Francisco R. Zayas Seijo, also known as Ico (born 4 October 1951), is a former member of the

Puerto Rico House of Representatives The House of Representatives of Puerto Rico () is the lower house of the Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico, the bicameral territorial legislature of Puerto Rico. The House, together with the Senate, control the legislative branch of the go ...

and

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

of the city of

Ponce, Puerto Rico Ponce ( , , ) is a city and a Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality on the southern coast of Puerto Rico. The most populated city outside the San Juan, Puerto Rico, San Juan metropolitan area, Ponce was founded on August 12, 1692Some publ ...

. During his 4-year mayoral term, Zayas Seijo established the Mariana Suárez de Longo Library and Historical Archive of Ponce, the Museo del Autonomismo Puertorriqueño, the Centro Ponceño de Autismo (English: Ponce Center for Autism), the ''Agüeybaná II "El Bravo"'' Plaza, and also expanded the Julio Enrique Monagas Family Park. He initiated to the concept of the

Centro de Convenciones de Ponce Centro may refer to: Places Brazil *Centro, Santa Maria, a neighborhood in Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil * Centro, Porto Alegre, a neighborhood of Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil * Centro (Duque de Caxias), a neighborhood of Du ...

and the Ponce Aquarium; however, neither one of these two saw fruition before he completed his term in January 2009. He was, however, instrumental in the development of the Parque Lineal Veredas del Labrador, as well as the Río Portugués Dam and the expansion of the

Ponce Municipal Police Ponce may refer to: *Ponce (surname) *Ponce (streamer) (born 1991), French streamer *Ponce, Puerto Rico, a city in Puerto Rico ** Ponce High School ** Ponce massacre, 1937 * USS ''Ponce'', several ships of the US Navy *Manuel Ponce, a Mexican comp ...

. During his administration, the Municipal Police acquired, installed, and put into operation 106 street cameras and a video command center. These were complemented by 130 additional cameras installed by the

Puerto Rico Police The Puerto Rico Police (PPR; , ), officially the Puerto Rico Police Bureau (, ), is a law enforcement agency with jurisdiction over the entire Puerto Rico, Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. It is a division of the Puerto Rico Department of Public Safe ...

Early life

Zayas Seijo was born on 4 October 1951, in

Santurce, Puerto Rico Santurce (, meaning Saint George from Basque language, Basque ''Santurtzi'') is the largest and most populated Barrios of San Juan, Puerto Rico, barrio of the Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality of San Juan, Puerto Rico, San Juan, the cap ...

to Héctor Zayas Chardón and Dr. Esther Seijo Tizol. Both his parents were actively involved with former

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

Luis Muñoz Marín José Luis Alberto Muñoz Marín (February 18, 1898April 30, 1980) was a Puerto Rican journalist, politician, statesman and was the first elected governor of Puerto Rico, regarded as the "Architect of the Puerto Rico Commonwealth." In 1948 he ...

. He is a first cousin to journalist Jorge Seijo. When he was 16 years old, Zayas Seijo enrolled at the College of Agriculture and Mechanical Arts of Mayagüez where he obtained a bachelor's degree in

agronomy Agronomy is the science and technology of producing and using plants by agriculture for food, fuel, fiber, chemicals, recreation, or land conservation. Agronomy has come to include research of plant genetics, plant physiology, meteorology, and ...

. Afterwards, he was accepted at the Veterinary School of the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

in 1975 where he completed his doctoral degree in

veterinary medicine Veterinary medicine is the branch of medicine that deals with the prevention, management, medical diagnosis, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, disorder, and injury in non-human animals. The scope of veterinary medicine is wide, covering all a ...

. Upon marrying Nancy Colón in 1973, they moved to Ponce.

Career and work

In 1975 he established a successful veterinary clinic in Ponce. He also worked at several universities and gathered much recognition for his work. In 1980, he was selected as ''Distinguished Youth'' by the ''Who's Who in Young American People''.

Political career

Zayas Seijo got involved in politics in 1984 when Raúl Ramírez, mayoral candidate, recruited him to be part of his team. Even though they were defeated, Zayas established himself as the minority

spokesman A spokesperson, spokesman, or spokeswoman is someone engaged or elected to speak on behalf of others. Duties and function In the present media-sensitive world, many organizations are increasingly likely to employ professionals who have receiv ...

