effort to exceed expectations and fulfill the goals for the people of Puerto Penasco.

“I invite you to work hard and to make the processes transparent for each of your functions. The success we expect from this government depends on you. I also invite you to make the extra effort every day because we have a great commitment to the community, and because I hope that the community responds with trust in this government. Again, I reiterate that you must meet the goals and strive to have a high performance in your work”, pointed out Mayor Pivaco.

Roger Clyne & The Peacemakers, along with friends The Vandoliers, RC Edwards, Jesse Dayton, Andrew Leahey, The Jons and Jim Dalton brought much needed smiles and outdoor fun to Penasco over MLK weekend at its annual January Jam.

Headquartered at Clyne-owned Banditos on Sandy Beach, other venues which hosted performances included Chango’s, Manny’s and Al Capone’s.

“It was so great to be outside, spread apart as much as needed and listen to great live music all weekend in my favorite place”, commented Erin Anderson from Las Vegas following Saturday night’s show at Banditos.

Along with the annual raffle fundraising efforts, the Cancion Tequila Golf Classic held at Las Palomas Resort also helped raise needed funds which stay in Penasco supporting family-oriented charities.

Organizers were thrilled with the turnout and are focusing their attention toward June 9-12, 2022 for Roger Clyne & The Peacemakers’ signature Circus Mexicus Music Festival. Details and ticket info will be posted soon at www.circus mexicus.net . In the meantime, all are encouraged to book accommodations now at their favorite online booking site before choices become very limited.

What can we expect in June?

“Big bands. Big fireworks. Big trucks carrying cold beer and tequila. Big fun,” leaked RCPM bassist Nick Scropos’ hair dresser in a recent interview.

Progress of the project enabling the access and walkway to El Mirador Beach is estimated at approximately 90% at this time. The entrance is located at the end of Coahuila Avenue and will allow people to enter and leave the beach more easily. The project was achieved through a collaboration between the local municipal government and the federal government with resources used from the Fund of the Federal Maritime-Terrestrial Zone to be used for the benefit of the community.

The project consists of the construction of a walkway, a roofed entrance structure, public lighting, planters, garbage recepticals, a rack for parking bicycles, benches, railings, public toilets, and an access ramp for wheelchairs to the beach. Mirador Beach is one of the beaches in town which as been awarded with the distinctive "Blue Flag", for being a clean, sustainable, safe beach, with quality services.

The walkway/access to the beach is part of the works being undertaken for the return and rehabilitation of public accesses to the beach from Playa Hermosa to the El Mirador beach area.

The work is scheduled to be officially inaugurated in the coming days, although it is already open for public use.

The Sonoran Resorts Sales Team once again had our display and information booth at the Annual Scottsdale Barrett Jackson Show. This is our 9th consecutive year at the show.

After a week of vehicles going for progressively higher prices at the Barrett-Jackson collector car auction in Scottsdale, Friday and Saturday’s sales set records for the final two days of bidding.

Saturday’s top 10 sales all exceeded $1 million, led by a 2023 70th anniversary Corvette Z06 with VIN number 001 selling for $3,600,000. All of the proceeds from that sale went to Operation Homefront.

For over 50 years, enthusiasts from all over the world have flocked to the Barrett-Jackson collector car auctions, named America’s No. 1 Attraction for Car Lovers in the 2019 USA Today Readers’ Choice Contest. Widely regarded as a barometer of the collector car industry, the auctions have evolved over the years into world-class automotive lifestyle events where thousands of the world’s most sought-after, unique and valuable automobiles cross the block in front of a global audience ‒ in person and on live national and international television.

Barrett-Jackson produces The World’s Greatest Collector Car Auctions in Scottsdale, Arizona; Palm Beach, Florida; Las Vegas, Nevada and Houston, Texas. In addition to the millions watching the events via live television coverage on FYI and HISTORY, over 500,000 people are in attendance at all four auctions, looking to witness auction action at its best, capture the car of their dreams, mingle with celebrities, experience adrenaline-pumping thrill rides in the latest vehicles from America’s top automakers or shop in the vast Exhibitor Marketplace.

The Sonoran Sales Team has been a part of the show for 9 years and we have given away thousands of pieces of literature and discussed Rocky Point and the Sonoran Resorts with countless people. We will continue to Promote our resorts and our city. We're very proud of both!

Mexico is set to break ground on a massive solar energy plant in the state of Sonora next month. Officials say the first phase of the project will be up and running before the end of the year.

Mexico’s electricity commission (CFE) will start construction on the 1000-megawatt project just east of the popular beach town of Puerto Peñasco, or Rocky Point, on Feb. 1.

"It will be the largest plant in all of Latin America, and the seventh in the world," Sonora Governor Alfonso Durazo said during a press conference, adding that it would reduce energy costs and help mitigate climate change.

Leaders say the plant, which will be comprised of 2 million solar panels, will be finished in April 2027.

The first phase of 120 megawatts is scheduled for completion this December. That power is destined for users in Sonora. A second, 300-megawatt phase is set to come online in early 2024 and will be sent to Baja California, finally connecting the peninsula to the national electricity grid.

However, while environmental groups praise efforts to move toward renewable energy, some question the location of the project and the transmission planned to ship energy to Baja California. They say the area is located near important and delicate natural resources. Those include the El Pinacate and Gran Desierto de Altar Biosphere Reserve, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and the Alto Golfo de California Biosphere Reserve.

"We want to make sure that these important areas and the flora and fauna that depend on them are protected," said biologist Carlos Castillo, calling it careful balance between constructing new renewable energy plants and conserving the natural environment in the area.

"In many cases, we would rather see these plants built in areas that have already suffered environmental damage. And there is a lot of land like that in Sonora," he said. "That would be a win-win."

Authorities say they are taking environmental consideration into account, and have carried out an environmental assessment for the first two phases of the project. They have yet to determine where the transmission lines to Baja California will be built.

Thanks to guacamole's role as a Super Bowl staple, avocado demand increases up to 40% every February

A record-breaking 140,000 tonnes of Mexican avocados are expected to be shipped to the United States in the lead-up to the 56th Super Bowl, to be played in Los Angeles on February 13.

José Luis Gallardo, president of the Mexican Association of Avocado Producers, Packers and Exporters, told the newspaper Milenio that about 25,000 tonnes of avocados are currently being shipped to the U.S. per week, while exports will ramp up in early February.

A total of 140,000 tonnes would represent a 4% increase over last year’s Super Bowl exports.

Avocados are in high demand in the United States prior to the National Football League championship game, largely because guacamole is a popular snack for football lovers glued to their screens.

“An event like the Super Bowl is very important; we’re prepared in Michoacán, which right now is the only state that can send avocados [to the U.S.],” Gallardo said.

Juan Anaya, CEO of agricultural consultancy GMCA, estimated that avocado exports for the big game will be worth US $356 million, or 10% of annual revenue from the U.S. market. “Demand increases 30% or 40% in February,” he said.

Gallardo said that just under 1.12 million tonnes of Mexican avocados were shipped to the United States last year, up from 962,000 tonnes in 2020. “It’s a product that is very well accepted in the United States,” he said.

“… The pandemic hasn’t hurt us, we continue working in Michoacán, the shipments keep leaving every day and the product continues to sell very well.”

Avocados are a major source of income in Michoacán, where farmers, packers and cartels compete for their share of the “green gold” profits.

Most people associate mole with either with Puebla or Oaxaca , but the origin of mole poblano, the thick, rich, chocolate-tinged sauce made so famous in the colonial mountain city of Puebla, Mexico, is still disputed, and generally involves these two versions of the legend:

The first says that 16th Century nuns from the Convent of Santa Rosa in Puebla de los Angeles, upon learning that the Archbishop was coming for a visit, went into a panic because they had nothing to serve him. The nuns started praying desperately and an angel came to inspire them. They began chopping and grinding and roasting, mixing different types of chiles together with spices, day-old bread, nuts, a little chocolate and approximately 20 other ingredients..

This concoction boiled for hours and was reduced to the thick, sweet, rich and fragrant mole sauce we know today. To serve in the mole, they killed the only meat they had, an old turkey, and the strange sauce was poured over it. The archbishop was more than happy with his banquet and the nuns saved face. Little did they know they were creating the Mexican National dish for holidays and feasts, and that today, millions of people worldwide have at least heard of mole poblano.

The other legend states that mole came from pre-hispanic times and that Aztec king, Moctezuma, thinking the conquistadors were gods, served mole to Cortez at a banquet to receive them. This story probably gained credibility because the word mole comes from the Nahuatl word “milli” which means sauce or “concoction”. Another connection could be that chocolate was widely used in pre-columbian Mexico, so people jumped to that conclusion.

RECIPE:

INGREDIENTS

For the chicken:

1 Large chicken cut up in pieces

About 8 cups of water

1 Small onion cut up in pieces

3 Garlic cloves

Salt to taste

For the Sauce:

6 Mulato peppers

4 Ancho peppers

6 Pasilla peppers

1 Tablespoon of reserved pepper seeds

6 Whole cloves

½ Teaspoon black peppercorn

¼ Teaspoon coriander seeds

¼ Teaspoonanises seeds

¾ Cup sesame seeds

¾ Inch of mexican cinnamon stick

½ Cup of raisins

⅓ Cup unskinned almonds

⅓ Cup peanuts

1 Corn tortilla

3 Small slices of french bread

⅓ Cup of raw pumpkin seeds

½ Small white onion sliced

2 Medium roasted tomatoes

3 Garlic gloves roasted

½ Large ripe dark-skinned plantain peeled, thickly sliced

1 Tablet of Mexican drinking Chocolate* About 3.1 ounces.

The reserved broth from the cooked chicken.

½ Cup of oil or lard to fry the ingredients

Salt to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

Instructions to cook the chicken:

Combine all ingredients in large pot. Bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer until chicken is just cooked through, skimming foam, about 35 minutes. Transfer chicken to bowl; cover and chill. Strain and reserve broth in pot.

For the Mole Sauce

Get all the ingredients ready according to the list. This step is very important.

Prepare the peppers . Make sure to clean the dry peppers with a wet cloth and cut the peppers using your kitchen scissors if possible to flatten them for an even toasting.

Have a large pot ready with simmering chicken broth or water to soak all the ingredients after toasting or frying. They will get softer and easier to grind this way.

In a skillet toast the dry peppers a few at a time, on both sides, pressing them down as you turn them, until the inside flesh turns tobacco brown. This takes a few seconds, take care not to let them burn. Place the peppers and the chocolate in the bowl with the broth to soak. Keep toasting the rest of the peppers and placing them in the broth.

Meanwhile, toast separately the reserved peppers seeds, the coriander seeds, the anise seeds and sesame seeds. Set them aside to cool.

Grind in an electric coffee/spice grinder as finely as possible. Cloves, peppercorns, cinnamon, and all the toasted ingredients except the sesame seeds. In case you do not have a grinder, but you have a professional blender skip this step and place the spices and seeds on the pot with the rest of the ingredients to be grinded in the blender.

Reserve 2 tablespoons of the sesame seeds for serving the mole; grind the rest as finely as possible. After this step add this mixture of spices and seeds to the bowl with the peppers.

Now, add a small portion of the lard or vegetable oil to a skillet and begin frying the following ingredients separately draining any excess fat after frying: the raisins until plump up, the almonds until well browned, the pumpkin seeds until they swell (take care, since they tend to explode and jump).

Every ingredient will be added to the pot with the chicken broth. You can roast the tomatoes and garlic cloves while frying the rest of the ingredients. Fry the onions until golden brown and place in the bowl.

Fry the tortilla and bread until crisp. Only add a little more lard at a time or it will be absorbed, specially by the tortilla and bread.

Add plantain and sauté until golden, about 3 minutes. Using slotted spoon, drain excess fat and transfer to bowl. Make sure to use a ripe plantain.

10. This is the bowl where all the fried and toasted ingredients were placed and now are ready to go into the blender. It is going to look a little bit messy. Crush the bread and tortilla roughly, chop the tomatoes roasted tomatoes. This will make the grinding process a little bit easier.

11. Put ½ cup of the chicken broth into the blender jar, don’t forget to add peeled garlic. Gradually add the spice mixture and blend well; then add another ½ cup of broth and gradually blend the fried ingredients to a slightly fine paste. Try not to add more liquid (unless your blender motor is heating or smoking) but constantly release the blades with a rubber spatula. You will have to do this step in 2 or 3 batches until everything has been pureed. I use my Vitamix and grind the whole sauce twice. If the end results are still coarse, pass the whole mixture through a strainer.

12. In a large skillet over medium heat, reheat the sauce, scraping the bottom of the pan very often to avoid sticking. Season with salt.

13. Continue frying until the mixture is very thick, about 8 minutes, and stir. Add more broth as needed to desire thickness and continue cooking, the mixture should be bubbling and splattering—for about 25 minutes. By now pools of oil should be forming on the surface.

14. Add cooked chicken to hot mole; simmer until chicken is heated through, about 10 minutes. To serve, place a piece of chicken on a warm plate. Spoon on plenty of the mole sauce; sprinkle with sesame seeds. In Mexico it is usually serve with white rice with peas and a lot of warm tortillas.

This mole can be made well ahead and the leftover sauce can be kept very successfully in the freezer for about six months. When reheated it will probably have to be diluted with more broth and freshly cooked chicken, or better yet used for chicken-filled enchiladas.

NOTES

This Mole Sauce is not spicy if you want to add some heat to the sauce, add 2 dried chipotle peppers or morita peppers.

If you want it a little sweeter, add more chocolate.

The legend of La Llorona (pronounced “LAH yoh ROH nah”), Spanish for the Weeping Woman, has been a part of Hispanic culture in the Southwest since the days of the conquistadores. The tall, thin spirit is said to be blessed with natural beauty and long flowing black hair. She wears a white gown and roams the rivers and creeks, wailing into the night and searching for children to drag, screaming to a watery grave.

No one really knows when the legend of La Llorona began or from where it originated. Though the tales vary from source to source, the common thread is that she is the spirit of a doomed mother who drowned her children and spends eternity searching for them in rivers and lakes.

La Llorona, christened “Maria,” was born to a peasant family in a humble village. Her startling beauty captured the attention of both the rich and the poor men of the area. She was said to have spent her days in her humble peasant surroundings, but she would don her best white gown in the evenings and thrill the men who admired her in the local fandangos.

The young men anxiously waited for her arrival, and she reveled in the attention that she received. However, La Llorona had two small sons who made it difficult for her to spend her evenings out and often left them alone while she cavorted with the gentlemen during the evenings. One day the two small boys were found drowned in the river. Some say they drowned through her neglect, but others say that they may have died by her own hand.

Another legend says that La Llorona was a caring woman full of life and love who married a wealthy man who lavished her with gifts and attention. However, after she bore him two sons, he began to change, returning to a life of womanizing and alcohol, often leaving her for months at a time. He seemingly no longer cared for the beautiful Maria, even talking about leaving her to marry a woman of his own wealthy class. When he did return home, it was only to visit his children and the devastated Maria began to feel resentment toward the boys.

One evening, as Maria was strolling with her two children on a shady pathway near the river, her husband came by in a carriage with an elegant lady beside him. He stopped and spoke to his children but ignored Maria, and then drove the carriage down the road without looking back.

After seeing this, Maria went into a terrible rage, and turning against her children, she seized them and threw them into the river. As they disappeared downstream, she realized what she had done and ran down the bank to save them, but it was too late. Maria broke down into inconsolable grief, running down the streets screaming and wailing.

The beautiful La Llorona mourned them day and night. During this time, she would not eat and walked along the river in her white gown searching for her boys — hoping they would come back to her. She cried endlessly as she roamed the riverbanks and her gown became soiled and torn. When she refused to eat, she grew thinner and appeared taller until she looked like a walking skeleton. Still a young woman, she finally died on the banks of the river.

Not long after her death, her restless spirit began to appear, walking the banks of the Santa Fe River when darkness fell. Her weeping and wailing became a curse of the night, and people began to be afraid to go out after dark. She was said to have been seen drifting between the trees along the shoreline or floating on the current with her long white gown spread out upon the waters. On many a dark night, people would see her walking along the riverbank and crying for her children. And so, they no longer spoke of her as Maria, but rather, La Llorona, the weeping woman. Children are warned not to go out in the dark, for La Llorona might snatch them, throwing them to their deaths in the flowing waters.

Though the legends vary, the apparition is said to act without hesitation or mercy. The tales of her cruelty depends on the version of the legend you hear. Some say that she kills indiscriminately, taking men, women, and children — whoever is foolish enough to get close enough to her. Others say she is very barbaric and kills only children, dragging them screaming to a watery grave.

The Hispanic people believe that the Weeping Woman will always be with them, following the many rivers looking for her children, and for this reason, many of them fear the dark and pass the legend from generation to generation.