. He remained in that position until 1991. That year, his uncle, Humberto Zayas Chardón, retired from politics and vacated the seat he occupied in the Puerto Rico House of Representatives. Zayas ran for the post and was elected. He represented the 25th Representative District ( Ponce and

Jayuya Jayuya () is a town and municipality of Puerto Rico located in the mountainous center region of the island, north of Ponce; east of Utuado; and west of Ciales. Jayuya is spread over 10 barrios and Jayuya Pueblo (the downtown and administra ...

) for 13 years. He presided the House's ''Comisión de Hacienda'' (English: Treasury Commission) during the administration of governor

Sila Calderón Sila may refer to : Places * Sila Region, Chad ** Sila Department, Chad, part of Sila Region * La Sila, a mountainous area of Calabria, Italy ** Sila National Park * Sila, Numidia, a former ancient city and bishopric, now Bordj-El-Ksar in Alge ...

. In 2000 he presided over an important commission that investigated government financial procedures a few months before the general election. The work he did garnered him all sort of criticism from his political opposition. In 2004, Zayas Seijo was elected unanimously as the official candidate for the mayoral seat in Ponce, after the death of long-time mayor

Rafael Cordero Santiago Rafael Cordero Santiago (24 October 1942 – 17 January 2004), better known as "Churumba", was the Mayor of Ponce, Puerto Rico, Ponce, Puerto Rico, from 1989 to 2004. Many considered him as a synonym of Ponce, being baptized as "El León Mayor ...

. On 2 November 2004, he was elected mayor of Ponce by an ample margin. He was sworn into office on 9 January 2005. On 4 November 2008, Zayas Seijo lost the election to the candidate of the New Progressive Party, María "Mayita" Meléndez Altieri and was succeeded on 2 January 2009.

Legacy

Zayas Seijo is best remembered for the establishment of the Biblioteca y Archivo Histórico de Ponce Mariana Suárez de Longo (Mariana Suárez de Longo Library and Historical Archive of Ponce) at a cost of $10.5 million USD. He also established the Museum of Puerto Rican Autonomism at

Panteón Nacional Román Baldorioty de Castro The Panteón Nacional Román Baldorioty de Castro (English: Román Baldorioty de Castro National Pantheon) is a tract of land in Segundo (Ponce), Barrio Segundo of the city of Ponce, Puerto Rico, originally designed as the city's cemetery, but ...

in 2006. He started construction of the

and gave birth to the concept of the Ponce Aquarium. However, neither one was completed by the time Zayas' administration came to an end in January 2009. In October 2008, Zayas Seijo inaugurated '' Plaza Agüeybaná II "El Bravo"'' at the intersection of

PR-123 Puerto Rico Highway 123 (PR-123) is a secondary highway that connects the city of Arecibo to the city of Ponce. It runs through the towns of Utuado and Adjuntas, before reaching Ponce. A parallel road is being built, PR-10, that is expected to ...

and

PR-2 Puerto Rico Highway 2 (PR-2) is a road in Puerto Rico that connects the cities of San Juan and Ponce. At 156 miles (230 km) long, it is Puerto Rico's longest singled-signed highway. The road runs counter-clockwise from San Juan to Ponce. ...

in the Caracoles sector of barrio Playa, Ponce. A plaque at the site marks the inauguration of the park dedicated to the memory of the leader of the last

Taíno The Taíno are the Indigenous peoples of the Caribbean, Indigenous peoples of the Greater Antilles and surrounding islands. At the time of European contact in the late 15th century, they were the principal inhabitants of most of what is now The ...

battle against the Spanish invaders in 1511. Zayas Seijo is also credited with expanding the Julio Enrique Monagas Family Park in October 2008, and with the establishment of the Centro Ponceño de Autismo during his tenure. 10 May 2011. El Sur a la Vista. Retrieved 10 May 2011.

Personal life

Zayas has been married to Nancy Colón since 1973. They have four children together.

References

External links

Ponce website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Zayas Seijo, Francisco 1951 births Living people 21st-century mayors of places in Puerto Rico People from Santurce, Puerto Rico Politicians from San Juan, Puerto Rico Popular Democratic Party members of the House of Representatives of Puerto Rico Mayors of Ponce, Puerto Rico University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine alumni 20th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico 21st-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico