Monday Feb 27, 2023

Veteran Actor Darín Is Argentina’s Lucky Charm at the Oscars

February 27, 2023

The San Juan Daily Star, the only paper with News Service in English in Puerto Rico, publishes 7 days a week, with a Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday edition, along with a Weekend Edition to cover Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Indigenous ceremonial centers receive million-dollar injection from FEMA

By THE STAR STAFF

The facilities that house the Tibes Indigenous Ceremonial Center in Ponce, the Caguana Ceremonial Indigenous Center in Utuado and the Cueva del Indio Ceremonial Park in Las Piedras, three areas of great archaeological and historical value in Puerto Rico, received an allegation of nearly $1.6 million from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to repair damage caused by Hurricane Maria.

“These federal funds will serve to restore the grounds of these three indigenous parks, which have an incalculable educational and cultural value to see first-hand a part of our history and our Taíno ancestry,” Federal Disaster Recovery Coordinator José G. Baquero said in a written statement Sunday. “These sites are also a way to promote tourism, as they receive thousands of visitors each year, both local and international, as well as students from our schools.”

At the iconic Tibes Indigenous Ceremonial Center, located on 31 acres, repairs include the exterior area of the museum, the building that houses exhibits and the parking lot, among others. Also found at the center are administrative offices, representations of circular bohíos or huts, bateyes (sacred spaces in Taíno culture) and plazas.

The Tibes center, open to the public since 1982, is considered by many archaeologists to be the oldest indigenous West Indian ceremonial complex and astronomical observatory in the Caribbean, as well as the largest indigenous cemetery in Puerto Rico. The center, which received about 20,000 visitors

last year, will be repaired with an obligation of nearly $100,000. Some of the works to be completed there are the removal and relocation of 19 stones in several bateyes and the replacement of some bohíos, among other repairs. According to the center’s administrator, Irma Zayas Alvarado, the architectural and engineering studies have been completed and the project will now move to the design phase. On the current state of the center’s indigenous pieces, she said the entire collection is safeguarded in the laboratory for future studies. Zayas Alvarado noted that for 27 years, specialists in archeology and anthropology have conducted research and several studies at the center, like those by Dr. Luis Antonio Curet, an archeologist and curator at the Smithsonian Institution, with a team of professionals.

Curet said Tibes is a place with a history of great cultural value, where changes in ideology over hundreds of years are reflected in its pottery and petroglyphs. He said the preservation of the ancient ceremonial space “is very important to understand the ancestral history of Puerto Rico.”

Likewise, over $1.4 million was obligated to the Institute of Puerto Rican Culture for the Caguana Ceremonial Indigenous Center in Utuado, to replace lighting and repair the representation of bohíos and other buildings located in the site, such as the museum, an auditorium and the administrative offices. The repairs include fixing roofs, the electrical system, ceiling fans, two septic tanks, gutters and drainage system, and benches.

It is said that the Caguana center, considered one of the most important pre-Columbian archeological sites in the Caribbean, was built by the Taínos more than 800 years ago. It has cobblestone walkways that border some 10 bateyes and stone monoliths, many of which are decorated with petroglyphs. Because of its great archeological value, the National Park Service included the site in the National Register of Historic Places in 1992 and named it a national historic landmark in 1993. It is also included in the UNESCO Astronomy World Heritage List.

Meanwhile, another obligation of over $72,000 will help repair the recreational facilities at the Cueva del Indio Ceremonial Park in Las Piedras, where repairs include replacing doors, waterproofing the roof and the wooden framework of the gazebos. The park, which has three bateyes and a group of stones that form a cave with petroglyphs, was discovered in 1982 and has been on the National Register of Historic Places since 2003.

Federal Disaster Recovery Coordinator José G. Baquero noted that Puerto Rico’s indigenous parks, besides being an important part of the island’s cultural history, “are also a way to promote tourism, as they receive thousands of visitors each year, both local and international, as well as students from our schools.”

Sporting 560 new seats, PDP assembles governing board, readies for May 7 presidential vote

By THE STAR STAFF

The Popular Democratic Party (PDP) reorganized itself Sunday, selecting members of its governing board and calling for unity and respect for the commonwealth status during an assembly in Trujillo Alto in which Villalba Mayor Luis Javier Hernández Ortiz appeared to be a favorite to lead the party.

Gerardo Cruz Maldonado, a former PDP electoral commissioner, said the 2018 general assembly comprised 4,166 delegates, but for this one 560 new seats were added in under 30 days. Despite the reduction in votes in the 2020 election, some 5,000 delegates participated in Sunday’s assembly, he said.

The selection of the PDP presidency is slated for May 7, but on Sunday the party sorted the ballot positions.

Morovis Mayor Carmen Maldonado González took the first spot, Rep. Jesús Manuel Ortiz González second and in third place it was Hernández Ortiz, who got the most cheers at the assembly in Rubén Zayas Montañez Coliseum. Ballots for the governing board election closed at 1 p.m. At press time, the announcements had not been made. Senate President José Luis Dalmau Santiago, who is currently the PDP president, said seven members of the board

would be chosen from a group of 13 at-large candidates. In addition, eight members per district and five representatives were to be selected.

Meanwhile, the election of the new party president is on May 7, and the two people who will occupy the vice presidencies are Sen. Migdalia González Arroyo, who repeated as second vice president, and either Carlos “Charlie” Delgado Altieri, the current party vice president, or House Majority Leader Ángel Matos García. The presidents of the party committees for Faith-Based Communities, the LGBTTIQ+ Community, Private Sector Workers, Small and Midsize Entrepreneurs, and Environmentalists were slated to be chosen at the event.

In a speech to hundreds of PDP delegates, Dalmau Santiago asked what role the PDP will assume in the face of the new challenges following the reorganization. and “the second question is: what will be the causes that we will have to defend as an institution?”

From the outset, he pointed out that the PDP’s role transcends the institution itself.

“The PDP has to be the voice and conscience of the people of Puerto Rico,” Dalmau Santiago said. “We are the ones

who transformed the reality of the people in the past and we will do so in the future. The PDP is the instrument of service to our needy people and the engine of social and economic development. Our main role is to ensure the future of the country. And for this reason, it is up to us to offer the country a good government. We are the ones who have to fight corruption and restore the country’s confidence in its government.”

“We are the ones who protect the environment, who guide fiscal recovery, protect the University of Puerto Rico, and save the pensions of all retirees,” the outgoing party president continued. “We are the ones who increased the minimum wage, offered credit to work and created new jobs. And, as part of that role of being a reflection of our people; we are the custodians of our identity as a people, our culture, our Olympic autonomy and our flag. In addition to this role – of being the voice and conscience of this people – we have to direct our struggles, meet new challenges and offer new solutions.”

Dalmau Santiago also called for the party faithful to lobby Congress in favor of the commonwealth status, which was eliminated from congressional legislation for a new status plebiscite.

“Faced with this affront, we raise our voices and create an indestructible wall to defeat the [pro-statehood New Progressive Party] and its allies, making any bill that seeks to take away our right to vote ineffective,” he said. “The message of the PDP people before the Congress was clear and forceful: The commonwealth is respected and for this reason, the commonwealth stays. The commonwealth stays; the commonwealth stays; the commonwealth stays.”

Méndez Nuñez seeks $1 million for Northeast Ecological Reserve

By THE STAR STAFF

In order to protect the Northeast Ecological Corridor Nature Reserve, the New Progressive Party minority leader in the island House of Representatives, Carlos “Johnny” Méndez Nuñez, has asked the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to allocate $1 million for the Natural Heritage Program.

“Our mission is the protection of the Northeast Ecological Corridor,” Méndez Nuñez said. “Joint Resolution 922008 orders the Department of Natural and Environmental Resources (DNER) to expropriate a plot (number 162) in the Fortuna I community of Barrio Mameyes in Luquillo in order to add it to the nature reserve to protect and conserve it for the enjoyment of this and future generations.”

In a letter sent last Wednesday to OMB Director Juan Carlos Blanco, the District 36 (Río Grande, Luquillo, Fajardo, Ceiba, Vieques and Culebra) lawmaker stressed that DNER Secretary Anaís Rodríguez Vega cannot proceed with the expropriation of plot 162 because she needs $1 million for its acquisition and does not have those resources.

“The Secretary of the DNER told us that she estimates

that the Natural Heritage Program requires an injection of $1 million in order to proceed with the process of acquiring that property, which will provide depth and greater security to the Natural Reserve of the Ecological Corridor,” Méndez Nuñez said. “Given this, I am asking the director of OGP to include that amount in the government’s budget to achieve the objective of Joint Resolution 92-2008.”

“I have always defended the integrity of the Ecological Corridor and will continue to do so, so it is vital to take measures that guarantee its conservation, while allowing our people, as well as visitors from other parts of the world, to enjoy its unparalleled beauties and unique ecological content,” the legislator added.

The Northeast Ecological Corridor has about 3,000 acres of land. The nature reserve is home to multiple natural ecosystems, such as coastal forests, mangroves, wetlands, coral reefs and seagrass meadows. It also has a bioluminescent lagoon and a considerable coastline, including the beaches of San Miguel, La Selva, Las Paulinas, El Convento and La Colorá.

In addition, it is a habitat for some 860 species of flora and fauna, including around 50 unique endemic, vulnerable and/or endangered species.

The Northeast Ecological Corridor has some 3,000 acres of land, and the nature reserve is home to multiple ecosystems, such as coastal mangrove forests, wetlands, coral reefs and seagrass meadows.

Villalba Mayor Luis Javier Hernández Ortiz

AAFAF chief requests data confirming insolvency from PREPA retirement system

By THE STAR STAFF

Fiscal Agency and Financial Advisory Authority (AAFAF by its Spanish initials) Executive Director Omar Marrero

Díaz says he has asked the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority’s (PREPA) Retirement System (SREAEE) for information to confirm that it will become completely insolvent and unable to pay monthly pensions in three months.

“Whatever information we get out of the situation in the SREAEE, the administration of Governor Pedro Pierluisi has always had the public policy to protect vulnerable populations,” Marrero said in a statement over the weekend.

AAFAF is the island government’s fiscal entity.

Marrero noted that the administration fought efforts by the Financial Oversight and Management Board to cut pensions during the commonwealth restructuring. PREPA’s amended debt adjustment plan, whose contents will be discussed on Tuesday, proposes to convert the power utility’s pension system from a defined contribution to a defined benefit plan. It also would raise the retirement age and eliminate cost of living adjustments for the pension system.

José R. Rivera Rivera, chairman of the board of trust-

By THE STAR STAFF

LUMA Energy, the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority’s (PREPA) transmission and distribution system operator, recorded $263.1 million in total operating expenditures for the first half of fiscal year (FY) 2023, which began last July, according to a recent filing with the Puerto Rico Energy Bureau (PREB).

The figure was 5% lower than the $277 million budget forecast for the six-month period that ended Dec. 31, 2022, according to last Tuesday’s filing. The utility’s FY 2023 budget anticipates total operating expenditures of $547.8 million at the close of the fiscal year on June 30.

LUMA took over PREPA’s transmission and distribution system in 2021.

The firm reported a non-federally funded capex of $26.3 million, 39.7% less than the $43.6 million budgeted figure for the June-December 2022 period. Meanwhile, federally funded capex totaled $93.5 million in the first half of 2023, or 67.5% lower than the $287.5 million budgeted figure for the period, it showed.

As for the second quarter of 2023, operating expenses amounted to $137.8 million, 0.9% higher than the $136.6 million planned for the three-month period ended Dec. 31, 2022. Between October and December 2022, non-federally funded capex amounted to $16.7 million and federally funded capex totaled $55.8 million, respectively, 17.7% and 61.3% less than the budgeted second quarter 2023 figures of $20.3 million and $144 million, the report showed.

ees for the SREAEE, said in a statement last week that the actuarial deficit as of June 2021 was over $3 billion. While in 2022 PREPA was supposed to contribute 166.38% of the total payroll, or $23.8 million per month, it has not made payments to the pension system.

As of December 2022, PREPA owed the SREAEE $895 million in delinquent pension payments. Agencies that took former PREPA employees following the LUMA Energy takeover of the PREPA transmission and distribution system owed the system over $8 million.

“The privatization of the Authority has resulted in the displacement of hundreds of PREPA workers and in a wave of retirements, the withdrawal of contributions from members who resigned, and the subsequent reduction of SREAEE revenues, all of which have taken the system to the verge of imminent insolvency,” Rivera said.

SREAEE advisers Asset Consulting Group LLC informed the board of trustees that the system’s economic resources to pay monthly pensions will be depleted in May, including money from active members who are contributing to the pension system, he said.

Rivera noted that SREAEE officials have informed the oversight board of the situation through a certificate of inability to pay retirement benefits and requested a meeting to discuss solutions. The oversight board has yet to reply, he said.

for first half of

LUMA Energy’s $263.1 million in total operating expenditures for the first half of fiscal year 2023, which began last July and ended Dec. 31, was 5% lower than the $277 million budget forecast for the six-month period.

Fiscal Agency and Financial Advisory Authority Executive Director Omar Marrero Díaz

Rights agreement signed for Roberto Clemente biopic

By THE STAR STAFF

Phoenix Media & Entertainment, the media division of the Puerto Rican company The Phoenix Fund, has signed an agreement with the family of Roberto Clemente Walker for the production of a biographical drama series, or “biopic,” about the life of the iconic Puerto Rican baseball player.

As part of the agreement, the image rights and the story of the life of Roberto Clemente Walker are to be transferred to the company between the parties to produce a “biopic” series of six to eight episodes of one hour each. Phoenix Media & Entertainment will represent those rights and begin development and commercialization of the project.

Present at an event announcing the project late last week were one of the Puerto Rican star’s sons, Luis Roberto Clemente, representing the Clemente family, The Phoenix Fund CEO Francisco J. Rivera Fernández, the adviser to the fund’s board of directors, Alejandro Asmar, and main adviser Carlos Valle. Also on hand were Phoenix Media & Entertainment fund official Jorge Rojas Buscaglia and the project’s

executive producer, Ángel Cassani.

“On behalf of the Clemente family, we are very excited about this partnership with The Phoenix Fund, for what it represents and because it is aligned with what the family has always wanted to achieve, to keep alive the image of our father, Roberto Clemente,” Luis Roberto Clemente said Friday in a written statement. “We want his story to inspire new

$1.5 million federal injection for Baldorioty expressway design review

By THE STAR STAFF

Resident Commissioner Jenniffer González Colón announced on Sunday the allocation of $1.5 million in federal funds to develop improvement projects on the Baldorioty de Castro Expressway in San Juan.

The resident commissioner also announced $120 million for affordable housing and community development programs for low-income families.

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) approved the allocation of $1.5 million to Puerto Rico’s Highways and Transportation Authority for the Reconnecting Santurce project. Funding comes from the Reconnecting Communities Pilot Program. The program was created by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law supported by González Colón, who is a member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. According to the DOT, the funds are to develop and implement a planning process to analyze how highway PR-26 (Expreso Baldorioty de Castro) acts as a physical barrier to its adjacent communities.

generations because of how he led his life and career, and how he represented all Puerto Ricans and Latin Americans at a time when opportunities were scarce, and when our father used sports as the means to carry his message. We understand that with this collaboration we will have an active role in shaping his story as it happened. As we always say, fans are fanatics for how little they know. Through

this effort, we will be able to make his story known without having to edit and leave out many of the crucial anecdotes of his life. This is due to the ‘biopic’ format, which will allow the story to be transmitted in various chapters and seasons, if it merits it. The Phoenix Fund, for what it represents, we believe that it is a great ally to continue enhancing the value of Puerto Ricans and all they have to offer.”

Several documentaries and short films have been made on Roberto Clemente, but no project of this magnitude has ever been produced. It should be noted that although past film projects about Clemente’s life have been chosen by Disney Pictures, Sony Entertainment and Legendary Pictures, none were ever realized. Phoenix Media & Entertainment, as a Puerto Rican entity for the economic development and international projection of Puerto Rico, understands that the time has come to make Roberto Clemente’s life, talent and legacy of service known to the world and new generations, the younger Clemente said. He noted that three streaming platforms, Disney, Amazon Prime and Netflix, have already shown interest in the project.

Head of Federal Affairs Administration stepping down

By THE STAR STAFF

Gov. Pedro Pierluisi Urrutia announced late last week that the current executive director of the Puerto Rico Federal Affairs Administration (PRFAA) in Washington, D.C., Carmen Feliciano, will step down from the position on Tuesday.

“I know Carmen Feliciano’s work and commitment closely, because not only did she lead PRFAA during these two years, but for eight years she was the director of my office when I was resident commissioner. Her knowledge and experience in the federal capital was key to the accomplishments we have made in Congress, the White House and federal agencies,” the governor said in a written statement. “Together with the PRFAA team, led by Ms. Feliciano, we ensured that Puerto Rico was successfully included in aid programs such as the extension to all families on our island of the tax credit for dependent minors [Child Tax Credit]. We also achieved a greater allocation in Medicaid funds, as well as funds for reconstruction and flexibility in processes to expedite the use of federal funds, among other issues.”

Feliciano has accepted a position with UnidosUS, formerly the National Council of La Raza, the United States’s largest Latino

nonprofit advocacy organization, according to its Wikipedia page. UnidosUS advocates in favor of progressive public policy changes including immigration reform, a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants, and reduced deportations.

“Now, we will have in the UnidosUS organization a stronger voice that will fight for the civil rights of all Hispanics, including American citizens living on the island and in the 50 states,” Pierluisi said. “Although I will miss her very much for her key role in my administration, I wish her the greatest success and I know that in her new role she will continue to contribute to Puerto Rico.”

Feliciano noted that “serving the people of Puerto Rico from Washington, D.C. has been the honor of my life.”

“For the past two decades, I have put my heart-soul-mind-spirit and experience at the service of our people,” she said. “I am very proud of the achievements and grateful for the lessons learned along the way. I thank Governor Pierluisi for trusting me to lead PRFAA and represent him in the White House, Congress, and the executive branch. Also, I thank the PRFAA team, a great group of committed public servants who will continue to represent our island at the federal level with the same success and professionalism with which they have done so far.”

Three streaming platforms, Disney, Amazon Prime and Netflix, have reportedly shown interest in a biopic series about Puerto Rican baseball icon Roberto Clemente.

Outgoing Puerto Rico Federal Affairs Administration Executive Director Carmen Feliciano

condo

By ANNA KODÉ

In 1992, Howard Fellman bought a condo in Boca Raton, Florida, for $65,000. And after he met his wife, Melissa Sobel, just a few years later, the couple made the condo their first home together. They experienced many of life’s important moments there, sharing their first kiss in the condo complex parking lot.

The condo fit their lifestyle well: It was just across the street from Fellman’s family business (a computer training school), they could walk to their favorite bagel spot, and they’d marvel at the monarch butterflies that were attracted to the garden. In 2004, right before they had children, they moved to a house 4 miles away so their twins could grow up with a backyard. But they always planned to return to the condo, so they held on to it, renting it to a trusted tenant and looking forward to retirement there.

Now that retirement plan is at risk. Their condo is one of 176 units in the sprawling development known as Crystal Palms. An outside investor bought 175.

This puts the Fellmans in a situation that many condo owners are facing: a forced sale.

“After that, they basically said, ‘You’re out,’” Melissa Fellman, 50, said. “It’s one thing if your property’s being taken for public good. But this is strictly for a private investor’s profit. And it’s like, why does their investment have more value and power than us?”

Throughout the country, the share of houses being bought by real estate investors — including large institutional ones that renovate, convert or rent them out — is on the rise. In 2021, investors accounted for nearly one-quarter of home sales, up from around 15% for each previous year going back to 2012, according to a Stateline analysis.

In Florida, investors bought nearly 116,000 homes in 2021, double the amount from 2020. This practice, which disproportionately affects Black and Hispanic neighborhoods, drives up housing costs, displacing people and making starter homes more inaccessible.

The Fellmans’ struggle speaks to the uncertainty and risks that come with condo ownership. For many Americans, the prospect of owning a home today seems especially bleak. In 2022, mortgage rates hit a two-decade high, the median home price topped $400,000 for the first time, and the percentage of first-time homebuyers reached its lowest since 1981. Condos are often seen as the affordable, lowmaintenance way to own a home in this tight

market, but as the Fellmans’ story shows, there are limited protections for condo owners.

“Condos are the bottom rung on the housing ownership ladder, and they’re very important for that reason,” said Evan McKenzie, a professor of political science at the University of Illinois at Chicago who studies condominium associations. “This could be the affordable housing that a lot of people need, but they don’t have the institutional support to succeed.”

‘A private form of eminent domain’

Howard Fellman said the investor, Pennsylvania-based Scully Co., never gave him a formal offer before the forced termination plan was filed.

“On one occasion, at the completion of an annual board meeting, I was asked publicly over speakerphone if we would consider selling,” Fellman said. “I invited them to call me privately to discuss, but no one ever did.”

Despite the inkling that the investor might want him out, Fellman, 57, was confident that things would be fine, since he legally owned the property and the condo declaration required that 100% of owners would need to be on board for the condominium to be terminated.

But the Scully Co. didn’t stop there. Be-

cause it owned all the other units, it was able to take over majority control of the condo board, and it voted to lower the threshold of owners required to terminate to 80%. In February 2021, Scully voted to terminate the condominium, which meant the Fellmans would be legally obligated to sell their unit to the company.

Hoping to save their retirement plan and keep their condo, the Fellmans sued the investor in September 2021. But a county judge sided with the Scully Co. in April 2022, writing that “anyone purchasing a condominium unit goes into the relationship with their ‘eyes wide open’ that their rights under the Declaration, including the percentage vote required for termination, could be altered by an amendment.”

The Fellmans are appealing the decision. Legal bills are adding up, but the couple doesn’t want to give up.

“You can’t take it. It’s not yours, it’s ours,” Fellman said. “And we don’t want to sell it; we have plans for it ourselves. We think that part of ownership is not only the right to buy it and use it and enjoy it, but also not to sell it if you don’t want to.”

Scully acquired the other 175 units in 1997 and has since rented them out to tenants. For over two decades, Fellman and the company

coexisted peacefully.

“We’ve honored the condominium structure for more than 25 years. As a result, we have double accounting work and hold regular condominium meetings,” a representative for the Scully Co. said in an email. “We have, from time to time, inquired about purchasing Mr. Fellman’s unit because of the additional expenses it causes. We approached the situation with offers that would be mutually beneficial to both parties.”

The Scully Co. manages dozens of developments in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts and Florida. A onebedroom, one-bathroom unit in Crystal Palms goes for $1,735 per month, the company said. Three-bedroom units rent for $2,670 to $3,340.

Typically, real estate companies that acquire condos in this manner knock them down and convert the property into smaller, higher-density apartments, McKenzie said. This process is known as “deconversion,” he noted, calling it “a private form of eminent domain.”

“Many states have added provisions that the investor wouldn’t have to get every single unit to dissolve the association, to avoid the situation where there’s one holdout who could stop it, like when a person refuses to sell their house and there’s skyscrapers all around them,” McKenzie said. “If you got to a certain percentage of the units that were owned by one investor, then the state could make the other people sell.”

The intention of those provisions, McKenzie added, is to prevent a scenario where a single holdout owner is able to block a supermajority of owners from selling the building, especially in the case of dilapidation.

“Without this provision, it would require unanimity to sell the building, which is very hard to get,” McKenzie said. “If a condo building falls into serious disrepair, should one owner be able to force all the others to stay locked into the project, even if they can’t afford to fix it, get it up to code, etc.?”

McKenzie, who tracks deconversion in a database, said he’s observed hundreds of condos being deconverted to apartments in Illinois over the past decade. Legal requirements in Illinois for deconversion include a threshold of 75% ownership for developments with four or more units.

The current version of Florida’s Condominium Act requires approval from 80% of the total voting interests of the condo, with less

Continues on page 8

Their retirement plan did not include being forced to sell their

Howard Fellman with his wife, Melissa Sobel, in Boca Raton, Fla., on Jan. 31, 2023. An investor-owner took over a condo board, terminated a condo declaration and is now requiring a couple to sell their condo in what one expert called “a private form of eminent domain.”

In the Los Angeles area, snow up high, and flooding down below

effects of the storm at lower elevations could be over, but travel on the roads remained dangerous.

Portions of Interstate 5 winding through Los Angeles County — including the Grapevine, a 40-mile stretch that goes up to Kern County — were closed Saturday because of flooding, snow and mudslides. And a 20-mile segment of State Route 14 in Acton, an unincorporated area in northern Los Angeles County, was closed for much of Saturday, snarling southbound traffic for miles. It reopened by midafternoon.

Tracey Lee, 48, a resident of the coastal community of Palos Verdes Estates near Los Angeles, who had spent three months planning opening day celebrations for the local Little League.

Along with the disappointment, Lee said her neighborhood also experienced power outages during the week and downed trees.

Snow blankets the San Gabriel Mountains in Angeles National Forest, Los Angeles County on Friday, Feb. 25, 2023. As rare blizzard conditions continued to present hazards in the mountains of Southern California on Saturday, residents at lower elevations braced for fallout from a more familiar threat: of the winter storm that has pelted the state this week: flooding.

By DOUGLAS MORINO, VIK JOLLY and NEELAM BOHRA

As steady snowfall continued to present hazards in the mountains of Southern California on Saturday, residents at lower elevations dealt with the fallout from a more familiar threat: flooding.

Intense rains and powerful winds that pounded Los Angeles and surrounding counties on Friday night and early Saturday produced significant flooding in urban areas, downed trees and threatened to cause mudslides.

Multiple water rescues were conducted

From page 7

than 5% opposition, for a condo termination to proceed.

While the state law was changing over the years, the rules for termination in Crystal Palms’ condo declaration, a legal document filed with the county, remained the same — requiring 100% owner approval. That is, until the Scully Co. voted it down to 80% in 2021, after taking over majority control of the condo board.

According to Florida’s Department of Business and Professional Regulation, over 360 condominiums containing more than 26,500

across counties because of rising waters, said Ariel Cohen, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Los Angeles. One person in Santa Barbara County, which also experienced some flooding, was injured after strong winds caused a tree to fall into a home, and in Inglewood, falling trees crushed a line of cars, taking out power lines, he said.

One person died after a vehicle drove off the road and into a flood control area, though it was not immediately clear whether the death was related to the storm, said Kerjon Lee of Los Angeles County Public Works.

Meteorologists said that the most severe

It is rare for the stretch of freeway, lying around 2,000 feet above sea level, to close because of weather conditions, said Eric Menjivar, a spokesperson for Caltrans, California’s Department of Transportation, referring to State Route 14. Working 12-hour shifts, 24 hours a day, work crews had plowed more than 200 miles of freeway lanes Saturday. The elevations where snow fell “really dropped,” Friday night, he said.

“We’re having a lot of flooding,” Menjivar said. “It’s a slow-moving storm and the rain has been really consistent.” He added later that the snow “has been really relentless.”

On Saturday afternoon in Los Angeles, the rain, which had stopped in the late morning, grew heavy again. The weather left some residents scrambling to change their weekend plans for outdoor events, typically a sure thing this time of year in Los Angeles. The season-opening match scheduled Saturday between Major League Soccer crosstown rivals LA Galaxy and LAFC in Pasadena was postponed because of forecasts that included potential lightning.

Six Flags Magic Mountain in Los Angeles County and Knott’s Berry Farm in Orange County were closed, and Little League opening day parades were canceled because of wind and rain.

“It’s been a big disappointment,” said

The storm has already set records. On Friday, Los Angeles International Airport received a record 2.04 inches of rain. Earlier in the week, Los Angeles County issued its first blizzard warning since Feb. 4, 1989.

Almost 15 inches of rain have fallen in parts of Los Angeles County over the past four days, the weather service estimated.

In the mountains around Los Angeles, winter storm warnings remained in effect. More than 4 feet of snow had accumulated by Saturday morning, and the total could double by the end of the day, with whiteout conditions on roads.

In Northern California, which felt the impact of this storm earlier in the week, residents are facing another dose of wintry weather early next week. Yosemite National Park announced that it would be closed through Wednesday because of rain, wind and snow that were forecast.

In Southern California, scattered showers with possible hail or graupel were expected to continue into the night, with most storms lightening up around Sunday morning. Sunday was expected to remain clear before another storm system moved in today, according to the weather service.

In the mountains, the weather service forecast moderate snowfall of up to 3 inches more continuing into Sunday afternoon, keeping many mountain roadways impassable, as well as strong winds that could take down more trees.

units have been approved for termination since 2012. Last year alone, the state had 23 terminations, encompassing nearly 550 units.

With these kinds of sales, Florida’s condo termination statute states that the original owners should be given “fair market value” for their units. However, the statute also makes clear that the pricing ability goes to an appraiser selected by the termination trustee, or in this case, the Scully Co.

The appraiser the company hired assessed the Fellmans’ unit at $200,000. But its Zestimate — Zillow’s home value estimate tool, which takes into account square footage, location and market trends, among other factors

— gives the Fellmans’ condo an approximate worth of $323,500.

Looming expenses

In Florida, McKenzie expects that condo terminations will rise in the coming years. Following the deadly Champlain Towers condo collapse in Surfside in 2021, the state passed legislation that mandates costly safety reforms.

Starting in 2025, older condo buildings will have to undergo regular inspections and rectify maintenance issues that have been deferred for decades in some cases.

Condo associations will also be required to reserve funds for future repairs and upkeep.

Unit owners who can’t afford to pay the ad-

ditional expenses for these maintenance mandates or don’t want to will be more inclined to sell to investors, giving developers more opportunities to buy enough units in condominiums to eventually terminate them.

“To the extent that moderately priced condominiums are the target of deconversions, this phenomenon has the potential to reduce the supply of affordable, entry-level housing for new home buyers,” McKenzie wrote in an article in the John Marshall Law Review. “Deconversions are evidence that some condominium developments are no longer financially viable because most of the owners would rather sell their units than continue to fund repairs.”

Their retirement plan did not include being forced to sell their condo

Residents in Michigan endure fourth day without power

By SAM EASTER, CLAIR FAHY and McKENNA OXENDEN

When Anna Capling, a labor and delivery nurse in Livonia, Michigan, heard from family members last Wednesday that their lights were flickering amid an impending ice storm, she stood up to charge her phone just in case the power went out.

Then she heard a loud boom, and everything went dark. Days later, she still has no power.

“It’s just frustrating,” Capling said. “It almost feels a little depressing because you just have no idea when it’s coming back on.”

Capling was one of hundreds of thousands of customers in southern Michigan still scrambling to stay warm Saturday as power failures plagued the region, days after a winter storm that led to at least one death.

Snow, freezing rain and wind gusts of 30-40 mph hammered the Upper Midwest overnight Wednesday, creating mayhem and coating trees and power lines in ice.

The resulting outages sent people to warming centers opened by local governments and the American Red Cross. Nearly 400,000 customers in Michigan remained without power as of Saturday evening, according to PowerOutage.us.

It’s a familiar circumstance, many residents said in interviews. According to the Citizens Utility Board, a nonprofit based in Illinois that assesses utilities across the country, Michigan is one of the worst states for power reliability.

A 2021 report from the organization ranked the state fifth worst, with the average customer experiencing more than nine hours of outages each year during a major event. Michigan is also among the worst for recovery after an outage, usually taking about six hours on average, the report said.

DTE Energy, one of the major power companies in Michigan, said that 75% of its customers would have power restored by Saturday and most of the remaining outages would be fixed by the end of Sunday. The company said more than 4,000 workers were on the ground to help restore power to over 235,000 customers throughout Detroit and Ann Arbor.

Another utility in the state, Consumers Energy, estimated that power would be restored in most areas by Sunday, but possibly as late as today for some locations. Nearly 115,000 of the company’s customers are without power throughout southern Michigan, including in Kalamazoo.

For some riding out the winter storm, this is the second power outage in six months. Severe thunderstorms in August led to blackouts across the state. Capling said she was without power for three days last summer. Both times, she lost all of her food.

“A lot of people can’t afford that,” she said. “Especially with the rising cost of groceries right now, it’s extremely frustrating and upsetting.”

Ben Saltsman, who lives in Bloomfield Township, and was without power for two days, said that he has a kind of routine now because of the frequency of blackouts. First, he empties his ice machine; he’s learned from experience

that it creates a huge mess. Then, he clears his refrigerator and takes the food to friends who do have power.

“We hope they don’t eat the good stuff,” he said.

Capling said she, her husband and four of her children, ranging from 1 to 18, have temporarily moved in with her father-in-law in Pinckney. Her husband can work from home, but she has had to commute to work an hour out of her way. Her children have also missed three days of school.

“My 3-1/2-year-old is just asking when we can go home,” Capling said.

The American Red Cross has also opened four warming centers across southern Michigan, providing cots, warm meals and water. At one point, Ann Arbor, 40% of which is out of power, had four warming centers open, but it was down to one by Saturday evening, city officials said.

When Kathy Space woke up early Thursday in her home in Portage and tried to flip on the lights, she immediately knew that she was in trouble.

Space, 68, had recently returned home from the hospital after experiencing serious kidney problems. She weighs just over 80 pounds, making it difficult for her to get warm.

She and her husband, Thomas, watched as the thermometer in their home dipped into the low 60s. When she started having headaches and shortness of breath, the two decided it was time to leave.

“The lower my body temperature gets, the more things start to not function,” she added.

The Spaces tried to call hotels in the area, but many were sold out and available rooms were too expensive. Her husband found the American Red Cross shelter in Kalamazoo, so the couple packed what they needed from their home and spent Friday night there.

“It was almost a blessing, just to be able to walk in here and be given a cot,” she said. “We didn’t know it was here.”

The region was expected to have low temperatures overnight Saturday, with a low near 28 degrees, and sunny skies Sunday, with temperatures in the mid-40s before strong winds and rain move into the area, according to the National Weather Service forecast.

Kathy Space, 68, of Portage, Mich., just out of the hospital and without power during a winter storm, took refuge from the cold in a Red Cross facility in Kalamazoo, Mich. on Friday, Feb. 24, 2023. After an ice storm caused power failures across the state, 400,000 customers were still without electricity on Saturday.

Bipartisan plans to move aggressively on China face political hurdles in Congress

By KEROUN DEMIRJIAN

Republicans and Democrats are pressing for major legislation to counter rising threats from China, but mere weeks into the new Congress, a bipartisan consensus is at risk of dissipating amid disputes about what steps to take and a desire among many Republicans to wield the issue as a weapon against President Joe Biden.

In the House and Senate, leading lawmakers in both parties have managed in an otherwise bitterly divided Congress to stay unified about the need to confront the dangers posed by China’s militarization, its deepening ties with Russia and its ever-expanding economic footprint.

But a rising chorus of Republican vitriol directed at Biden after a Chinese spy balloon flew over the United States this month upended that spirit — giving way to GOP accusations that the president was “weak on China” — and suggested that the path ahead for any bipartisan action is exceedingly narrow.

“When the balloon story popped, so to speak, it felt like certain people used that as an opportunity to bash President Biden,” said Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi of Illinois, the top Democrat on the select panel the House created to focus on competition with China.

“And it felt like no matter what he did, they wanted to basically call him soft on the CCP, and unable to protect America,” he said, referring to the Chinese Communist Party. “That’s where I think we can go wayward politically,”

For now, only a few, mostly narrow ventures have drawn enough bipartisan interest to have a chance at advancing amid the political tide. They include legislation to ban TikTok, the Beijingbased social media platform lawmakers have warned for years is an intelligencegathering gold mine for the Chinese government; bills that would ban Chinese purchases of farmland and other agricultural real estate, especially in areas near sensitive military sites; and measures to limit U.S. exports and outbound investments to China.

Such initiatives are limited in sco -

pe, predominantly defensive and relatively cheap — which lawmakers say are important factors in getting legislation over the hurdles posed by this split Congress. And, experts point out, none are issues that would be felt keenly by voters, or translate particularly well into political pitches on the 2024 campaign trail.

At the start of the year, the momentum behind bipartisan efforts to confront China seemed strong, with Republicans and Democrats banding together to pass the bill setting up the select panel and legislation to deny China crude oil exports from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve. A resolution condemning Beijing for sending the spy balloon over the United States passed unanimously after Republican leaders decided not to take the opportunity to rebuke Biden, as many on the right had clamored for.

But with partisan divisions beginning to intensify and a presidential election looming, it appears exceedingly unlikely that Congress will be able to muster an agreement as large or significant as the major legislation last year to subsidize microchip manufacturing and scientific research — a measure

that members of both parties described as only one of many policy changes that would be needed to counter China.

“The biggest challenge is just the overall politicized environment that we’re in right now and the lack of trust between the parties,” said Rep. Mike Gallagher, R-Wis., the chair of the new select panel, who has committed to make his committee an “incubator and accelerator” on China legislation. “Everyone has their guard up.”

Still, there are some areas of potential compromise. Many lawmakers are eyeing 2023 as the year Congress can close any peepholes China may have into the smartphones of more than 100 million American TikTok users, but they have yet to agree on how to try to do so.

Some Republicans have proposed imposing sanctions to ice TikTok out of the United States, while Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, the chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee, wants to allow the president to block the platform by lifting statutory prohibitions on banning foreign information sources.

Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, the top Republican on the Senate Intelligence Committee, and Sen. Angus King, I-

Maine, a member of the panel, want to prevent social media companies under Chinese or Russian influence from operating in the United States unless they divest from foreign ownership.

But none have yet earned a seal of approval from Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., who is chair of the committee and whose support is considered critical to any bill’s success. He was the chief architect of a bill to invest in the semiconductor industry that became a centerpiece of last year’s sweeping China competition bill, known as the CHIPS and Science Act, and he wants to tackle foreign data collection more broadly.

“We’ve had a whack-a-mole approach on foreign technology that poses a national security risk,” Warner said in an interview, bemoaning that TikTok was only the latest in a long line of foreign data firms, like Chinese telecom giant Huawei and Russian cybersecurity firm Kaspersky Lab, to be targeted by Congress. “We need an approach that is constitutionally defensible.”

There is a similar flurry of activity among Republican and Democratic lawmakers proposing bans on Chinese purchases of farmland in sensitive areas. But lawmakers remain split over how broad such a ban should be, whether agents of other adversary nations should also be subject to the prohibition, and whether Congress should update the whole process of reviewing foreign investment transactions, by including the Agriculture Department in the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, an interagency group.

“It’s actually kind of a more fraught issue than you would imagine,” Gallagher said.

Lawmakers in both parties who want to put forth legislation to limit U.S. goods and capital from reaching Chinese markets are also facing challenges. The Biden administration has already started to take unilateral action on the issue, and further steps could box lawmakers out. Even if Congress can stake out a role for itself, it is not entirely clear which committee would take the lead on a matter that straddles a number of areas of jurisdiction.

People on the steps of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Feb. 22, 2023. A bipartisan consensus about the need of new legislation to counter threats from China is at risk of dissipating amid disputes about what steps to take and a Republican desires to wield the issue as a weapon against President Joe Biden.

In search for sustainable materials, developers turn to hemp

By KEVIN WILLIAMS

Croissy-Beaubourg, they are doing so in what some describe as the future of building construction.

When the Pierre Chevet Sports Hall opened last year in the tiny municipality on the outskirts of Paris, it was the first commercial project in France constructed almost exclusively of hemp blocks. And many hemp enthusiasts predict this is just the beginning.

“It was the first time for everyone,” said Sonia Sifflet, lead architect on the project for Lemoal Lemoal, a boutique architecture firm in Paris. She said the sports center was a collaboration between the architects, material manufacturers, construction companies and town leaders. And now that they all know how to complete a hemp block project, Sifflet said, she expects to see many more in France.

“In five years, it will be normal to use hemp blocks,” she said. “There is no limit to what can be built.”

Interest in hemp as a viable substitute for construction material is growing as developers seek greener building options. Hemp can be used in block form, as it was in the building of the sports center, or poured like traditional concrete using hempcrete, a combination of lime, hemp fibers and a chemical binder. Hemp panels can also be used.

“There is a new focus on hemp in the United States; there is a tremendous opportunity,” said Petros Sideris, an assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering at Texas A&M University, which recently received a $3.74 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy to research and develop 3D printed hemp buildings. The entire supply chain is being studied, from growing hemp to using it in construction, he said.

Hemp is already used in a variety of industrial products, including in rope, textiles and biofuel. But hemp construction is hampered by high costs and a supply chain that is not fully formed. And proponents must overcome resistance to a product that is often mistakenly tied to recreational drug use.

Advocates say hemp offers many environmental benefits that builders and policymakers seek when creating a carbon-neutral product that is also resistant to fire, mold and weather.

There are other benefits, Sifflet said. For instance, the hemp blocks require no special skills to assemble, reducing the number of

workers needed on site. “They go together like Legos,” she said.

The simplicity allows for speed: A building constructed from ready-to-use hemp blocks can chop 20% to 30% off the typical production schedule, with no need for cement joints or the drying time required with traditional concrete blocks.

Hemp block construction allowed developers of the sports center in CroissyBeaubourg to squeeze out every square inch to maximize space, Sifflet said. Using hemp blocks reduced the thickness of the walls, she said, because no insulation or finishing layers were needed, which freed up approximately 100 square feet for use.

And although using hemp blocks pushed the material costs 30% to 40% higher than traditional cinder blocks, the quicker production schedule allowed the firm to wrap up faster than usual, she continued, and the environmental gains offset some of the higher material costs.

“We did not do this because it is cheaper, but so it could be relevant and innovative in building public facilities with new material like hemp,” Sifflet said.

But hemp’s reputation as counterculture cannabis has been difficult to shake, slowing its acceptance in construction circles.

Rachel Berry is experimenting with growing hemp fibers on her windswept rural Illinois farm. As the founder of the Illinois Hemp Growers Association, her focus is on the plant itself and building out a viable supply chain from there.

“There are a lot of moving parts: growers, processors, manufacturers and companies using the hemp,” she said. But the first step is getting farmers interested, and hemp’s cannabis connection can cause them to tune out. “The stigma of cannabis still looms here,” she said.

Still, its recent approval for use in single and multifamily housing in the United States should increase hemp’s profile and pave the way for skyscrapers and warehouses to be made with hemp building materials.

That future is already taking shape elsewhere.

In Cape Town, South Africa, the first such hemp skyscraper, called 84 Harrington, is already rising from the ground and, at 12 stories, will be the tallest structure in the world that incorporates largely hemp construction. Because of its load-bearing limitations, a tradi-

tional frame is still needed, but all of the walls are made from hemp blocks.

The building culminates decades of interest in hemp construction by its owner, Duncan Parker, a co-founder and the chief executive of Hemporium, a hemp producer in Cape Town. He said that the cost of building 84 Harrington was higher because hemp had to be imported from England, but that the first hemp cultivation licenses in South Africa were issued in 2022 and the first crops would be harvested next year, allowing for blocks to be made wholly in South Africa.

“We are building an industry,” he said, adding that it will take a couple of years for the supply issues to sort themselves out, but once they do, hemp will be a construction staple.

The hemp skyscraper provided a fantastic hybrid between timber frame and masonry, said Wolf Wolf, the architect of the building. His firm, Wolf and Wolf Architects, is ready to move on a housing development with 25,000 homes made of hemp blocks.

“The critical mass is there now; we have crossed that threshold,” Wolf said, adding that his firm may have handled one or two hemp projects a year in past years, but now almost all major developers are asking for proposals incorporating hemp. “With climate change, people are taking it seriously,” he said.

As hemp is catching on in other countries, builders, researchers and even hemp growers in the United States are studying its

developments.

Multistory buildings still need a support system, but hempcrete can be used for the bulk of a building, said Sideris, the Texas A&M professor, who has material specialists, architects, structural engineers, material life span experts, faculty members and grad students studying the best ways to use hemp in construction. He added that the demand for a sustainable building would rapidly propel hemp into other industrial and construction uses, which will help make the material more economical to use.

“Once we have a clear demand, the market will self-regulate, and the price of hemp blocks and hempcrete will come down,” he said.

A sports hall in Croissy-Beaubourg, outside Paris, the first commercial project in France constructed almost exclusively of hemp blocks, on Jan. 11, 2023.

Vice CEO’s departure signals fallen hopes for digital media

By BENJAMIN MULLIN

When Vice Media named Nancy Dubuc as its new CEO in 2018, her contract hinted at one of her missions. Sell the company — at the time a darling of the media industry — and she could cash in on a big stock grant, according to a copy of the contract obtained by The New York Times.

So far, that hasn’t come to pass. On Friday, Dubuc said she was leaving Vice, which investors expect is worth far less than before she took over.

Just a month ago, Dubuc announced publicly that the company was for sale. No deal has materialized yet.

Her unexpected departure — her last day was Friday — and Vice’s struggles in recent years highlight the fallen fortunes of a group of digital media companies that not long ago was talked about as the future of the industry.

Vice, which was hailed as a new-media colossus at the height of its eye-popping valuation of $5.7 billion, has been written down by some of its initial backers, including The Walt Disney Co. The company has debts piling up, and it is now expected to sell for far less than that sky-high valuation.

A person with knowledge of the sales process said that bids to acquire Vice were due soon, and that the company would likely sell within the next 60 days.

Other top digital media companies, such as BuzzFeed and Vox Media, have had similar setbacks. Investor enthusiasm has waned as those companies have struggled to live up to some of their lofty ambitions,

digital advertising shifted increasingly to tech giants like Alphabet and Meta, and legacy media companies began focusing on catching up to streaming giants like Netflix.

“The market has corrected back to the basics,” said Keith Hernandez, a former BuzzFeed executive who is a co-founder of the digital consultancy Launch Angle. “Potential and promise have gave way to profit margin and efficiency. Sexy just doesn’t sell.”

In a note to the staff Friday, Dubuc said that although Vice faced business

headwinds, the company had become less reliant on advertising during her tenure and had made strides to become more financially independent.

She also nodded to other improvements under her leadership, including creating a more inclusive workplace environment. Dubuc joined Vice shortly after investigations into the company’s culture, including by the Times, revealed incidents of sexual harassment against women who worked for the company.

“I know you are among the most resilient, creative and determined talent in the business, and your futures are bright and hopeful,” Dubuc wrote in her email. “Remember what I try to remind you, and that is to appreciate how far you’ve come.”

Reached by phone Friday, she declined to comment further.

In a statement, Vice’s board said Dubuc had joined the company during a critical period and “positioned the company for long-term success,” adding that Vice would soon announce new leadership for the company.

Vice declined to comment on its boardroom deliberations.

Dubuc replaced Shane Smith, a founder of Vice, who had struck a series of deals that drove the company’s valuation ever

higher but left it with onerous financial obligations to its increasingly anxious investors, who were antsy for an exit.

There was a major point of tension at the beginning of Dubuc’s appointment.

In March 2018, Vice’s board of directors gathered over teleconference in a special session to select its new CEO, according to a copy of the minutes of the meeting obtained by the Times and two people with knowledge of the board’s deliberations. Smith, a board member, told other directors that leaks to the press were forcing the company to speed up some of its decisionmaking.

In addition, Kevin Mayer, a board member who was then a high-ranking executive at Disney, expressed frustration that he did not know about Dubuc’s potential hiring until it had reached the final stages. Disney had an ownership stake in Vice and A&E Networks, where Dubuc was CEO.

Still, the board approved Dubuc’s hire, expressing optimism that an experienced executive with her track record could address the cultural issues at Vice and improve its financial performance before a potential sale. Mayer, who was irate, abstained from the vote.

As part of her contract, Dubuc was granted tens of thousands of shares in Vice, according to the copy of her contract. Because the company is private, selling shares can be a cumbersome process. The shares would be easier to cash in if the company sold or went public. Stock grants are a common incentive offered to employees at startups. Dubuc was also given an annual salary of more than $1.5 million and a hefty sign-on bonus, according to the copy of her contract.

In the years since Dubuc joined the company, it has struggled to reach sustained profitability. Last year, the company missed its revenue target of roughly $700 million by about $100 million. Many of Vice’s biggest backers, which included Disney and A&E Networks, are no longer expecting to turn a profit on the investments they made in the company.

In an interview last month about plans to sell some or all of the company, Dubuc said Vice would break-even in 2023.

At the time, she said the company had been facing serious problems when she arrived, noting that it was “unclear whether the company could survive.”

Nancy Dubuc, C.E.O. of Vice Media, at The New York Times DealBook conference in New York on Nov. 1, 2018. Dubuc, who attempted to improve the company’s culture and steady its finances after taking over nearly five years ago, is stepping down, she said in an email to employees on Friday.

Wall St ends sharply down, posts biggest weekly drop of 2023

Wall Street’s main indexes posted their biggest weekly drop of 2023 after sharp losses on Friday, as investors braced for the possibility of more aggressive rate hikes from the U.S. Federal Reserve as U.S. economic data pointed to resilient consumers.

For the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI), the 3% fall was its biggest weekly decline since September. It was also the Dow’s fourth straight weekly decline, its longest losing streak for nearly 10 months.

The S&P 500 (.SPX) and Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) were also down 2.7% and 3.3%, respectively.

After a strong January, stocks have retreated this month as a slew of economic data amplified worries that the U.S. central bank might have to keep rates higher for longer.

Data on Friday showed the personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge, shot up 0.6% last month after gaining just 0.2% in December. Consumer spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of U.S. economic activity, jumped 1.8% last month, exceeding forecasts for a 1.3% rise.

Jason Pride, chief investment officer of private wealth at Glenmede, said previous market cycles had witnessed similar delayed reactions by the market to rising interest rates and data releases, which helps explain volatile trading patterns as investors slowly adjust.

“This market has not yet realized the likelihood of a recession that we think is reality,” he said, noting past rate hikes normally had taken between six and 18 months before their effects had fully filtered through into the economy.

“We don’t think (a recession is) a given, but there’s a higher likelihood than the market has embedded in its thought process.”

Traders of futures tied to the Fed’s policy rate added to bets of at least three more rate hikes this year, with the peak rate seen in the range of 5.25%-5.5% by June.

Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester said the Fed should raise interest rates higher than necessary if need be to get inflation fully under control.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) fell 336.99 points, or 1.02%, to 32,816.92, the S&P 500 (.SPX) lost 42.28 points, or 1.05%, to 3,970.04 and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) dropped 195.46 points, or 1.69%, to 11,394.94.

Nine of the 11 major S&P sectors fell, with real estate (.SPLRCR), technology (.SPLRCT) and consumer discretionary (.SPLRCD) the biggest decliners. Communication services (.SPLRCL) fell 1.4% to a sixth straight loss, its worst run since a similar six-session skid in August.

Megacap stocks including Tesla Inc (TSLA.O), Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) and Nvidia Corp (NVDA.O) slid between 1.6% and 2.6% as Treasury yields rose.

The yield on two-year Treasury notes , which are highly sensitive to Fed policy, climbed to 4.826% - its highest in

MOST ASSERTIVE STOCKS

PUERTO RICO STOCKS COMMODITIES CURRENCY

nearly four months.

Boeing Co (BA.N) slid 4.8% after the Federal Aviation Administration said the planemaker temporarily halted deliveries of its 787 Dreamliner jets.

Adobe Inc (ADBE.O) sank 7.6% on reports the U.S. Justice Department would block the Photoshop maker’s $20 billion bid for cloud-based designer platform Figma.

The decline in Adobe’s stock was the largest since Sept. 15, the day the Figma agreement was announced.

Meanwhile, Range Resources Corp (RRC.N) jumped 11.9% in late trading, its biggest gain in nine months, after Bloomberg News reported that Pioneer Natural Resources (PXD.N) was in talks to buy it. Pioneer’s stock fell 4.1% on the report.

Volume on U.S. exchanges was 10.31 billion shares, compared with the 11.53 billion average for the full session over the last 20 trading days.

The S&P 500 posted 2 new 52-week highs and 11 new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 44 new highs and 162 new lows.

The San Juan Daily Star

In Ukraine war, talking about peace is a fight of its own

By MICHAEL CROWLEY

As the fight in Ukraine has dragged on for the past year, another battle has unfolded in parallel: a war of words between Russia and the West over who is more interested in ending the conflict peacefully.

For now, analysts and Western officials say, serious peace talks are extremely difficult to envision. Both sides have set conditions for negotiations that cannot be met anytime soon, and have vowed to fight until victory.

And Ukraine’s president has ruled out dealing directly with Russian President Vladimir Putin because of atrocities committed by his military forces.

At the same time, both sides also have a keen interest in showing an openness to negotiations.

But far from pointing to a peaceful end, such talk is largely strategic. It is intended to placate allies, cast the opposition as unreasonable and, especially on the Ukrainian side, tamp down a growing desire within Western countries to find an end to the costly war.

Major countries such as India, South Africa and Brazil have not taken clear sides in the conflict, which has raised energy prices and exacerbated a global food crisis.

Russia relies on economic relations with these countries, and benefits when they express impatience with the West over the war’s duration, because a swift end to the conflict now would leave Russia occupying large parts of Ukraine.

By claiming to be more willing than the West to negotiate, Russia gives the countries a pretext for not taking a stance against it. “We are ready to negotiate with everyone involved about acceptable solutions, but that is up to them,” Putin said on Russian state television in late December. “We are not the ones refusing to negotiate, they are.”

Such rhetoric “is aimed largely at India and other nonaligned powers,” said Samuel Charap, a Russia analyst with the Rand Corp.

At the same time, U.S. officials, mindful of their open-ended talk of supporting Ukraine for “as long as it takes,” contend that their goal is to strengthen Ukraine’s hand in eventual peace negotiations, without specifying when they might come.

U.S. officials call Putin’s own talk of peace absurd. They note that Russia is brutally attacking its neighbor and insists that Ukrainians accept Russian annexation of large swaths of their territory as a condition of peace. Speaking at the Munich Security Conference last weekend, Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned of a “false equivalence” between an aggressor and a victim.

“If Russia withdraws its troops today, the war is

over,” he said. “Of course, if Ukraine stops fighting today, Ukraine is over.”

Biden administration officials also fear the Russian leader might simply exploit any peace talks for tactical advantage.

And while stressing that Ukraine must make its own decisions about when and how to make peace, Blinken said that Russia’s aggression must not be rewarded with territorial gains, lest it set an example for other would-be aggressors. A United Nations resolution passed Thursday with overwhelming support endorsed the same principle, saying that “no territorial acquisition resulting from the threat or use of force shall be recognized as legal.”

Still, U.S. officials express concern that Putin might be getting the better of the argument, at least with some unaligned nations. Putin blames Western sanctions on Russia for driving up global food prices, and claims that the United States and its allies could quickly relieve the problem by settling with Moscow. (In fact, Western sanctions exempt food products, and Russia’s invasion has made shipping grain and other food from Ukraine more difficult.)

At the same time, support is growing in several countries for more active peace efforts. In a December poll by the Chicago Council on Global Affairs, Americans were almost evenly divided on the question of whether the United States should support Ukraine for “as long as it takes” or urge Ukraine to settle for peace “as soon as possible.” Forty-eight percent of respondents favored fighting on indefinitely, with 47% preferring peace efforts.

But pro-negotiation efforts in Western governments have gained little traction. After progressive Democrats re -

leased a public letter in late October calling on President Joe Biden to seek a “rapid end to the conflict,” the group’s leader quickly retracted it. Around the same time, the chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Mark A. Milley, argued in internal meetings that Ukraine was unlikely to make substantially greater battlefield gains and should move to the bargaining table. The White House quickly squelched such talk.

At the same time, U.S. officials have advised President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine — with the views of nonaligned countries in mind — that it is in his interest not to appear completely opposed to talking.

“Zelenskyy is being told to be diplomatic,” said Andrea Kendall-Taylor, a Russia expert at the Center for a New American Security who advised the Biden transition team. “But I think his instinct is to fight it out on the battlefield.”

Both Ukraine and Russia have outlined broad parameters for a peace agreement with provisions that analysts call nonstarters. Zelenskyy has offered a 10-point plan that would hold Russia accountable for war atrocities, and require it to surrender all captured Ukrainian territory and pay reparations for what could be hundreds of billions in war damages.

For his part, Putin has demanded that Ukraine recognize territories annexed by Moscow as part of Russia.

Russia and Ukraine did conduct direct talks early in the war, first in Belarus and then in Turkey. By April, the two sides were discussing an agreement under which Russia would return its troops to pre-invasion battle lines in return for a pledge that Ukraine would never seek membership in NATO.

But the talks collapsed — poisoned, in part, by mounting evidence of Russian atrocities, including a massacre of civilians in the Kyiv, Ukraine, suburb of Bucha that led Biden to declare Putin a “war criminal” in mid-March.

Even before the war began, Ukrainian officials were deeply skeptical of making deals with Russia. After Russia seized Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula and backed a separatist uprising in eastern Ukraine in 2014, Ukraine and Russia agreed to a cease-fire in negotiations in Belarus, mediated by France and Germany, known as the Minsk accords.

In Zelenskyy’s eyes, Russia’s invasion only proved the futility of striking an agreement with Putin.

Speaking at a Group of 20 summit in Bali in November, Zelenskyy said that his country should not be pressured “to conclude compromises with its conscience, sovereignty, territory and independence.”

“Apparently, one cannot trust Russia’s words, and there will be no Minsk 3, which Russia would violate immediately after signing,” Zelenskyy said, referring to two previous incarnations of the accords.

Family members grieve over the coffin of Ihor Dyukarev, 24, a Ukrainian soldier who was killed while fighting in the Luhansk region, during his funeral at the cemetery in Bucha, Ukraine on Saturday, Feb. 25, 2022.

Their hair long and flowing or in ponytails, women in Iran flaunt their locks

By FARNAZ FASSIHI

An engineer strode onstage at an event in Tehran, Iran, wearing tight pants and a stylish shirt, and clutching a microphone in one hand. Her long brown hair, tied in a ponytail, swung freely behind her, uncovered, in open defiance of Iran’s strict hijab law.

“I am Zeinab Kazempour,” she told the convention of Iran’s professional association of engineers. She condemned the group for supporting the hijab rules, and then she marched offstage, removing a scarf from around her neck and tossing it to the floor under a giant image of Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

The packed auditorium erupted in cheers, claps and whistles. A video of Kazempour went viral on social media and local news sites, making her the latest champion for many Iranians in a growing, open challenge to the hijab law.

Women have resisted the law, uncovering their hair an inch or a strand at a time, since it went into effect two years after the Islamic Revolution in 1979.

But since the death last year of Mahsa Amini, 22, while in the custody of the country’s morality police, women and girls have been at the center of a nationwide uprising, demanding an end not only to hijab requirements but to the Islamic Republic itself.

Women are suddenly flaunting their hair: left long and flowing in the malls; tied in a bun on the streets; styled into bobs on public transportation; and pulled into ponytails at schools and on university campuses, according to interviews with women in Iran as well as photographs and videos online. Although these acts of defiance are rarer in more conservative areas, they are increasingly being seen in towns and cities.

“I have not worn a scarf for months — I don’t even carry it with me anymore,” said Kimia, 23, a graduate student in the Kurdish city of Sanandaj, in western Iran, who, like other women interviewed for this article, asked that her surname not be used for fear of retribution.

Kimia said that many female students at her college did not cover their hair even in classrooms in the presence of male professors. “Whether the government likes to admit it or not,” she said, “the era of the forced hijab is over.”

Iran’s hijab law mandates that women and girls older than 9 cover their hair and that they hide the curves of their bodies under long, loose robes.

Many women still adhere to the rule in public, some by choice and others from fear. Videos of the traditional bazaar in downtown Tehran, the capital, for example, show most women covering their hair.

But videos of parks, cafes, restaurants and malls — places popular with younger women — show more of them uncovered. Many prominent women, including celebrities and athle-

tes, have removed their hijab in Iran and while representing the country abroad.

The state has long promoted the hijab law as a symbol of its success in establishing the Islamic Republic, but enforcement has varied, depending on which political faction was in power.

After the election in 2021 of Ebrahim Raisi, a hard-liner, as president, the rules have been increasingly enforced, and with a strictness and brutality that have enraged Iranian women, many of whom were fined, beaten or arrested by the morality police after they were said to be in violation.

But anger over the law boiled over in September, when Amini died in the custody of the morality police and as the street protests that broke out across Iran quickly morphed into broader calls for an end to being ruled by the country’s clerics.

The protests have largely fizzled amid a violent crackdown by authorities that has included mass arrests, death sentences and the executions of four young protesters.

But many acts of civil disobedience continue daily, including chanting “death to the dictator” from rooftops, writing graffiti on walls, and tearing down and setting ablaze government banners.

And women have been going out in public without their hijabs.

Officials said in December they had disbanded the morality police, and they have not been seen on the streets since. For the moment, authorities are only occasionally enforcing the hijab rules, according to women and activists in Iran.

Officials say they are reviewing the enforcement rules and plan to announce updated measures. One conservative lawmaker has said alternative enforcement methods are being considered, such as warning women by text message, denying them civic services or blocking their bank accounts.

“Headscarves will be back on women’s heads,” the lawmaker, Hossein Jalali, was reported as saying in December on Iranian media.

Even many religious women who wear a hijab by choice have joined the campaign to repeal the law. A petition with thousands of names and photographs of women is circulating on Instagram and Twitter with the message, “I wear the hijab, but I am against the compulsory hijab.”

Maryam, 53, who observes the hijab law and lives in Tehran, recently traveled with her daughter to the holiday island of Kish in the Persian Gulf. They were surprised to find most women wearing short-sleeved sun dresses, sandals, capri pants and T-shirts. “Are we in Turkey or Iran?” asked her daughter, Narges, 26.

Shortly after the trip, Narges changed all of her social media profile photos to one in which her long brown hair was flowing over her shoulders and her fist was raised in the air. It announced to her religious conservative family that she was taking off her hijab.

“I will never bring down my fist until freedom, even if we have to wait for many years,” Narges wrote on her Instagram page.

Maryam said in an interview that she was flooded with messages and calls from relatives and friends, some supportive and some critical of her daughter.

“I told them that times have changed,” she said. “I respect my daughter’s choice and so should you. It’s nobody’s business.”

Women with varying degrees of head coverings in Tehran, Jan. 28, 2023. Defiant resistance to Iran’s mandatory hijab law has spread across the country after nationwide protests that erupted last year.

Jonatan Ramos Director Funerario

China to welcome Belarusian leader, raising concerns over Ukraine

By MARC SANTORA and CHRIS BUCKLEY

As officials in Ukraine anxiously watch evolving diplomatic overtures between Moscow and Beijing, China’s top leader will host the president of Belarus — a staunch Kremlin ally — with the pomp of a state visit next week.

On Saturday, China announced the visit, to take place over three days starting Tuesday, for President Alexander Lukashenko of Belarus, who a year ago allowed Russian forces to use his country as a staging ground for their full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The presence in Beijing of such a close partner of President Vladimir Putin of Russia is likely to increase international attention, and pressure, over China’s straddling position on the war.

The announcement of Beijing’s latest high-profile official visitor comes a week after the Biden administration accused China of considering sending lethal military assistance to Russia, a claim that Chinese officials have denied. If the Chinese send arms and ammunition to Moscow’s formations in eastern Ukraine, the supplies would come at a time when both sides are running low on much-needed artillery rounds.

And after Beijing issued broad principles Friday for trying to end the fighting in Ukraine, Western leaders voiced disappointment at the lack of more specific ideas in their proposal, or any signs that the Chinese leader, Xi Jinping, might be willing to distance himself from Putin.

Lukashenko’s office said in a statement that his visit to China would be a chance to offer a “response to acute challenges in the modern international environment.”

In a phone call with Belarus’ foreign minister, Sergei Aleinik, on Friday, his Chinese counterpart, Qin Gang, indicated that Beijing wanted to deepen ties between the two nations and find common ground over Russia’s yearlong war in Ukraine, according to a summary issued by the Chinese Foreign Ministry.

Qin noted that when they met last year, Lukashenko and Xi had proclaimed an “all-weather comprehensive strategic partnership” between their countries. Pakistan is the only

other country promised such an august-sounding level of official cooperation by China.

Beijing, Qin said, “opposes the meddling of external forces in Belarus’ domestic affairs and the illegal imposition of unilateral sanctions on Belarus,” which has been subjected to expanded Western penalties because of its support for Russia.

Yauheni Preiherman, the director of the Minsk Dialogue Council on International Relations, in Minsk, Belarus, said in written answers to questions that “Minsk has long considered China as a key foreign policy and economic partner and, therefore, invested a lot of time and political effort in deepening relations with Beijing.”

“But under the current conditions of unprecedented Western sanctions against Belarus,” he added, “China’s significance for Minsk has grown even further.”

Lukashenko appears mainly interested in securing more business and investment agreements, Preiherman said. “Cooperation in the military-industrial complex can surely be part of that, especially since the two countries already have a track record of cooperation in this realm,” he said.

China may gain symbolic and practical payoffs from closer ties with Belarus.

“Because Belarus is so close to Russia and to the battlefield, Lukashenko has exclusive information about the situation on the battlefield,” Preiherman said. “I am sure this will be of particular interest to the leaders in Beijing.”

Yet while China has tried with limited success to stabilize relations with the United States and other Western countries in recent months, Lukashenko will be the latest of several of China’s authoritarian partners who have recently been courted by Beijing — a sign that Xi is far from making a wholesale shift in China’s allegiances.

This month, Xi hosted Iran’s president, Ebrahim Raisi, telling him that China “opposes external forces interfering in Iran’s internal affairs and undermining Iran’s security and stability,” according to Xinhua, China’s main official news agency. Another visitor to Beijing this month was Hun Sen, the prime minister of Cambodia, a durable regional supporter of China.

Relations between Belarus and China, strained in previous years over Belarus’ frustrated hopes for expanded Chinese investment and trade, have grown closer since Russia’s invasion, according to a research paper by the Eurasian States in Transition Research Center.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine said Friday that he, too, would like to meet directly with Xi to discuss Beijing’s proposals on ending the war. There has been no official response to his overture.

The Ukrainian leader has been trying for months to engage Xi in direct dialogue, to no avail. But Zelenskyy’s government has continued to tread carefully when it comes to what it says publicly regarding China, keenly aware that if Beijing were to play a more robust role in supporting the Russian military, it could fundamentally shift the momentum on the battlefield.

Belarus has maneuvered carefully over the past year, providing a safe haven, training ground and launchpad for Moscow’s forces while steadfastly refusing to commit its own military to the fight. Ukrainian officials and military analysts have said that there is no evidence suggesting Russian forces are currently planning a ground assault from the country, but military activity there has been a constant source of concern.

Officials in Kyiv, Ukraine, Washington and other capitals will be closely watching for any signs that China’s political support for Lukashenko translates into closer cooperation in military affairs and technology, with implications for the battlefields of Ukraine. Belarus has been producing the “Polonez” multiple-launch rocket launcher, which experts say has used modified Chinese-made rockets.

Belarus has been developing its own rockets for the Polonez launcher, but still appears eager to draw military support from China, partly to offset Russia’s dominance. In their joint statement signed last year, Lukashenko and Xi promised to “further expand practical cooperation in every sphere between the two militaries.”

For Lukashenko, China may also help offset his reliance on Russia for financial, energy and security assistance to maintain his grip on power. Russian suzerainty over Belarus expanded after large-scale protests in 2020 and has only grown over the course of the war.

There is no sign yet of Lukashenko sending his own soldiers to fight in Ukraine, as he is likely to be wary that such a move could cause a domestic backlash.

When he met with Putin in Moscow earlier this month, there were hints at the imbalance in the relationship between the Kremlin and Lukashenko.

After Putin thanked Lukashenko for “agreeing to come,” Lukashenko replied: “As if I could not agree.”

President Aleksandr Lukashenko of Belarus and the Chinese leader, Xi Jinping, in Beijing in 2016. Their aides say they will be talking about trade and investment in a coming meeting, but analysts say Ukraine will be high on the agenda.

War in Ukraine deepens divide among major economies at G-20 gathering

By ALAN RAPPEPORT

Ayear after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the war is deepening the division among the world’s major economies, threatening fragile recoveries by disrupting food and energy supply chains and distracting from plans to combat poverty and restructure debt in poor countries.

Those fissures were evident last week as top economic policymakers from the Group of 20 nations gathered for two days at a resort in Bengaluru, a city in southern India, where efforts to demonstrate unity were overshadowed by flaring tensions over Russia. During the summit, Western nations imposed a barrage of new sanctions on Moscow and unveiled more economic support for Ukraine, while developing countries like India, which have been reaping the benefits of cheap Russian oil, resisted expressing criticism.

The differing views left officials struggling to cobble together the traditional joint statement, or communiqué, on Saturday, forcing senior representatives from the Group of 7 nations, the world’s most advanced economies, to try to convince reluctant counterparts that defending Ukraine was worth the cost.

A summary of the meeting issued in the afternoon noted that “most members strongly condemned the war in Ukraine” but that “there were other views and different assessments of the situation and sanctions.” The statement noted that Russia and China refused to sign on to the parts of the summary that referred to the war in Ukraine.

In a clear sign of the tensions surrounding the discussion, the statement said that the G-20 was “not the forum to resolve security issues,” but that members “acknowledge that security issues can have significant consequences for the global economy.”

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Saturday in an interview that she had tried to make the case for a joint response to the more reluctant countries. “Ukraine is fighting not only for their country, but for the preservation of democracy and peaceful conditions in Europe,” she said, adding, “It’s an assault on democracy and on territorial integrity that should concern all of us.”

The summit took place at a pivotal moment for the global economy. The International Monetary Fund last month upgraded

its global output projections but warned that Russia’s war in Ukraine continued to cast a cloud of uncertainty. The fund also noted that increasing “fragmentation” in the world could be a drag on growth in the future.

Yellen was among the most forceful critics of Russia during the two-day meeting. At one point, she directly confronted senior Russian officials in a private session and called them “complicit” in the Kremlin’s atrocities.

The grappling over how to characterize Russia’s actions led Bruno Le Maire, the French finance minister, to publicly vent his frustration with some countries that would not assail Russia in writing. He noted that when the leaders of the G-20 nations met in November, in Bali, Indonesia, their statement had asserted that most members strongly condemned the war, and he said Friday that he was opposed to watering down that sentiment.

India’s close economic ties with Russia have made its role as the host of the G-20 this year especially challenging. Moscow is a major supplier of energy and military equipment to India, while the United States is India’s largest trading partner.

To remain neutral, India has tried to avoid describing the conflict as a “war” and instead focused on other issues. In an opening address to the summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid out the threats facing the global economy, but he made no mention of Russia, pointing instead to “rising geopolitical tensions in many parts of the world.”

Some of the resistance to condemning Russia is because of concern about the United States’ use of its economic might to isolate a member of the G-20.

“The fact that the U.S. clearly has so much power to take action against a geopolitical rival is a significant concern,” said Eswar Prasad, a trade policy professor at Cornell University who speaks to both U.S. and Indian officials. “There’s clearly been a splintering of the G-20.”

Prasad added that the aggressive use of sanctions by the United States had raised anxiety among other nations — even if they disagreed with Russia’s actions — that they could someday be exposed to Washington’s wrath.

That use of economic warfare was on display Friday, when the United States imposed sanctions on more than 200 individuals

and entities in Russia and other countries that are helping to financially support Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. Sanctions were also placed on Russia’s metals and mining sector and on energy companies.

The war in Ukraine was not the only matter this past week that consumed finance ministers in India.

The United States and Europe continued to hash out differences over U.S. subsidies for electric vehicles that European countries believe will harm their economies. A global tax agreement that was struck in 2021 continues to flounder, raising the prospect that it could unravel. And talks over restructuring debt burdens facing poor countries to avoid a cascade of defaults failed to bear fruit, largely because of resistance from China.

“There hasn’t been a significant change that I see,” said Yellen, who expressed frustration at China’s role as a roadblock this past week.

But it is the war in Ukraine that has left the world’s economic leaders most divided. Resistance to supporting Ukraine and confronting Russia is the result of complicated domestic politics in many countries, and the United States is no exception.

A growing number of Republicans, including former President Donald Trump, have been arguing in recent weeks that the United States cannot afford to endlessly support Ukraine. They contend that at a time when the United States is burdened by record levels of debt and a weakening economy, that money would be better spent on domestic problems.

Janet L. Yellen in Bengaluru, India, last week. “Ukraine is fighting not only for their country, but for the preservation of democracy and peaceful conditions in Europe,” she said in an interview.

What the war in Ukraine has truly cost us

By FARAH STOCKMAN

I’ll never forget the stories I heard on the Ukrainian-Polish border one year ago: Newlyweds who separated hours after saying their vows so the groom could return to the front. A tax preparer in Boston who quit her job to return to Ukraine with suitcases full of medical supplies. The wife of a border guard who made the three-hour round trip from Lviv, Ukraine, to the Polish border almost daily to drop off fleeing women and children and pick up weapons and supplies.

The one-year mark of this terrible war brings up a range of emotions, including deep admiration for the Ukrainian people and dismay over the unfolding Russian offensive. But another feeling comes up, too, that doesn’t get talked about enough: awe at the breathtaking waste of war.

How sad that human beings survived deadly waves of COVID only to get right back into the business-as-usual of killing one other. It’s senseless to spend tens of billions of dollars on missiles, tanks and other aid, when more needs to be done to help communities adapt to rising oceans and drying rivers. It’s lunacy that farmers in a breadbasket of the world have gone hungry hiding in bomb shelters. It’s madness that President Vladimir Putin of Russia declared Ukrainians to be part of his own people — right before he sent his army into the country, where Russian soldiers have been accused of raping and murdering civilians.

Governments gussy up war. They talk of victory because that gives soldiers hope and the will to fight on. But in the end, war is death in a muddy foxhole. It’s an existential fight over a frozen field with no strategic value. It’s a generational grudge that begets new generational grudges. It’s an $11 billion, roughly 740-mile pipeline laid across the Baltic Sea rendered useless overnight. It’s some of the largest steel plants in Europe unable to produce or ship a single metal sheet. It’s a charming seaside city emptied out by bombings and siege.

When a country is fighting for its survival, as Ukraine is, the ability to wage war is essential. Indeed, it can feel like the only thing that really counts. But it is also true that our collective prosperity as human beings depends upon the absence of war, which gives people the breathing room they need to farm, to trade, to make scientific breakthroughs and art.

The economic rewards reaped by not being at war can be hard to quantify. But researchers report that peace is wildly profitable. The Institute for Economics and Peace, a nonpartisan think tank, scores peacefulness according to factors like “good relations with neighbors,” corruption, free flow of information and representative governance. Its recent report shows that countries that saw improvements in peacefulness between 2009 and 2020 also saw gross domestic product per capita rise by an average of 3.1% per year. Countries where peacefulness deteriorated saw an increase of just 0.4% per year.

Putin’s war in Ukraine makes us all poorer, hungrier

and more insecure. Although the world has avoided the mutually assured destruction of nuclear war so far, it has not dodged the slow-moving bullet of mutually assured economic degradation.

Real global incomes this year could be $2.8 trillion lower because of the Russian invasion, according to a report by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Ukrainian towns that have spent at least a month on the front lines have seen their economic activity cut roughly in half, estimates Yuri Zhukov, associate professor of political science at the University of Michigan. He’s been using light emissions as seen from space as a proxy for economic activity in areas with heavy shelling.

“At its heart, war is a fundamentally stupid enterprise,” said Gerard DiPippo, a former CIA analyst who now works for the Center for Strategic and International Studies. “If all you care about is maximizing economic output and security, you would almost never choose to start a war.”

DiPippo researches the impact of sanctions on Russia as well as the likely economic fallout if China were to invade Taiwan. His assessment? Even if President Xi Jinping managed to retake the island, the price he would have to pay in lost economic and diplomatic clout would render it a Pyrrhic victory. The costs would be catastrophic, both for China and the United States. According to a 2016 study by the Rand Corp., a yearlong clash could curb China’s GDP by 25% to 35%, and U.S. GDP by as much as 10%.

“China would have gained Taiwan but sacrificed its larger ambition of becoming a global and comprehensive superpower,” DiPippo and a co-author wrote for CSIS.

One hopes that the destruction in Ukraine will help convince Chinese leaders that reunification with Taiwan by force would be a self-defeating policy. But countries blunder into disastrous military conflicts all the time. Mutual arms buildups are one reason. Another is that leaders chronically downplay their costs and undervalue the benefits of peace.

The American wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are a case in point. Those wars were treated as an emergency expense for a decade, and funded outside the Pentagon base budget for the second decade, avoiding normal financial oversight and scrutiny of the full costs, according to Linda Bilmes, author of a forthcoming book on ghost budgets that paid for the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

With the war in Ukraine, the United States is once again underestimating the cost of our involvement, since replacing the weapons that have been given to Ukraine will likely cost 10% to 30% more than their current value on average, Bilmes says. To date, there has been no serious attempt to estimate or budget for the long-term expense of this war.

Acknowledging the real cost of war — and the benefits of peace — doesn’t mean that we’ll lose our will to fight. To the contrary, an honest accounting of what war is and what it costs is essential to victory over the long run.

Governments talk of victory because that gives soldiers hope and the will to fight on. But in the end, war is death in a muddy foxhole.

JCF autoriza pago adeudado a empleados civiles de la Policía

LA FORTALEZA – El gobernador de Puerto Rico, Pedro Rafael Pierluisi Urrutia, anunció el domingo que la Junta de Control Fiscal dio el visto bueno para que en el mes de marzo se pueda pagar una deuda que desde el 2004 se tiene con 402 empleados civiles del Negociado de la Policía de Puerto Rico (NPPR).

El pago a los empleados civiles corresponde a una deuda por concepto del aumento de sueldo de 100 dólares que se les otorgó a estos empleados en el 2004 luego de la aprobación de la Ley 164 –2003, pero que no se les cumplió.

“Desde que comenzó mi administración hemos estado trabajando para cumplir con el aumento de sueldo que le corresponde a estos empleados desde el 2004. Además del pago de $25.6 millones que se aprobó para hacer justicia a estos servidores públicos, también logramos la cantidad de $11.7 millones para el pago de horas extras adeudadas al personal de Sistema de Rango. Mi gobierno ha logrado estabilidad financiera y estamos enfocados en continuar trabajando arduamente para mantener el crecimiento económico que hemos alcanzado

por los pasados dos años. Esta noticia es la mejor manera de culminar la Semana de la Policía en la que hemos reconocido el gran trabajo de nuestra Uniformada”, sostuvo el gobernador Pierluisi en declaraciones escritas.

Por su parte, el secretario del Departamento de Seguridad Pública (DSP), Alexis Torres indicó que el pago se hará retroactivo desde el 2004 hasta junio de 2022. “Tuve la encomienda del gobernador de trabajar con esta situación y resolverla en favor de nuestros empleados civiles. Hoy podemos anunciar esta grata noticia. Con este pago saldamos la deuda millonaria que teníamos con estos empleados civiles y le hacemos justicia al reclamo que no había sido atendido en los pasados 18 años. Es el gobierno de Pedro Pierluisi el que dio seguimiento a este asunto y no desistió en su reclamo ante la Junta. Este gobierno pagará el aumento de $100 retroactivo desde el 2004 hasta el 30 de junio, 2022 cuando se detuvo la deuda. Trabajamos en conjunto y sin descanso para hacerle justicia salarial a estos empleados. Agradecemos a la Junta de Supervisión que atendió nuestra petición y aprobó el pago total”.

El gobernador Pierluisi también anunció que se

asignaron 4.7 millones de dólares para el pago del tiempo compensatorio al personal de rango y personal clasificado del NPPR.

Mientras que el comisionado del Negociado de la Policía, Antonio López, señaló que con este desembolso se logra cumplir la promesa de saldar la deuda que por años se mantuvo con el personal civil, tras una promesa de aumento de sueldo desde el 2004 y las horas extras retroactivas de los policías que trabajaron durante los terremotos y la pandemia. “A la misma vez, este se convierte en el pago más grande que una administración ha hecho simultáneamente, a ambos componentes de nuestro Cuerpo, tanto civiles como policías. Además, por primera vez, en la Policía, cerraremos un año fiscal con cero deuda por concepto de aumento de sueldo, pagos por horas extras regulares y por emergencias a mi personal civil y a mis policías, respectivamente. De este modo, marcamos la historia haciéndole justicia salarial a todos”.

Finalmente, el presidente de Empleados Civiles Organizados (ECO), Jorge Méndez Cotto, expresó que “este logro es producto de los esfuerzos entre la ECO y el DSP. El trabajo en equipo rindió frutos a favor de los empleados, hoy se le hace justicia”.

POR EL STAR STAFF

SAN JUAN – El Lcdo. Juan José Troche, titular interino de la Defensoría de las Personas con Impedimentos (DPI) acompañó a los jóvenes participantes de Special Olympics, quienes realizaron el evento Brazadas por la Inclusión, que se celebró el viernes en la piscina del Caparra Country Club en Guaynabo y el sábado en la piscina Víctor Vassallo en Ponce y Base Ramey de Aguadilla. La actividad consiste en un evento donde los participantes estarán nadando en relevo de 24 horas. El personal de la DPI fue parte del evento, donde varios de los compañeros también dieron sus brazadas por la inclusión.

“La Defensoría de las Personas con Impedimentos es la agencia de Gobierno que protege los derechos de la población con impedimentos físicos, mentales o sensoriales y atiende sus problemas, necesidades y reclamos. Estamos en apoyo a Special Olympics por la gran labor que realizan en el mundo entero,

y particularmente en Puerto Rico”, señaló Troche, momentos antes de que que varios de los empleados de la DPI se lanzaran a la piscina a compartir con los participantes.

El evento consiste en veinticuatro (24) horas ininterrumpidas de natación en modalidad de relevo, que inició ayer viernes y finaliza hoy sábado a las 6:00 pm. Está dirigido a nadadores de todo tipo de nivel: profesionales, federados, amateurs y recreativos. Por su parte, Mayra Meléndez, presidenta de la entidad, señaló que Special Olympics es el movimiento deportivo más grande del mundo para personas con discapacidad intelectual.

La directora de Special Olympics Puerto Rico, Mayra Meléndez, señaló que “en los últimos 50 años hemos llegado como organización sin gines de lucro a más de 5 millones de atletas en 193 países, con más de un millón de voluntarios y colaboradores. Esto se debe a la fundadora Eunice Kennedy Shriver quien tenía una hermana con discapacidad intelectual: Rosemary. Ambas crecieron practican-

do deportes, juntas y con su familia. Pero, en aquellos días, había pocos programas y opciones para las personas con discapacidad. Este reto la movió a promover cambios para esta población. Nosotros buscamos la inclusión por medio del deporte, donde tenemos personas de diversas condiciones, promovemos la salud y el desarrollo personal”.

Defensoría de las Personas con Impedimentos se une a Brazadas por la Inclusión de Special Olympics, en fomento de la inclusión

Ricardo Darín: Argentina’s lucky charm at the Oscars

By CARLOS AGUILAR

Fortune has long favored Ricardo Darín. More than the subjective concept of talent, it is providence, manifested as other people’s unwavering confidence in his abilities, that the actor credits for his storied career as Argentina’s most celebrated film star internationally.

“I’ve had all the luck that my parents didn’t have as actors,” he said in Spanish during a recent interview at the Sunset Tower Hotel. “Many times people have valued me far more than I value myself, and I often think, ‘Do I deserve all that?’”

The latest example of his relationship with Lady Luck is his turn as real-life prosecutor Julio Strassera in “Argentina, 1985,” a historical courtroom drama about the Trial of the Juntas, when military leaders were tried for human rights violations during the former dictatorship. Directed by Santiago Mitre, it earned Argentina an Oscar nomination for best international feature film.

Darín seems to be his country’s lucky charm when it comes to the Academy Awards. He has starred in all four movies to earn Argentina a nod this century, including “Son of the Bride,” “Wild Tales” and “The Secret in Their Eyes,” which took home the statuette in 2010. Argentina has submitted several other Darín-led productions to the academy over the years — meaning that even though they didn’t all make the cut, the films in which he appears are almost synonymous with the best of Argentine cinema.

From the first handshake, Darín, 66, radiates a welcoming aura. Casually dressed in bluejeans and a navy sweater, he speaks with a warmth and candor that most people reserve for their closest friends. That temperament translates onscreen.

“Ricardo has an immense power to elicit empathy from the audience, and that’s rare,” said director Juan José Campanella, who has collaborated with Darín on four features.

Though the actor inherited a passion for performance from his parents, who were working actors in Buenos Aires, neither was enthusiastic about his carrying on the family’s craft.

“They didn’t fight me on it, but they also didn’t encourage me to do it,” he recalled.

Darín thinks of his path as preordained. He was a regular on film and TV sets and theater stages in childhood, first acting professionally at 3 in the 1960 series “Soledad Monsalvo.” At 10 he debuted onstage alongside his parents. By the time he attended his first theater workshop at 14, Darín felt like a seasoned veteran who had already experienced many facets of the job firsthand.

In the 1990s, Darín found immense success in the sitcom “Mi Cuñado” (“My Brother-in-Law”) as an impertinent but charming screw-up. His contract restricted him from other TV ventures but allowed him to pursue films. Among them was his first outing with Campanella, “The Same Love,

the Same Rain” (1999), which helped other directors see beyond his TV persona.

One of them, Fabián Bielinsky, cast him in the thriller “Nine Queens” (released in Argentina in 2000) as a sleazy con man.

“He told me, ‘I hadn’t thought about you for this role. You are too charismatic, and I don’t want the audience to have any empathy for him,’” Darín recalled.

In Campanella’s view, “There’s only one thing Ricardo cannot be, and that is unlikable. The clearest proof is ‘Nine Queens,’ where he plays an amoral crook, but we still root for him.”

Campanella’s heartfelt “Son of the Bride” arrived the next year and mined Darín’s comic sensibilities for the role of a restaurant owner dealing with his aging parents.

“Once an Argentine critic called him ‘our Henry Fonda’ because he projects great integrity,” Campanella said. “But he has something that Fonda didn’t, which is a great sense of humor.”

Darín maintains that it was the one-two punch of “Nine Queens” and “Son of the Bride” that cemented his film career.

“It was a great calling card for an actor to have the possibility of showing two absolutely opposite facets almost at once,” Darín said. “Even though I was already well known for TV and theater, that’s when I started to feel my colleagues were seeing me in a better light.”

Since then, he has enjoyed his choice of roles, including Campanella’s acclaimed “The Secret in Their Eyes,” in which he starred as an investigator haunted by a gruesome, unresolved case.

Another of Darín’s personal favorites is the dramedy “Truman” (2017), centered on a terminally ill man spending his final days alongside his best friends, one human and one canine. His wry character reminded Darín of his late father, also named Ricardo Darín, whom he described as a peculiar Renaissance man with an acid sense of humor and wild ideas that others found difficult to digest.

Hollywood has reached out a handful of times, but he has declined, mostly because the most difficult thing for an actor to do is to think in another language, he said, adding that close-ups reveal when someone is reciting from memory rather than inhabiting an emotion.

“I’ve always trusted my gut more than my heart or my head,” Darín explained, then added, motioning to his stomach, “I trust in how the material hits me right here.”

In Argentina, his turn in Damián Szifron’s “Wild Tales” (released stateside in 2015) as a frustrated citizen who fights back against oppressive bureaucracy was widely embraced by audiences.

“Ricardo has a lucid outlook on the realities that affect his country,” Szifron said. “He is a popular figure while at the same time being a sophisticated actor.”

For “Argentina, 1985,” Mitre and Darín agreed not to mimic the voice or exact mannerisms of the real Strassera, but instead took a degree of artistic liberty in their re-creation.

Mitre, who had directed Darín as a fictional Argentine president in the 2017 political saga “The Summit,” said he admired how the actor produces a truthful performance through a synthesis of his own sensibilities and the character’s.

“It’s as if the camera could capture him in his entirety, show him in all his complexity,” Mitre said. “Whenever you see Ricardo act, you know there will be great honesty onscreen.”

Ricardo Darin, Argentina’s most celebrated film star internationally, at the Sunset Tower Hotel in West Hollywood, Calif., Feb. 12, 2023. When Argentina has a film nominated for an Academy Award, it has usually starred this veteran actor, but he says that other people have believed in his talent more than he has.

When a visit to the museum becomes an ethical dilemma

By CHARLY WILDER

On a recent morning, visitors trickled into the Africa wing of the Humboldt Forum in Berlin, a massive museum that opened in 2021 in a neo-Baroque reconstruction of the city’s former Royal Palace. The setup was familiar: Artifacts were enclosed behind glass and mounted onto white walls — an “ethnological display” of priceless artworks from a far-off land.

But this exhibition was different. Dozens of Benin Bronzes, intricate sculptures and plaques in metal that date back as far as the 13th century, were on display in Berlin for what may be the last time. Since July 2021, the artifacts no longer belong to Germany. They are part of a trove the country has begun to repatriate to Nigeria, beginning in December with the return of 20 bronzes. The exhibition tells not just the story of the objects, but also of their theft in 1897, when British forces sacked Benin City, looting the royal palace of the Kingdom of Benin in what is now southwest Nigeria.

Diagrams explain how the bronzes were acquired from European traders, while photos show British soldiers striking triumphant poses atop piles of loot. In one room, I joined tourists who watched videos depicting scholars, artists, German and Nigerian curators, and representatives of the royal family in Benin City discussing the significance of restitution.

The bronzes have been at the center of an international firestorm as calls mount for Western museums to take responsibility for how they obtained objects that were seized during the colonial era, or looted by Nazis and other invading forces.

For museumgoers, the ethical dimensions of viewing plundered art have become impossible to ignore. Western museums are major tourist attractions, drawing travelers from around the world. But what responsibility do we bear as spectators for patronizing institutions that display what critics say are stolen works? Should we be asking how these museums got their treasures? Does our conception of a modern-day ethnological museum need a dramatic rethink?

“There has been a great change of consciousness in the last years,” said Gilbert Lupfer of the German Lost Art Foundation, the world’s most extensive database for the search for Nazi-looted art. “More and more, visitors of museums have become interested in questions of provenance.” And most of them, he said, realize that works with a problematic provenance “can’t remain in the museum.”

European and American museums have long resisted calls for repatriation, arguing that objects from Africa, Asia and elsewhere were legally obtained, that they are safer where they are, and that passing time and turmoil have made it impossible to determine rightful owners.

But in recent years, the scales have tipped.

“I think there’s been a big shift,” said Geoffrey Robertson, a British Australian restitution expert and human rights lawyer, and the author of the 2020 book “Who Owns History?” “It started in a way with President Macron saying that Indigenous art, so much of which is in Western museums, should go back to Africa,” he said, referring to President Em-

manuel Macron’s 2017 pledge to return France’s plundered African holdings.

In 2021, the German, Dutch and Belgian governments all announced plans to identify objects in museums that were looted during the colonial era and start the process of returning them. At least 16 U.S. museums have said they are engaged in the process of repatriating their Benin Bronzes, including the Smithsonian Institution and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, and five more say they would be willing to do so if requested.

There is no institution that’s faced more controversy around colonial acquisitions than the British Museum, which was the first public national museum to cover all fields of knowledge when it was founded in 1753 in London. It is home to around 8 million objects, many of which were acquired during the centuries-long rule of the British Empire.

“I’ve described the British Museum as the world’s greatest receiver of stolen property,” said Robertson, whose book lays out a case against the museum’s resistance to returning colonial plunder. “Tourists should bear in mind that much of the interesting ethnic stuff that’s on display is, in fact, stolen, often at the end of a musket.”

When I visited the museum recently, lines snaked around the block. The museum was thronged with visitors who had come to see its marvels of human civilization, including the Rosetta Stone (removed from Egypt by the British in 1802) and jade treasures from the Summer Palace in Beijing (sacked by British and French forces in 1860).

Visitors crowded into the Greek galleries to see what is probably the most contested holding, the Parthenon Marbles — or Elgin Marbles as they are sometimes called, after the British aristocrat who had them removed from the Acropolis of Athens in the early 1800s. A collection of Classical Greek sculptures dating from the fifth century B.C., the marbles

have been the subject of public acrimony almost since the moment they were taken (Lord Byron wrote a poem about their removal in 1811).

Although the British Museum has been in talks with the Greek authorities about a possible settlement for more than 30 years, the museum has held steadfast, arguing, among other points, that Lord Elgin purchased the marbles legitimately from representatives of the Ottoman Empire, which occupied Greece at the time. Restitution proponents counter that the Ottomans were invaders who could not legitimately sell off the country’s heritage.

Museums have long relied on legalistic conventions, presenting sales receipts for the contested items, or documents declaring that they were handed over legally, but critics say these formalities masked coercion and theft.

“It is a very difficult discussion, and the question, ‘Did he acquire it lawfully?’ won’t bring you much further,” said Evelien Campfens, a legal scholar specializing in art and cultural heritage law at Leiden University in the Netherlands. “You can see this even with Nazi-looted art, with sales to a Nazi officer where there was money involved. Was that legal? Well, under the legislation at the time, it was lawful, but we do not think that’s correct today.”

The fact that the British Museum is one of the world’s great attractions, where anyone can view, in one place, the achievements of human history, is one argument against repatriation. But consensus is building that such an attraction should not come at the expense of cultural plunder. Meanwhile, new projects, like the Edo Museum of West African Art in Nigeria, where repatriated artworks from historical Benin will be housed, are recasting conceptions of what an ethnological museum should look like.

A vast complex at the site of historic Benin City, the museum was conceived by the Ghanaian British architect David Adjaye as “a kind of abstraction of how Benin City would have looked before.” Excavated through a joint archaeological project with the British Museum, the site will include a research and collections center, rainforest gardens and an artisans’ hall where contemporary craftspeople can sell their wares. The main museum building will be a riff on the old Benin Palace where visitors can view repatriated bronzes and learn about colonialism.

“You can walk through an area that has the nature as it would’ve been in those days, and you actually can see the ancient moats and walls,” said Phillip Ihenacho, a Nigerian financier who serves as executive chairman of the trust that owns and operates the project, which will begin its phased opening next year. “You will understand that this isn’t about an ancient civilization that died. The tradition of craftsmanship exists today. It has been passed down.”

Perhaps most crucially, Ihenacho said, the project offers a hopeful narrative to the local population. “When they understand how sophisticated, how advanced and how great the Benin Kingdom was relative to what was happening in Europe at the time, it can give people a sense of optimism for the future,” he said. “There is a way to talk about how things could be.”

A Benin Bronze sculpture at the Humboldt Forum, a Berlin museum that has begun to repatriate some of the artifacts to Nigeria, Jan. 31, 2023. An exhibition at the Humboldt Gallery tells the story of the Benin Bronzes, some of which date back as far as the 13th century, and describes their planned return to Nigeria.

Webb telescope spots a distant spiral galaxy like our own

By DENNIS OVERBYE

In the unfathomable darkness and time that is the universe, every star is an omen of hope, a promise of life and shelter, like the lights of a distant ship on a cold sea.

And so, courtesy of the James Webb Space Telescope, here is another reminder of the fecundity and generosity of nature: thousands of galaxies, trillions of stars and unnumbered planets, a boundless realm of possibilities stretching back 13 billion years in a small patch of sky in the constellation Hercules.

At lower center is a spiral galaxy known as LEDA 2046648. It looks like a dead ringer for the great galaxy in Andromeda, M31, or its twin, our own Milky Way galaxy — except that the LEDA galaxy is 1 billion lightyears away.

One billion years ago, when the light from this image was emitted, the first multicellular organisms had emerged on Earth and were groping their way up the evolutionary ladder toward plants, fish, dinosaurs, humans and whatever comes next.

One of the Webb telescope’s main missions is to explore the age when the first stars and galaxies began to light up the universe. The Webb’s secret sauce is its ability to detect infrared rays, or electromagnetic radiation of longer wavelengths than

visible light that is thus invisible to human eyes. With the expansion of the universe, objects billions of light-years distant are moving away from Earth so fast that their light is “redshifted” to

longer infrared wavelengths, which the Webb telescope can see.

The universe as we think we know it came into being with the Big Bang some 13.8 billion years ago. Al-

most all the objects in this image are distant galaxies; the few stars among them are distinguishable by their six-pointed diffraction spikes. Some of the background blobs are thought to date from just 300 million years after the cosmos began.

Studying such primeval galaxies, astronomers say, should help to clarify what sorts of stars first condensed out of the Big Bang and how supermassive black holes came to occupy the centers of nearly all galaxies today. The preliminary results of these investigations have surprised scientists by hinting that there might be more early galaxies and massive black holes than traditional models of cosmic origins have predicted.

This image of the LEDA galaxy was obtained on May 22, 2022, while astronomers connected with the European Space Agency were testing the telescope’s workhorse camera, the Near InfraRed Camera or NIRCam; ESA partnered with NASA and the Canadian Space Agency to build and run the telescope. On Jan. 31, ESA released the image to the public as the Picture of the Month.

Viewing this snapshot of eternity, it’s hard not to wonder whether microbes or something else were making a similar go of it in LEDA 2046648 or one of the other luminous blobs in the image, and whether we will ever know.

In an undated image provided by ESA/Webb, NASA & CSA, A. Martel, an image captured by the James Webb Space Telescope shows stars and galaxies surrounding the spiral galaxy LEDA 2046648. LEDA 2046648 has an eerie resemblance to our Milky Way galaxy, but it lies a billion light-years away.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBU-

NAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA

CENTRO JUDICIAL DE CAROLINA SALA SUPERIOR BANCO POPULAR DE PUERTO RICO

Parte Demandante Vs. LA SUCESIÓN DE ISLANDER MORALES MOYETT COMPUESTA POR: ISLANDER MORALES FLORES, FULANO Y MENGANO DE TAL, POSIBLES HEREDEROS DESCONOCIDOS, DEPARTAMENTO DE HACIENDA POR CONDUCTO DE LA DIVISIÓN DE CAUDALES RELICTOS; CENTRO DE RECAUDACIÓN DE INGRESOS MUNICIPALES (CRIM)

Parte Demandada

Civil Núm.: CA2022CV00450.

Sala: 403. Sobre: COBRO DE DINERO Y EJECUCIÓN DE HIPOTECA POR LA VÍA ORDINARIA. ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMÉRICA, EL PRESIDENTE DE LOS ESTADOS UNIDOS, EL ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO, SS. AVISO DE PÚBLICA SUBASTA. El Alguacil que suscribe por la presente anuncia y hace constar que en cumplimiento de la Sentencia dictada el 11 de junio de 2022, la Orden de Ejecución de Sentencia del 8 de agosto de 2022 y el Mandamiento de Ejecución del 19 de enero de 2023 en el caso de epígrafe, procederé a vender el día 11 DE ABRIL DE 2023, A LAS 2:00 DE LA TARDE, en mi oficina, localizada en el Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Centro Judicial de Carolina, Sala Superior, en la Avenida 65 Infantería, Carretera Número Tres (3), Kilómetro 11.7 (Entrada de la Urbanización Mansiones de Carolina) Carolina, Puerto Rico, al mejor postor en pago de contado y en moneda de los Estados Unidos de América, cheque de gerente o giro postal a nombre del Alguacil del Tribunal; todo título, derecho o interés de la parte demandada sobre la siguiente propiedad:

URBAN: HORIZONTAL PRO-

PERTY: Residential Apartment

2-G of rectangular shape located in Laguna Gardens Condominium II, which in turn is located at kilometer 8 hectometer

2 of state road 26 in the Ward Cangrejo Arriba, Municipality of Carolina, Puerto Rico, with a total private area of seven hundred twenty square feet (gross),

being its lineal measurements

twenty-four feet and six inches long by twenty-nine feet and four inches wide and its boundaries access and description as follows: by the NORTH, with apartment Two-H; by the EAST, with garden and parking areas; by the SOUTH, with apartment Two-F; and by the WEST, with corridor of the floor. Its main door has access to the corridor of the floor. Este apartamento conlleva una participación con los demás titulares en los elementos comunes de y a través de Condominio Laguna Gardens II, que se relacionan en la finca matriz equivalente al porcentaje o porcentajes que se expresa en la citada inscripción de dicha finca el cual derecho regirá por las disposiciones de la Ley y el Reglamento Administrativo del Condominio. Según descrito en la finca matriz 23567 de Carolina II, folio 44 del tomo 667: Its main door has an access to the corridor of the floor. This family unit consist of the following rooms: livingdining, terrace facing East Los Angeles Subdivision master bedroom with one closet, hall with one linen closet, bathroom which includes bathtub, lavatory, and water closet, kitchen with single bowl sink, electric range and oven, laundry facilities including washer machine, dryer machine and laundry tray, one general storage closet, and space for refrigerator. In addition, this family unit has a forty-two-gallon water heater and exhaust grill in bathroom and kitchen. Según la finca matriz 23567 de Carolina II, folio 44 vuelto del tomo 667, Each apartment will have one parking space in the parking area with the number of the apartment clearly marked for identification purposes. Según la finca matriz

23567 de Carolina II, folio 47 del tomo 667: Its corresponding percentage is .005989%. Inscrita al Folio 84 del Tomo 355 de Carolina, Finca Número 13492, Registro de la Propiedad de Carolina, Sección I. La escritura de hipoteca consta inscrita al Folio 179 del Tomo 962 de Carolina, Finca Número 13492, Registro de la Propiedad de Carolina, Sección I. Inscripción decimotercera (13ra). Dirección

Física: Cond. Laguna Gardens II, Apt. 2G, Carolina, PR 00979. Número de Catastro: 20-063018-801-02-015. El tipo mínimo para la primera subasta será de $110,000.00. De no haber adjudicación en la primera subasta se celebrará una SEGUNDA

SUBASTA, el el día 18 DE ABRIL DE 2023, A LAS 2:00 DE LA TARDE, en el mismo lugar, en la cual el tipo mínimo será de dos terceras partes del tipo

mínimo fijado en la primera subasta, o sea, $73,333.33. De no haber adjudicación en la segunda subasta, se celebrará una TERCERA SUBASTA, el el día 25 DE ABRIL DE 2023, A LAS 2:00 DE LA TARDE, en el mismo lugar, en la cual el tipo mínimo será la mitad del precio pactado, o sea, $55,000.00. Si se declarase desierta la tercera subasta, se adjudicará la finca a favor del acreedor por la totalidad de la cantidad adeudada si ésta es igual o menor que el monto del tipo de la tercera subasta, si el tribunal lo estima conveniente. Se abonará dicho monto a la cantidad adeudada si ésta es mayor. Dicho remate se llevará a cabo para con su producto satisfacer a la demandante el importe de la Sentencia por la suma de $86,259.10 de principal, más intereses sobre dicha suma al 4.5% anual desde el 1 de junio de 2021 hasta su completo pago, más $159.70 de recargos acumulados, los cuales continuarán en aumento hasta el saldo total de la deuda, más la cantidad estipulada de $11,000.00 para costas, gastos y honorarios de abogados, así como cualquier otra suma que contenga el contrato del préstamo. Surge del Estudio de Título Registral que sobre esta propiedad pesa el siguiente gravamen posterior a la hipoteca que por la presente se pretende ejecutar: Aviso de Demanda: Pleito seguido por Banco Popular de Puerto Rico Vs. Sucesión de Islander Morales Moyett compuesta por Fulano y Mengano de Tal, Departamento de Hacienda por conducto de la División de Caudales Relictos y el Centro de Recaudación de Ingresos Municipales (CRIM), ante el Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala Superior de Carolina, en el Caso Civil Número CA2022CV00450, sobre Cobro de Dinero y Ejecución de Hipoteca, en la que se reclama el pago de hipoteca, con un balance de $86,259.10 y otras cantidades, según Demanda de fecha 22 de febrero de 2022. Anotada al Tomo Karibe de Carolina. Anotación A. Se notifica al acreedor posterior o a su sucesor o cesionario en derecho para que comparezca a proteger su derecho si así lo desea. Se les advierte a los interesados que todos los documentos relacionados con la presente acción de ejecución de hipoteca, así como los de Subasta, estarán disponibles para ser examinados, durante horas laborables, en el expediente del caso que obra en los archivos de la Secretaría del Tribunal, bajo el número de epígrafe y para su publicación en un periódico de circulación general

en Puerto Rico por espacio de dos semanas y por lo menos una vez por semana; y para su fijación en los sitios públicos requeridos por ley. Se entenderá que todo licitador acepta como bastante la titularidad y que las cargas y gravámenes anteriores y los preferentes, si los hubiere, al crédito del ejecutante, continuarán subsistentes; entendiéndose que el rematante los acepta y queda subrogado en la responsabilidad de los mismos, sin destinarse a su extinción el precio del remate y que la propiedad a ser ejecutada se adquirirá libre de cargas y gravámenes posteriores tal como lo expresa la Ley Núm. 210-2015. Y para el conocimiento de los demandados, de los acreedores posteriores, de los licitadores, partes interesadas y público en general, EXPIDO para su publicación en los lugares públicos correspondientes, el presente Aviso de Pública Subasta en Carolina, Puerto Rico, hoy 8 de febrero de 2023. GRETCHEN

M. JEREZ SEDA, ALGUACIL, TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA, CENTRO JUDICIAL DE CAROLINA, SALA SUPERIOR.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA CENTRO JUDICIAL DE MANATÍ

MTGLQ INVESTORS, L.P. Demandante Vs. SUCESION DE ALBERTO PEREZ MENDEZ Y LA SUCESION DE JUANA MENDEZ

VALDES T/C/C JUANITA MENDEZ AMBAS

COMPUESTAS POR SU

HIJA: MILDRED PEREZ MENDEZ; FULANO DE TAL, FULANA DE TAL, ZUTANO DE TAL, ZUTANA DE TAL, A, B Y C, COMO HEREDEROS DESCONOCIDOS DE AMBAS SUCESIONES; HONORABLE SECRETARIO DE HACIENDA DEL ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO; HONORABLE SECRETARIO DE JUSTICIA DEL ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO

Demandados

no acumula intereses; recargos a razón del 5% de cada pago vencido no recibido dentro de los quince (15) días después de la fecha de vencimiento; más el 20%, equivalente a $7,209.99, del principal del pagaré para cubrir costas, gastos y honorarios de abogados pactado. El tipo mínimo para la subasta será la suma de tasación pactada, la cual es $36,049.99 según la escritura de hipoteca para la propiedad descrita. De declararse la subasta desierta, se procederá a una segunda subasta y servirá de tipo mínimo de 2/3 del precio mínimo antes mencionado; $24,033.33. Si tampoco hubiere remate ni adjudicación en esta segunda subasta, se procederá a una tercera subasta, en la cual regirá como tipo mínimo ésta la 1/2 del precio mínimo antes mencionado; $18,024.99. La PRIMERA SUBASTA se llevará a cabo el 4 DE MAYO DE 2023, A LAS 10:00 DE LA MAÑANA. De no comparecer postor alguno se llevará a efecto una SEGUNDA SUBASTA el 11 DE MAYO DE 2023, A LAS 10:00 DE LA MAÑANA. De no comparecer postor alguno se llevará a cabo una TERCERA SUBASTA el 18 DE MAYO DE 2023, A LAS 10:00 DE LA MAÑANA. La subasta o subastas antes indicadas se llevarán a efecto en mi oficina, localizada en el Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala Superior de Manatí. Del Estudio de Título realizado no surgen gravámenes preferentes ni posteriores que deban ser cancelados. Se advierte a los licitadores que la adjudicación se hará al mejor postor, quien deberá consignar el importe de su oferta en el mismo acto de la adjudicación en moneda de curso legal de los Estados Unidos de Norteamérica y para conocimiento de la parte demandada y de toda(s) aquella(s) persona(s) que tengan interés inscrito con posterioridad a la inscripción del gravamen que se está ejecutando, y para conocimiento de los licitadores y el público en general y para su publicación en un periódico de circulación general, una vez por semana durante el término de dos (2) semanas consecutivas con un intervalo de por lo menos siete (7) días entre ambas publicaciones, y para su fijación en tres (3) lugares públicos del municipio en que ha de celebrarse la venta, tales como, la Alcaldía, el Tribunal y la Colecturía y se le notificará además a la parte demandada vía correo certificado con acuse de recibo a la última dirección conocida. La propiedad a ser ejecutada se adquirirá libre de cargas y gravámenes posteriores, previa The San Juan Daily Star Monday, February 27, 2023 23

Civil Núm.: MT2020CV00070. Sobre: COBRO DE DINERO Y EJECUCIÓN DE HIPOTECA POR LA VÍA ORDINARIA.

AVISO DE VENTA EN PÚBLICA SUBASTA. Yo, WILFREDO RODRÍGUEZ CARRIÓN, Alguacil de la División de Subastas del Centro Judicial de Manatí, a los demandados y al público en general les notifico que, cumpliendo con un Mandamiento que se ha librado en el presente caso por el Secretario del Tribunal de epígrafe con fecha 11 de enero 2023 y para satisfacer la Sentencia por la cantidad de $19,437.48 de principal, dictada el 8 de marzo de 2022 y notificada por edicto en el caso de autos el 10 de marzo de 2022. El edicto de sentencia fue publicada el 17 de marzo de 2022 en el periódico The San Juan Daily Star y notificada por correo certificado a la parte demandada en ese mismo día, procederé a vender en pública subasta, al mejor postor en pago de contado y en moneda del curso legal de los Estados Unidos de América, mediante efectivo, giro o cheque certificado a nombre del Alguacil de este Tribunal todo derecho, título e interés que hayan tenido tengan o puedan tener los deudores demandados en cuanto a la propiedad localizada en el Municipio de Barceloneta, Puerto Rico, el bien inmueble se describe a continuación: Carr. 682 5455 Garróchales, Barceloneta, PR 00617. RÚSTICA: Parcela marcada con el numero doscientos noventa y dos (292) en el Plano de Parcelación de la Comunidad Rural Agostura del Barrio Florida Afuera del término municipal de Barceloneta, con una cabida superficial de Quinientos Dieciocho Punto Setenta y Cinco (518.75) metros cuadrados. En lindes por el Norte, con parcelas número doscientos ochenta y ocho (288) y doscientos ochenta y nueve (289) de la comunidad; por el Sur, con parcela número Quinientos Sesenta y Siete (567) de la comunidad, por el Este con parcela número Quinientos sesenta y ocho (568) de la comunidad y por el Oeste con acceso a área monte. Consta inscrita al folio del tomo de Barceloneta, Finca número 10,336, Registro de la Propiedad de Manatí. Con el importe de dicha venta se habrá de satisfacer a la parte demandante las cantidades adeudadas, según la Sentencia dictada en el caso de epígrafe, por el Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala de Manati, cuyas cantidades son las siguientes: $19,437.48 de principal; intereses desde el 4 de septiembre de 2017 al 8.00400 %, los cuales continúan acumulándose hasta el saldo total de la deuda; un balance diferido de $4,186.07 que

orden judicial dirigida al Registrador de la Propiedad de la sección correspondiente para la cancelación de aquellos posteriores. Se les advierte a todos los interesados que todos los documentos relacionados con la presente acción de ejecución de hipoteca, así como la de la subasta, estarán disponibles para ser examinados, durante horas laborables, en la Secretaría del Tribunal. Se entenderá que todo licitador acepta como bastante la titularidad y que las cargas y gravámenes anteriores y los preferentes, si los hubiere, al crédito del ejecutante, continuarán subsistentes; entendiéndose que el rematante los acepta y queda subrogado en la responsabilidad de los mismos, sin destinarse a su extinción el precio del remate. Y para conocimiento de los demandados, de los acreedores posteriores, de los licitadores, partes interesadas y público en general, expido el presente Aviso para su publicación en los lugares públicos correspondientes. Librado en Manati, Puerto Rico, a 8 de febrero de 2023. WILFREDO RODRÍGUEZ CARRIÓN, ALGUACIL CONFIDENCIAL PLACA #135.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA CENTRO JUDICIAL DE CAGUAS SALA SUPERIOR ORIENTAL BANK COMO AGENTE DE SERVICIOS DE THE MONEY HOUSE, INC.

Demandante Vs. EDGAR JOEL ESTRADA DE JESUS Y ESTADOS

UNIDOS DE AMERICA

Demandados

Civil Núm.: CG2022CV01879.

SUPERIOR, todo derecho, título e interés que tenga la parte demandada de epígrafe en el inmueble de su propiedad que ubica en: BARRIO CEIBA NORTE, COMUNIDAD VILLA ALBIZU, LOT 12 CALLE LOS PINOS, JUNCOS, PR 00777, y que se describe a continuación: RÚSTICA: Parcela marcada con el número 12 en el Plano de Parcelación de la Comunidad Rural Villa Albizu del Barrio Ceiba Norte, del término municipal de Juncos, Puerto Rico, con una cabida superficial de setecientos sesenta y tres diezmilésimas de una cuerda, equivalente a doscientos noventa y nueve metros cuadrados con noventa y dos centímetros de otro. En lindes: por el NORTE, con la parcela número once de la Comunidad; por el SUR, con la parcela número 14 de la Comunidad; por el ESTE, con la Calle pavimentada; y por el OESTE, con la parcela número 13 de la Comunidad. Sobre esta finca se edificó una casa, valorada en $32,500.00, según la escritura número 336, otorgada en San Juan, Puerto Rico, el día 1 de julio de 1988, ante el notario Edgardo E. Rivera Maldonado, e inscrita al folio 194 vuelto del tomo 191 de Juncos, finca número 7,370, inscripción 4ta. La propiedad antes relacionada consta inscrita al Folio 193 del Tomo 191 de Juncos, finca número 7,370, Registro de la Propiedad de Caguas, Sección Segunda. El tipo mínimo para la primera subasta del inmueble antes relacionado, será el dispuesto en la Escritura de Modificación de Hipoteca, es decir la suma de $98,188.00. Si no hubiere remate ni adjudicación en la primera subasta del inmueble mencionado, se celebrará una SEGUNDA SUBASTA en las oficinas del Alguacil que suscribe el día 11 DE ABRIL DE 2023, A LAS 9:45 DE LA MAÑANA. En la segunda subasta que se celebre servirá de tipo mínimo las dos terceras partes (2/3) del precio pactado en la primera subasta, o sea la suma de $65,458.67. Si tampoco hubiere remate ni adjudicación en la segunda subasta se celebrará una TERCERA SUBASTA en las oficinas del Alguacil que suscribe el día 18 DE ABRIL DE 2023, A LAS 9:45 DE LA MAÑANA. Para la tercera subasta servirá de tipo mínimo la mitad (1/2) del precio pactado para el caso de ejecución, o sea, la suma de $49,094.00. La hipoteca a ejecutarse en el caso de epígrafe fue constituida mediante la escritura de hipoteca número 201 otorgada en San Juan, Puerto Rico, el día 13 de diciembre de 2019, ante la Notario Teresita

ISLAND PORTFOLIO SERVICES, LLC

COMO AGENTE DE FAIRWAY ACQUISITIONS FUND, LLC

Demandante Vs. MARY A.

VÁZQUEZ

Demandada

Civil Núm.: LU2022CV00181.

Sobre: COBRO DE DINERO. EMPLAZAMIENTO POR EDICTO.

A: MARY A. VÁZQUEZ - URB BRISAS DEL MAR GG31 CALLE G LUQUILLO, PUERTO RICO

00773.

POR LA PRESENTE se le emplaza y requiere para que conteste la demanda dentro de los treinta (30) días siguientes a la publicación de este Edicto.

Usted deberá presentar su alegación responsiva a través del Sistema Unificado de Manejo y Administración de Casos (SUMAC), la cual puede acceder utilizando la siguiente dirección electrónica: https://unired. ramajudicial.pr, salvo que se represente por derecho propio, en cuyo caso deberá presentar su alegación responsiva en la secretaría del tribunal. Si usted deja de presentar su alegación responsiva dentro del referido término, el tribunal podrá dictar sentencia en rebeldía en su contra y conceder el remedio solicitado en la demanda o cualquier otro sin más citarle ni oírle, si el tribunal en el ejercicio de su sana discreción, lo entiende procedente. El sistema SUMAC notificará copia al abogado de la parte demandante, el Lcdo. José F. Aguilar

Vélez cuya dirección es: P.O. Box 71418 San Juan, Puerto Rico 00936-8518, teléfono (787) 993-3731 a la dirección jose.aguilar@orflaw.com y a la dirección notificaciones@orflaw.com. EXTENDIDO BAJO

MI FIRMA y el sello del Tribunal, en Fajardo, Puerto Rico, hoy día 25 de enero de 2023. En Fajardo, Puerto Rico, el 25 de enero de 2023. WANDA I.

SEGUÍ REYES, SECRETARIA

REGIONAL. ANA CELIS MÁRQUEZ, SECRETARIA AUXILIAR.

LEGAL NOT ICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO

DE PUERTO RICO TRIBU-

NAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA

CENTRO JUDICIAL DE SAN JUAN SALA SUPERIOR

ISLAND PORTFOLIO SERVICES, LLC., COMO AGENTE DE FAIRWAY ACQUISITIONS FUND, LLC

Demandante Vs. ANDRES

CARRASQUILLO BIGIO, FULANA DE TAL Y LA SOCIEDAD LEGAL DE GANANCIALES POR

AMBOS COMPUESTA

Demandado

Civil Núm.: SJ2022CV09098.

Salón: 803. Sobre: COBRO DE DINERO. EMPLAZAMIENTO POR EDICTO.

A: ANDRES

CARRASQUILLO BIGIO, FULANA DE TAL Y LA SOCIEDAD LEGAL DE GANANCIALES POR AMBOS COMPUESTA. SECT. LA CORTE

2, CAMINO LOS VELAZQUEZ, SAN JUAN PR 00926-8624.

POR LA PRESENTE se le emplaza y requiere para que conteste la demanda dentro de los treinta (30) días siguientes a la publicación de este Edicto. Usted deberá presentar su alegación responsiva a través del Sistema Unificado de Manejo y Administración de Casos (SUMAC), la cual puede acceder utilizando la siguiente dirección electrónica: https://unired.ramajudicial.pr, salvo que se represente por derecho propio, en cuyo caso deberá presentar su alegación responsiva en la secretaría del tribunal. Si usted deja de presentar su alegación responsiva dentro del referido término, el tribunal podrá dictar sentencia en rebeldía en su contra y conceder el remedio solicitado en la demanda o cualquier otro sin más citarle ni oírle, si el tribunal en el ejercicio de su sana discreción, lo entiende procedente. El sistema SUMAC notificará copia al abogado de la parte demandante, el Lcdo.

Kenmuel J. Ruiz López cuya dirección es: P.O. Box 71418 San Juan, Puerto Rico 009368518, teléfono (787) 993-3731 a la dirección kenmuel.riuz@ orf-law.com y a la dirección notificaciones@orf-law.com.

EXTENDIDO BAJO MI FIRMA y el sello del Tribunal, en San Juan, Puerto Rico, hoy día 17 de noviembre de 2022. En San Juan, Puerto Rico, el 17 de noviembre de 2022. GRISELDA

RODRÍGUEZ COLLADO, SECRETARIA REGIONAL. MARÍA

I. RÍOS LÓPEZ, SECRETARIA DE SERVICIOS A SALA.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA

CENTRO JUDICIAL DE CARO-

LINA SALA SUPERIOR.

BANCO POPULAR DE PUERTO RICO

PARTE DEMANDANTE VS. GRISSELL RODRÍGUEZ

PADUA T/C/C GISELLE RODRÍGUEZ PADUA

T/C/C GRISSSELL RODRÍGUEZ PADUA

PARTE DEMANDADA

CIVIL NÚM. CA2021CV03335.

SALA: 407. SOBRE: COBRO DE DINERO Y EJECUCIÓN

DE HIPOTECA POR LA VÍA ORDINARIA. ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMÉRICA EL PRESIDENTE DE LOS ESTADOS UNIDOS EL ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO. SS. AVISO DE PÚBLICA SUBASTA. El Alguacil que suscribe por la presente anuncia y hace constar que en cumplimiento de la Sentencia dictada el 23 de febrero de 2022, la Orden de Ejecución de Sentencia del 25 de mayo de 2022 y el Mandamiento de Ejecución del 30 de enero de 2023 en el caso de epígrafe, procederé a vender el día 2 de mayo de 2023, a las 9:30 de la mañana, en mi oficina, localizada en el Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Centro Judicial de Carolina, Sala Superior, en la Avenida 65 Infantería, Carretera Número Tres (3), Kilómetro 11.7 (Entrada de la Urbanización Mansiones de Carolina) Carolina, Puerto Rico, al mejor postor en pago de contado y en moneda de los Estados Unidos de América, cheque de gerente o giro postal a nombre del Alguacil del Tribunal; todo título, derecho o interés de la parte demandada sobre la siguiente propiedad:

URBANA: PROPIEDAD HO-

RIZONTAL: Apartamento número 609 localizado en la sexta planta del Condominio Paseo de Monteflores localizado en el Barrio Martín González del término municipal de Carolina, Puerto Rico. Tiene una cabida aproximada de 901.22 pies cuadrados, equivalentes a 83.77 metros cuadrados. Colindando por el NORTE, con elementos comunes del exterior; por el SUR, con elementos comunes del exterior; por el ESTE, con el apartamento número 610 y con elementos comunes; y por el OESTE, con elementos comunes del exterior. Consta de sala, comedor, cocina, baños, lavandería, linen room, cuarto de almacenaje, tres (3) cuartos dormitorios y balcón. La puerta de entrada de este apartamento está localizada en el lado Sur Este. Este apartamento tiene una participación en los elementos comunes generales del condominio de 0.005797%. A este apartamento le corresponde un espacio de estacionamiento identificado con el número 172. Inscrita al folio 194 del tomo 1398 de Carolina, finca número 57624, Registro de la Propiedad de Carolina, Sección II. La escritura de hipoteca consta inscrita al folio 194 vuelto del tomo 1398 de Carolina, finca número 57624, Registro de la Propiedad de Carolina, Sección II. Inscripción tercera. Dirección Física: Cond. Paseo de Monteflores, Apt. 609, Carolina, PR 00987. Número de Catastro: 20-088-064-194-01-065. El tipo mínimo para la primera subasta será de $87,308.00. De no haber adjudicación en la

primera subasta se celebrará una segunda subasta, el día 9 de mayo de 2023, a las 9:30 de la mañana, en el mismo lugar, en la cual el tipo mínimo será de dos terceras partes del tipo mínimo fijado en la primera subasta, o sea, $58,205.33. De no haber adjudicación en la segunda subasta, se celebrará una tercera subasta, el día 16 de mayo de 2023, a las 9:30 de la mañana, en el mismo lugar, en la cual el tipo mínimo será la mitad del precio pactado, o sea, $43,654.00. Si se declarase desierta la tercera subasta, se adjudicará la finca a favor del acreedor por la totalidad de la cantidad adeudada si ésta es igual o menor que el monto del tipo de la tercera subasta, si el tribunal lo estima conveniente. Se abonará dicho monto a la cantidad adeudada si ésta es mayor. Dicho remate se llevará a cabo para con su producto satisfacer a la demandante el importe de la Sentencia por la suma de $78,210.97 de principal, más intereses sobre dicha suma al 5% anual desde el 1 de febrero de 2020 hasta su completo pago, más $297.75 de recargos acumulados, los cuales continuarán en aumento hasta el saldo total de la deuda, más la cantidad estipulada de $8,730.80 para costas, gastos y honorarios de abogados, así como cualquier otra suma que contenga el contrato del préstamo. Surge del Estudio de Título Registral que sobre esta propiedad pesa el siguiente gravamen posterior a la hipoteca que por la presente se pretende ejecutar: Aviso de Demanda: Pleito seguido por Banco Popular de Puerto Rico Vs. Grissell (así consta) Rodríguez Padua (soltera) también conocida como Giselle Rodríguez Padua y Grisssell Rodríguez Pauda, ante el Tribunal Superior de Puerto Rico, Sala de Carolina, en el Caso Civil Número CA2021CV03335, sobre Cobro de Dinero y Ejecución de Hipoteca, en la que se reclama el pago de hipoteca, con un balance de $78,210.97 y otras cantidades, según Demanda de fecha 9 de diciembre de 2021.

Anotada al Tomo Karibe de Carolina. Anotación A. Se notifica al acreedor posterior o a su sucesor o cesionario en derecho para que comparezca a proteger su derecho si así lo desea.

Se les advierte a los interesados que todos los documentos relacionados con la presente acción de ejecución de hipoteca, así como los de Subasta, estarán disponibles para ser examinados, durante horas laborables, en el expediente del caso que obra en los archivos de la Secretaría del Tribunal, bajo el número de epígrafe y para su publicación en un periódico de circulación general en Puerto Rico por espacio de dos semanas y por lo menos

una vez por semana; y para su fijación en los sitios públicos requeridos por ley. Se entenderá que todo licitador acepta como bastante la titularidad y que las cargas y gravámenes anteriores y los preferentes, si los hubiere, al crédito del ejecutante, continuarán subsistentes; entendiéndose que el rematante los acepta y queda subrogado en la responsabilidad de los mismos, sin destinarse a su extinción el precio del remate y que la propiedad a ser ejecutada se adquirirá libre de cargas y gravámenes posteriores tal como lo expresa la Ley Núm. 210-2015. Y para el conocimiento de los demandados, de los acreedores posteriores, de los licitadores, partes interesadas y público en general, EXPIDO para su publicación en los lugares públicos correspondientes, el presente Aviso de Pública Subasta en Carolina, Puerto Rico, hoy 8 de febrero de 2023. Gretchen M. Jerez Seda, ALGUACIL, TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA, CENTRO JUDICIAL DE CAROLINA, SALA SUPERIOR.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA SALA DE VEGA BAJA ORIENTAL BANK

Demandante V. JESUS R. ORTEGA TORRES, FULANA DE TAL Y LA SOCIEDAD LEGAL DE GANANCIALES COMPUESTA POR AMBOS

Demandado Civil Núm.: VB2022CV00793.

Sobre: COBRO DE DINERO POR LA VÍA ORDINARIA. EMPLAZAMIENTO POR EDICTO. ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMÉRICA, EL PRESIDENTE DE LOS EE. UU., EL ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO, SS.

A: JESUS R. ORTEGA TORRES, FULANA DE TAL Y LA SOCIEDAD LEGAL DE GANANCIALES COMPUESTA POR AMBOS. POR MEDIO del presente edicto se le notifica de la radicación de una demanda en cobro de dinero por la vía ordinaria en la que se alega que usted adeuda a la parte demandante, Oriental Bank, ciertas sumas de dinero, y las costas, gastos y honorarios de abogado de este litigio. El demandante, Oriental Bank, ha solicitado que se dicte sentencia en contra suya y que se le ordene pagar las cantidades reclamadas en la demanda.

POR EL PRESENTE EDICTO se le emplaza para que presente al tribunal su alegación res-

ponsiva a la demanda dentro de los treinta (30) días de haber sido diligenciado este emplazamiento, excluyéndose el día del diligenciamiento. Usted deberá presentar su alegación responsiva a través del Sistema Unificado de Manejo y Administración de Casos (SUMAC), al cual puede acceder utilizando la siguiente dirección electrónica: https://www.poderjudicial. pr/index/php/tribunal-electronico/, salvo que se represente por derecho propio, en cuyo caso deberá presentar su alegación responsiva en la Secretaría del Tribunal. Si usted deja de presentar su alegación responsiva dentro del referido término, el tribunal podrá dictar sentencia en rebeldía en su contra, y conceder el remedio solicitado en la Demanda, o cualquier otro, si el tribunal, en el ejercicio de su sana discreción, lo entiende procedente, sin más citarle ni oírle. El abogado de la parte demandante es: Jaime Ruiz Saldaña, RUA número 11673; Dirección: PO Box 366276, San Juan, PR 00936-6276; Teléfono: (787) 759-6897; Correo electrónico: legal@jrslawpr. com. Se le advierte que dentro de los diez (10) días siguientes a la publicación del presente edicto, se le estará enviando a usted por correo certificado con acuse de recibo, una copia del emplazamiento y de la demanda presentada al lugar de su última dirección conocida: Lake Side Villa R2, Vega Alta, PR 00693. EXPEDIDO bajo mi firma y el sello del Tribunal en Vega Baja, Puerto Rico, hoy día 15 de febrero de 2023. LCDA.

LAURA I. SANTA SÁNCHEZ, SECRETARIA REGIONAL. MARITZA ROSARIO ROSARIO, SECRETARIA AUXILIAR DEL TRIBUNAL I.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA SALA SUPERIOR DE CAGUAS

BANCO POPULAR DE PUERTO RICO

Parte Demandante Vs. LA SUCESIÓN DE MERCEDES CALCAÑO

GUZMÁN COMPUESTA POR FRANCISCO

JAVIER DÍAZ CALCAÑO

T/C/C FRANCISCO

J. DÍAZ, FULANO Y MENGANO DE TAL, POSIBLES HEREDEROS DESCONOCIDOS

Parte Demandada Civil Núm.: CG2023CV00220. (701). Sobre: EJECUCIÓN DE HIPOTECA POR LA VÍA ORDINARIA “IN REM”. EMPLAZAMIENTO POR EDICTO E INTERPELACIÓN. ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMÉRICA, EL PRESIDENTE DE LOS E.E.U.U., EL ESTADO LIBRE

ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO.

A: FRANCISCO JAVIER DÍAZ CALCAÑO

T/C/C FRANCISCO J. DÍAZ HEREDERO DE MERCEDES CALCAÑO

GUZMÁN a las siguientes direcciones: URB.

PARCELAS NUEVAS, 346 CALLE 30, GURABO, PR 00778-2924, 172

WOODLAND DR., HARTFORD, CT 061051203 y 21 CHADWICK

AVE., HARTFORD, CT 06106-1113.

FULANO y MENGANO DE TAL, POSIBLES HEREDEROS DESCONOCIDOS DE MERCEDES CALCAÑO GUZMÁN.

Queda usted notificado que en este Tribunal se ha radicado demanda sobre ejecución de hipoteca por la vía ordinaria en la que se alega se adeuda las siguientes cantidades: $12,968.95 de principal, más intereses sobre dicha suma al 5.50% anual desde el 1 de junio de 2022 hasta su completo pago, más $76.77 de recargos acumulados, los cuales continuarán en aumento hasta el saldo total de la deuda, más la cantidad estipulada de $7,440.00 para costas, gastos y honorarios de abogados, así como cualquier otra suma que contenga el contrato del préstamo, incluyendo pero sin limitarse a gastos de mantenimiento, inspecciones y otros adelantos “corporate advances”. La propiedad que garantiza hipotecariamente el préstamo es la siguiente: RÚSTICA: Parcela marcada con el número 346 en el plano de parcelación de la Comunidad Rural Celada de los Barrios Celada y Hato Nuevo del término municipal de Gurabo, con una cabida superficial de 358.79 metros cuadrados. En lindes por el NORTE: con la parcela número 347 de la comunidad; por el SUR: con parcela número 345 de la comunidad; por el ESTE: con la calle número 30 de la comunidad; por el OESTE: con las parcelas números 329 y 330 de la comunidad. Inscrita al folio 89 del tomo 206 de Gurabo, Finca 7944. Registro de la Propiedad de Caguas, Sección II. La escritura de hipoteca consta inscrita al folio 53 del tomo 374 de Gurabo, Finca 7944. Registro de la Propiedad de Caguas, Sección II. Inscripción sexta. La demandante es la tenedora por endoso, por valor recibido y de buena fe del referido pagaré objeto de la presente acción. Se interpela a los demandados para que acepten o renuncien a la herencia de la causante dentro de los

30 días subsiguientes a la fecha que fuesen emplazados o requeridos que contesten, para darle cumplimiento el Artículo 1578 del nuevo Código Civil de Puerto Rico, 31 L.P.R.A. § 11021, entendiéndose que, si no se expresan dentro de dicho término, aceptan el caudal relicto; la renuncia se hará por instrumento público o por escrito judicial. La parte demandada deberá presentar su alegación responsiva a través del Sistema Unificado de Administración y Manejo de Casos (SUMAC), al cual puede acceder utilizando la siguiente dirección electrónica: https://unired.ramajudicial. pr, salvo que se represente por derecho propio, en cuyo caso deberá presentar su alegación responsiva en la secretaría del Tribunal. Se le advierte que si no contesta la demanda, radicando el original de la contestación en este Tribunal y enviando copia de la contestación a la abogada de la parte demandante, Lcda. Belma Alonso García, cuya dirección es: PO Box 3922, Guaynabo PR 00970-3922, Teléfonos: (787) 789-1826 y (787) 708-0566, correo electrónico: oficinabelmaalonso@gmail.com, dentro del término de treinta (30) días de la publicación de este edicto, excluyéndose el día de la publicación, se le anotará la rebeldía y se le dictará Sentencia en su contra, concediendo el remedio solicitado sin más citarle ni oírle. EXPEDIDO bajo mi firma y el sello del Tribunal, hoy 14 de febrero de 2023 en Caguas, Puerto Rico. LISILDA MARTÍNEZ AGOSTO, SECRETARIA. ENEIDA ARROYO VÉLEZ, SUB-SECRETARIA.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA SALA DE BAYAMON. Wilmington Savings Fund Society, FSB, not individually but solely as trustee for Finance of America Structured Securities Acquisition Trust 2018-HB1 DEMANDANTE VS. Sucesión de Carmen Margarita Maldonado Colón t/c/c Carmen M. Maldonado Colón, t/c/c Carmen Maldonado Colón, t/c/c Carmen Margarita Maldonado, t/c/c Carmen M. Maldonado, t/c/c Margarita Maldonado , t/c/c Carmen Maldonado compuesta por Ángel Luis Vázquez Díaz, t/c/c Ángel Luis Terrón Díaz, t/c/c Ángel L. Vázquez Díaz, t/c/c Ángel Vázquez Díaz, t/c/c Ángel Luis Vázquez,

basta del inmueble antes descrito será la suma de $240,000.00 según se establece en la escritura de hipoteca antes relacionada. En caso de que el inmueble a ser subastado no fuera adjudicado en su primera subasta se ordena la celebración de una segunda subasta de dicho inmueble, en la cual, la cantidad mínima será una equivalente a 2/3 parte de aquella, o sea la suma de $160,000.00; desierta también la segunda subasta de dicho inmueble, se ordena la celebración de una tercera subasta en la cual, la cantidad mínima será la mitad del precio pactado para la primera subasta, es decir la suma de $120,000.00. La propiedad se adjudicará al mejor postor, quien deberá satisfacer el importe de su oferta en moneda legal y corriente de los Estados Unidos de América en el momento de la adjudicación, entiéndase efectivo, giro postal o cheque certificado a nombre del Alguacil del Tribunal de Primera Instancia, y que las cargas y gravámenes preferentes, si los hubiese, al crédito del ejecutante continuarán subsistentes, entendiéndose que el rematante los acepta y queda subrogado en la responsabilidad de los mismos, sin destinarse a su extinción el precio del remate. La propiedad no está sujeta a gravámenes anteriores y/o preferentes según surge de las constancias del Registro de la Propiedad en un estudio de título efectuado a la finca antes descrita. Una vez efectuada la venta de dicha propiedad, el Alguacil procederá a otorgar la escritura de traspaso al licitador victorioso en subasta, quien podrá ser la parte demandante, cuya oferta podrá aplicarse a la extinción parcial o total de la obligación reconocida por la sentencia dictada en este caso. La propiedad a ser ejecutada se adquirirá libre de cargas y gravámenes posteriores. Si el producto de la venta fuere insuficiente para satisfacer la cantidad reclamada, se procederá a la ejecución de la sentencia en contra de la parte demandada por el remanente de las sumas no satisfechas, mediante embargo y venta en ejecución de cualesquiera otros bienes propiedad de la parte demandada en cantidad suficiente para dejar cubierta y totalmente satisfecha a la parte demandante cualquier deficiencia o parte insoluta de la sentencia dictada a su favor según dispuesto en la sentencia dictada en este caso. Se dispone, conforme con la sentencia dictada en este caso que, una vez efectuada la subasta y vendido el bien inmueble, los adjudicatarios sean puestos en posesión del mismo dentro del término de veinte (20) días por el Alguacil de este Honorable Tribunal y los actua-

les poseedores lanzados del referido inmueble. Y para la concurrencia de licitadores y para el público en general, se publicará este Edicto de acuerdo con la ley, mediante edicto, en un periódico de circulación general en el Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, una vez por semana, por espacio de dos (2) semanas consecutivas con un intervalo de por lo menos siete (7) días entre ambas publicaciones, y para su fijación en tres (3) lugares públicos del municipio en que ha de celebrarse la venta, tales como la Alcaldía, el Tribunal y la Colecturía, y se le notificará además a la parte demandada vía correo certificado con acuse de recibo a la última dirección conocida. EN TESTIMONIO DE LO CUAL, expido el presente Edicto de Subasta para conocimiento y comparecencia de los licitadores, bajo mi firma y sello del Tribunal, en Bayamón, Puerto Rico, a 23 de febrero de 2023. EDGARDO ELIAS VARGAS SANTANA, ALGUACIL

TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA SALA DE BAYAMÓN.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA

SALA SUPERIOR DE UTUADO

FIRSTBANK

PUERTO RICO

Parte Demandante Vs. SUCESIÓN DE ANTONIA NEGRÓN NEGRÓN COMPUESTA POR DIXIE

AURORA COLLAZO NEGRÓN; EMÉRITO

COLLAZO NEGRÓN; MARÍA DEL CARMEN

COLLAZO NEGRÓN T/C/C

MARICARMEN COLLAZO NEGRÓN; FULANO Y SUTANO DE TAL COMO POSIBLES HEREDEROS DESCONOCIDOS; CRIM

Parte Demandada

Civil Núm.: UT2022CV00105.

Salón Núm.: (10). Sobre: EJECUCIÓN DE HIPOTECA Y COBRO DE DINERO. EDICTO DE SUBASTA, ESTADOS

UNIDOS DE AMÉRICA, EL PRESIDENTE DE LOS ESTADOS UNIDOS, ESTADO LIBRE

ASOCIADO DE P.R., SS.

A: SUCESIÓN DE ANTONIA NEGRÓN

NEGRÓN COMPUESTA

POR DIXIE AURORA

COLLAZO NEGRÓN; EMÉRITO COLLAZO NEGRÓN; MARÍA DEL CARMEN COLLAZO

NEGRÓN T/C/C

MARICARMEN COLLAZO

NEGRÓN; FULANO Y

SUTANO DE TAL COMO

POSIBLES HEREDEROS DESCONOCIDOS;

CENTRO DE RECAUDACION DE INGRESOS MUNICIPALES

(CRIM):

EN GENERAL:

DEPARTAMENTO DE HACIENDA: Y AL PÚBLICO

El Alguacil que suscribe, certifica y hace constar que en cumplimiento de Mandamiento de Ejecución de Sentencia que me ha sido dirigido por la Secretaría del Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala Superior de Utuado, procederé a vender en pública subasta y al mejor postor, por separado, de contado y por moneda de curso legal de los Estados Unidos de América. Todo pago recibido por el (la) Alguacil por concepto de subastas será en efectivo, giro postal o cheque certificado a nombre del (de la) Alguacil del Tribunal de Primera Instancia. Todo derecho, título, participación e interés que le corresponda a la parte demandada o cualquiera de ellos en el inmueble hipotecado objeto de ejecución que se describe a continuación:

RÚSTICA: Localizada en el Barrio Viví Abajo del Municipio de Utuado, Puerto Rico, con una cabida superficial de cero punto ocho mil cuatrocientos treinta y una diez milésimas de cuerda, equivalentes a tres mil trescientos doce con sesenta y cinco céntimos de otro cuadrados.. En lindes por el NORTE y ESTE, con una quebrada que la separa de terrenos propiedad de Luis Alicea, por el SUR, con la Carretera Estatal número ciento once (111) y con la finca de San Miguel Hermanos, Inc., antes, hoy Brisas del Viví Incorporado y por el OESTE, con la finca principal de donde se segrega. Consta inscrita al folio 185 del tomo 310 de Utuado, finca número #12,389 Registro de la Propiedad de Puerto Rico, Sección de Utuado. La propiedad objeto de ejecución está localizada en la siguiente dirección: PR 111 KM 4.9, VIVI ABAJO WD, UTUADO, PR 00612. Se informa que la propiedad a ser ejecutada se adquirirá libre de cargas y gravamen posterior, una vez sea otorgada la escritura de venta judicial y obtenida la Orden y Mandamiento de cancelación de gravamen posterior. (Art. 51, Ley 2102015). En relación a la finca a subastarse, se establece como tipo mínimo de licitación en la Primera Subasta la suma de $78,500.00, según consta de la escritura número 383, otorgada en Hatillo, Puerto Rico, el día 8 de agosto de 2005, ante el notario Félix Oscar Rivera Borges, e inscrita al folio 15 del tomo

559 de Utuado, finca número 12,389 inscripción 10ma., debidamente modificada la hipoteca por la suma de $78,500.00, la cual se cancela parcialmente en la suma de $4,173.32, quedando reducida a la suma de $74,326.61, según consta de

la escritura número 410, otorgada en Hatillo, Puerto Rico, el día 5 de octubre de 2011, ante el notario Teresa Jiménez Meléndez, e inscrita al folio 15 del tomo 559 de Utuado, finca número 12,389, nota marginal inscripción 10ma. La PRIMERA SUBASTA, se llevará a cabo el día 6 DE JUNIO DE 2023 A LAS 1:30 DE LA TARDE, en mis oficinas sitas en el Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala Superior de Utuado, el tipo mínimo para la primera subasta es la suma de $78,500.00. Si la primera subasta del inmueble no produjere remate, ni adjudicación, se celebrará una SEGUNDA SUBASTA el día 13 DE JUNIO DE 2023 A LAS 1:30 DE LA TARDE, en el mismo sitio y servirá de tipo mínimo las dos terceras partes del precio pactada para la primera subasta, o sea, la suma de $52,333.33. Si la segunda subasta no produjere remate, ni adjudicación, se celebrará una TERCERA SUBASTA el día 21 DE JUNIO DE 2023 A LAS 1:30 DE LA TARDE, en el mismo lugar y regirá como tipo mínimo de la tercera subasta la mitad del precio pactado para la primera, o sea, la suma de $39,250.00. Dicha subasta se llevará a cabo, para con su producto satisfacer a la parte demandante el importe de la Sentencia dictada a su favor, a saber: Suma Principal de $69,741.52, con intereses a 6.875% anual, desde el 1ro de marzo de 2020, hasta el presente y los que se continúen acumulando hasta su total y completo pago, más los cargos por demora que se corresponden a los plazos atrasados desde la fecha anteriormente indicada a razón de la tasa pactada de 5% de cualquier pago que éste en mora por más de quince (15) días desde la fecha de su vencimiento, más una suma equivalente a $7,850.00, por concepto de costas, gastos y honorarios de abogado, más cualquier otra suma que resulte por cualesquiera otros adelantos que se hayan hecho la demandante, en virtud de las disposiciones de la escritura de hipoteca y del Pagaré hipotecario. Para más información, a las personas interesadas se les notifica que los autos y todos los documentos correspondientes al procedimiento incoado, estarán de manifiesto en la Secretaría del Tribunal, durante las horas laborables.

Este EDICTO DE SUBASTA, se publicará en los lugares públicos correspondientes y en un periódico de circulación general en la jurisdicción de Puerto Rico. Se entenderá que todo licitador acepta como bastante la titularidad y que las cargas y gravámenes anteriores y los referentes, si los hubiere, al crédito del ejecutante continuarán subsistentes. Se entenderá que el rematante los acepta

y queda subrogado en la responsabilidad de los mismos, sin destinarse a su extinción el precio del remate. Se procederá a otorgar la correspondiente Escritura de Venta Judicial y el Alguacil pondrá en posesión judicial al nuevo dueño, si así se lo solicita dentro del término de veinte (20) días, de conformidad con las disposiciones de Ley. Si transcurren los referidos veinte (20) días, el tribunal podrá ordenar, sin necesidad de ulterior procedimiento, que se lleve a efecto el desalojo o lanzamiento del ocupante u ocupantes de la finca o de todos los que por orden o tolerancia del deudor la ocupen. Expedido en Utuado, Puerto Rico, a 3 de febrero de 2023. ALG. RICARDO ACEVEDO RIVERA, ALGUACIL PLACA #414.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA SALA DE ARECIBO

MMG I PR CR, LLC

Demandante V. JORGE LUIS KUILAN GONZALEZ, SU ESPOSA, SUHEILLY RIOS REYES Y LA SOCIEDAD LEGAL DE BIENES GANANCIALES

COMPUESTA POR AMBOS

Demandada

Civil Núm.: AR2022CV02196.

Sobre: EJECUCIÓN DE HIPOTECA - IN REM. EMPLAZAMIENTO POR EDICTO. LOS ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMÉRICA, EL PRESIDENTE DE LOS EE.UU., EL ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE P.R., S.S.

A: JORGE LUIS JULIAN GONZALEZ POR SI Y EN REPRESENTACIÓN DE LA SOCIEDAD LEGAL DE BIENES GANANCIALES.

POR LA PRESENTE, se le emplaza para que presente al tribunal su alegación responsiva a la demanda dentro de los TREINTA (30) días de haber sido publicado este emplazamiento, excluyéndose el día de publicación. Se le advierte que dentro de los diez (10) días de hacerse la primera publicación de este edicto se le estará enviando por correo certificado una copia del emplazamiento y de la demanda al lugar de su última dirección conocida. Usted deberá presentar su alegación responsiva a través del Sistema Unificado de Manejo y Administración de Casos (SUMAC), al cual puede acceder utilizando la siguiente dirección electrónica: https://unired.ramajudicial. pr, salvo que represente por derecho propio, en cuyo caso deberá presentar alegación responsiva en la secretaria del tribunal. Si usted deja de presentar su alegación responsiva dentro del referido término, el tribunal podrá dictar sentencia

en rebeldía en su contra y conceder el remedio solicitado en la demanda, o cualquier otro, si el tribunal, en el ejercicio de sana discreción, lo entiende procedente. Se le requiere que notifique su contestación a la parte demandante, por conducto de sus abogados, Ldo. Francisco Fernández Chiqués a su dirección Fernández Chiqués LLC PO Box 9749 San Juan, PR 00908, Tel. (787) 722-3040, Fax (787) 722-3317, Email: ffc@ffclaw.com, dentro del término provisto o se le podrá anotar la rebeldía en su contra y se le dictará sentencia en su contra, conforme se solicita en la Demanda, sin más citarle ni oírle. EXPEDIDO BAJO MI FIRMA Y SELLO DE ESTE TRIBUNAL. En Arecibo, Puerto Rico, hoy día 15 de febrero de 2023. VIVIAN Y. FRESSE GONZÁLEZ, SECRETARIA REGIONAL. CARMEN J. ROSARIO VALENTÍN, SECRETARIA AUXILIAR DEL TRIBUNAL I.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA SALA DE ARECIBO

MMG I PR CR, LLC

Demandante V. JORGE LUIS KUILAN

GONZALEZ, SU ESPOSA, SUHEILLY RIOS REYES Y LA SOCIEDAD LEGAL DE BIENES GANANCIALES COMPUESTA POR

AMBOS

Demandada

Civil Núm.: AR2022CV02196.

Sobre: EJECUCIÓN DE HIPOTECA - IN REM. EMPLAZAMIENTO POR EDICTO. LOS ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMÉRICA, EL PRESIDENTE DE LOS EE.UU., EL ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE P.R., S.S.

A: SUHEILLY RIOS REYES POR SI Y EN REPRESENTACIÓN DE LA SOCIEDAD LEGAL DE BIENES GANANCIALES. POR LA PRESENTE, se le emplaza para que presente al tribunal su alegación responsiva a la demanda dentro de los TREINTA (30) días de haber sido publicado este emplazamiento, excluyéndose el día de publicación. Se le advierte que dentro de los diez (10) días de hacerse la primera publicación de este edicto se le estará enviando por correo certificado una copia del emplazamiento y de la demanda al lugar de su última dirección conocida. Usted deberá presentar su alegación responsiva a través del Sistema Unificado de Manejo y Administración de Casos (SUMAC), al cual puede acceder utilizando la siguiente dirección electrónica: https://unired.ramajudicial. pr, salvo que represente por derecho propio, en cuyo caso deberá presentar alegación

responsiva en la secretaria del tribunal. Si usted deja de presentar su alegación responsiva dentro del referido término, el tribunal podrá dictar sentencia en rebeldía en su contra y conceder el remedio solicitado en la demanda, o cualquier otro, si el tribunal, en el ejercicio de sana discreción, lo entiende procedente. Se le requiere que notifique su contestación a la parte demandante, por conducto de sus abogados, Ldo. Francisco Fernández Chiqués a su dirección Fernández Chiqués LLC PO Box 9749 San Juan, PR 00908, Tel. (787) 722-3040, Fax (787) 722-3317, Email: ffc@ffclaw.com, dentro del término provisto o se le podrá anotar la rebeldía en su contra y se le dictará sentencia en su contra, conforme se solicita en la Demanda, sin más citarle ni oírle. EXPEDIDO BAJO MI FIRMA Y SELLO DE ESTE TRIBUNAL. En Arecibo, Puerto Rico, hoy día 15 de febrero de 2023.

VIVIAN Y. FRESSE GONZÁLEZ, SECRETARIA REGIONAL. CARMEN J. ROSARIO

VALENTÍN, SECRETARIA AUXILIAR DEL TRIBUNAL I.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA SALA SUPERIOR DE SAN JUAN

BANCO POPULAR DE PUERTO RICO

Demandante V. SUCESIÓN DE NICOLÁS

ENCARNACIÓN ULLOA

COMPUESTA POR EVA

ENCARNACIÓN, FELIX

ENCARNACION, FULANO

(A) DE TAL Y SUTANO

(A) DE TAL COMO

POSIBLES HEREDEROS DESCONOCIDOS; SUCESIÓN DE ROSALINA

CEPEDA SEGURA T/C/C

ROSELIA CEPEDA

SEGURA COMPUESTA

POR JULIO PAREDES

CEPEDA, JOSÉ

AGUSTÍN PAREDES

CEPEDA T/C/C MOISÉS PAREDES CEPEDA, ANA C. PAREDES CEPEDA, GERMANIA PAREDES CEPEDA, ELSA C. PAREDES CEPEDA, ELCIDO C. PAREDES CEPEDA, OSCAR LORENZO DE JESÚS

PAREDES CEPEDA, MOISÉS PAREDES CEPEDA; CENTRO DE RECAUDACIÓN DE INGRESOS

MUNICIPALES; ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMÉRICA

Demandados

Civil Núm.: SJ2022CV05385.

Sobre: EJECUCIÓN DE HI-

POTECA. EMPLAZAMIENTO Y MANDAMIENTO DE INTERPELACIÓN POR EDICTO. ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMÉRICA, EL PRESIDENTE DE LOS ESTADOS UNIDOS, EL ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO, S.S. A: FULANO (A) DE TAL Y SUTANO (A) DE TAL, HEREDEROS DESCONOCIDO DE LA SUCESIÓN DE NICOLÁS ENCARNACIÓN ULLOA; JOSÉ AGUSTIN PAREDES CEPEDA, ANA C. PAREDES CEPEDA, GERMANÍA PAREDES CEPEDA, ELSA C. PAREDES. CEPEDA, JULIO PAREDES CEPEDA, ELSIDO C. PAREDES CEPEDA, OSCAR LORENZO DE JESÚS PAREDES CEPEDA Y MOISÉS PAREDES CEPEDA COMO HEREDEROS CONOCIDOS DE LA SUCESIÓN DE ROSALINA CEPEDA SEGURA T/C/C ROSELIA CEPEDA SEGURA. DIRECCION: 1050 CALLE AURORA, SAN JUAN, PUERTO RICO 00907. Por la presente se les notifica que se ha presentado en este Tribunal una Demanda de Ejecución de Hipoteca. Se les emplaza y requiere para que notifiquen a: Lcdo. Fernando Gierbolini; MONSERRATE, SIMONET & GIERBOLINI, 101 Ave. San Patricio, Edificio Maramar Plaza, Suite 1120, Guaynabo, Puerto Rico 00968; Tel: (787) 620-5300, abogados de la parte demandante, con copia de la contestación a la Demanda Enmendada dentro de los treinta (30) días siguientes a la publicación de este edicto, que se publicará una (1) vez en un periódico de circulación diaria general. Se les apercibe que si no contestan la Demanda radicando el original de la misma a través del Sistema Unificado de Manejo y Administración de Casos (SUMAC), al cual puede acceder utilizando la siguiente dirección electrónica: https:// unired.ramajudicial.pr, salvo que se represente por derecho propio, en cuyo caso deberá presentar su alegación responsiva en la Secretaría del Tribunal Superior dentro del término antes indicado, y notificando con copia a la parte demandante, se le anotará la rebeldía y se le dictará Sentencia en su contra concediendo el remedio solicitado a favor de la parte demandante sin más citarle ni oírle. Además, se les interpela judicialmente, a tenor con el Artículo 959 del Código Civil de Puerto Rico, 31 L.P.R.A. §2787,

para que en un término de treinta (30) días de haber sido publicado este edicto, excluyendo el día de su publicación, acepten o repudien, mediante instrumento público o comparecencia judicial especial, la herencia de la causante ROSA-

LINA CEPEDA SEGURA T/C/C

ROSELIA CEPEDA SEGURA Y DE NICOLÁS ENCARNACIÓN ULLOA, apercibiéndosele que de no expresarse dentro de dicho término, se tendrá por aceptada la herencia según establecido en B.B.V.A. v. Latinoamericana, 164 D. P.R. 689 (2005), por lo que responderán por las cargas de dicha herencia. EXTENDIDO BAJO MI FIRMA y el Sello del Tribunal, en San Juan, Puerto Rico, hoy día 15 de febrero de 2023. GRI-

SELDA RODRÍGUEZ COLLADO, SECRETARIA REGIONAL. FERNÁNDEZ DEL VALLE, LUZ E., SUB-SECRETARIA.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBU-

NAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA

SALA SUPERIOR DE SAN GERMÁN

BANCO POPULAR DE PUERTO RICO

Parte Demandante Vs. UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE RURAL DEVELOPMENT POR CONDUCTO DE LA ADMINISTRACION DE HOGARES DE AGRICULTORES, FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE CORPORATION (FDIC) COMO SÍNDICO DE RG PREMIER BANK OF PUERTO RICO Y DE RG MORTGAGE CORPORATION, ORIENTAL BANK COMO SUCESOR EN DERECHO DE SCOTIABANK DE PUERTO RICO, FERMÍN MANUEL CRUZ

MARTÍNEZ, ALBA IRIS

VÉLEZ BONILLA Y LA SOCIEDAD LEGAL DE GANANCIALES COMPUESTA POR AMBOS; LA SUCESIÓN DE JULIO CÉSAR VÉLEZ

TORRES COMPUESTA

POR SUTANO DE TAL, POSIBLE HEREDERO DESCONOCIDO, LA SUCESIÓN DE VIRGINIA

VILLARÍN T/C/C VIRGINIA

VILLARINI CABOT

COMPUESTA POR

PERENCEJO DE TAL, POSIBLE HEREDERO DESCONOCIDO, LA SUCESIÓN DE MIRIAM

VÉLEZ VILLARÍN

COMPUESTA POR

PERENGANO DE TAL, POSIBLE HEREDERO

DESCONOCIDO, JULIO CÉSAR VÉLEZ VILLARÍN COMO HEREDERO DE JULIO CÉSAR VÉLEZ

TORRES Y VIRGINIA

VILLARÍN T/C/C

VIRGINIA VILLARINI

CABOT, FULANO Y MENGANO DE TAL, POSIBLES TENEDORES

DESCONOCIDOS DEL PAGARÉ

Parte Demandada Civil Núm.: SG2020CV00017. (307). Sobre: CANCELACIÓN DE PAGARÉ EXTRAVIADO POR LA VÍA JUDICIAL. EDICTO. ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMÉRICA, EL PRESIDENTE DE LOS E.E.U.U., EL ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO.

A: SUTANO DE TAL, POSIBLE HEREDERO DESCONOCIDO DE JULIO CÉSAR VÉLEZ TORRES, PERENCEJO DE TAL, POSIBLE HEREDERO DESCONOCIDO DE VIRGINIA VILLARÍN T/C/C VIRGINIA VILLARINI CABOT, PERENGANO DE TAL, POSIBLE HEREDERO DESCONOCIDO DE MIRIAM VÉLEZ VILLARÍN, FULANO Y MENGANO DE TAL, POSIBLES TENEDORES DESCONOCIDOS DEL PAGARÉ.

Queda usted notificado que en este Tribunal se ha radicado Demanda sobre Cancelación de Pagaré Extraviado por la vía judicial. El 5 de abril de 1977, Julio Cesar Velez Torres y su esposa Virginia Villarín t/c/c Virginia Villarini Cabot constituyeron una hipoteca en San Germán, Puerto Rico, conforme a la Escritura núm. 50 autorizada por el notario Apolo García Vilarona t/c/c Apolo García Vilanova, en garantía de un pagaré por la suma de $24,370.00 a favor de Estados Unidos de América por conducto de la Administración de Hogares de Agricultores o a su orden, con intereses al 8% anual y vencedero en 33 años, sobre la siguiente propiedad: URBANA: Solar número

I-15 perteneciente al plano de inscripción del Residencial Extensión Villa Alba en el barrio Santana de Sabana Grande, Puerto Rico, con una cabida de 340.90 metras cuadrados. En lindes al NORTE, con solar#16; al SUR, con solar#14; al ESTE, con solares #8 y 9 y al OESTE, con calle #11. En el solar descrito enclava una casa

de hormigón reforzado y bloques de una planta, dedicada a vivienda. La propiedad y la escritura de hipoteca constan inscritas al folio 56 del tomo 140 de Sabana Grande, Finca 7414. Registro de la Propiedad de San Germán. Inscripción primera. La parte demandada deberá presentar su alegación responsiva a través del Sistema Unificado de Administración y Manejo de Casos (SUMAC), al cual puede acceder utilizando la siguiente dirección electrónica: https://unired.ramajudicial. pr, salvo que se represente por derecho propio, en cuyo caso deberá presentar su alegación responsiva en la secretaría del Tribunal. Se le advierte que, si no contesta la demanda, radicando el original de la contestación en este Tribunal y enviando copia de la contestación a la abogada de la parte demandante, Lcda. Belma Alonso García, cuya dirección es: PO Box 3922, Guaynabo PR 00970-3922, Teléfono y Fax: (787) 789-1826, correo electrónico: oficinabelmaalonso@gmail.com, dentro del término de treinta (30) días de la publicación de este edicto, excluyéndose el día de la publicación, se le anotará la rebeldía y se le dictará Sentencia en su contra, concediendo el remedio solicitado sin más citarle ni oírle. EXPEDIDO bajo mi firma y el sello del Tribunal, hoy 17 de febrero de 2023, en San Germán, Puerto Rico. NORMA G. SANTANA IRIZARRY, SECRETARIA. SANTA RODRÍGUEZ BONILLA, SECRETARIA DEL TRIBUNAL CONFIDENCIAL.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA SALA SUPERIOR DE BAYAMÓN BANCO POPULAR DE PUERTO RICO

Parte Demandante Vs. DENNIS JANETTE DÍAZ REYES; ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMÉRICA REPRESENTADOS POR EL SECRETARIO DE LA VIVIENDA Y DESARROLLO URBANO (HUD)

Parte Demandada

Civil Núm.: BY2023CV00074.

Sobre: COBRO DE DINERO Y EJECUCIÓN DE HIPOTECA POR LA VÍA ORDINARIA. EMPLAZAMIENTO POR EDICTO.

ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMÉRICA, EL PRESIDENTE DE LOS E.E.U.U., EL ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO.

A LA PARTE

DEMANDADA:

DENNIS JANETTE

DÍAZ REYES A SUS

ÚLTIMAS DIRECCIONES

CONOCIDAS: URB. SANTA ELENITA D2-9 CALLE B, BAYAMÓN, PR 00957-1622; URB. SANTA ELENA II, D2-9 CALLE B, BAYAMÓN, PR 009571622.

Queda usted notificado que en este Tribunal se ha radicado demanda sobre ejecución de hipoteca por la vía ordinaria en la que se alega se adeuda a la demandante las siguientes cantidades: $54,317.61 de principal, más intereses sobre dicha suma al 4.625% anual desde el 1 de abril de 2022 hasta su completo pago, más $113.04 de recargos acumulados, los cuales continuarán en aumento hasta el saldo total de la deuda, más la cantidad estipulada de $6,962.70 para costas, gastos y honorarios de abogados, así como cualquier otra suma que contenga el contrato del préstamo, incluyendo pero sin limitarse a gastos de mantenimiento, inspecciones y otros adelantos “corporate advances”. La propiedad que garantiza hipotecariamente el préstamo es la siguiente: URBANA: Solar marcado con el #9 del bloque D-2 radicado en la Urbanización Santa Elena, segunda etapa, situada en el Barrio Pájaros de Bayamón, con área de 334.74 metros cuadrados. En lindes por el NORTE, en distancia de 9.41 metros con la calle B; por el SUR, en distancia de 12.64 metros con el solar #1 del mismo bloque y con terrenos propiedad de Melitina Rivera Ayala; por el ESTE, en distancia de 28.86 metros con el solar #10 del mismo bloque; y por el OESTE, en distancia de 29.69 metros con el solar #8 del mismo bloque. Según plano archivado en este registro por el NORTE, la medida lineal de 9.94 metros con la calle B. Contiene una casa de concreto diseñada para una familia. Inscrita al folio 76 del tomo 1095 de Bayamón, Finca 49033. Registro de la Propiedad de Bayamón, Sección I. La hipoteca consta inscrita al folio 97 del tomo 1095 de Bayamón, Finca 49033. Registro de la Propiedad de Bayamón, Sección I. Inscripción 6ta. La modificación de hipoteca consta inscrita al tomo Karibe de Bayamón, Finca 49033. Registro de la Propiedad de Bayamón, Sección I. Inscripción 8va. La demandante es tenedora por endoso en blanco, por valor recibido y de buena fe del pagaré objeto de la presente acción. La parte demandada deberá presentar su alegación responsiva a través del Sistema Unificado de Administración y Manejo de Casos (SUMAC), al cual puede acceder utilizando la siguiente dirección electrónica: https://unired. ramajudicial.pr, salvo que se represente por derecho propio, en cuyo caso deberá presentar

su alegación responsiva en la secretaría del Tribunal. Se le advierte que, si no contesta la demanda, radicando el original de la contestación en este Tribunal y enviando copia de la contestación a la abogada de la parte demandante, Lcda. Belma Alonso García, cuya dirección es: PO Box 3922, Guaynabo PR 00970-3922, Teléfono (787) 789-1826 y (787) 7080566 correo electrónico oficinabelmaalonso@gmail.com, dentro del término de treinta (30) días de la publicación de este edicto, excluyéndose el día de la publicación, se le anotará la rebeldía y se le dictará Sentencia en su contra, concediendo el remedio solicitado sin más citarle ni oírle. EXPEDIDO bajo mi firma y el sello del Tribunal, hoy 16 de febrero de 2023, en Bayamón, Puerto Rico. LCDA. LAURA I. SANTA SÁNCHEZ, SECRETARIA REGIONAL. LUREIMY ALICEA GONZÁLEZ, SECRETARIA AUXILIAR DEL TRIBUNAL.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA SALA DE AIBONITO

B. FERNÁNDEZ & HNOS., INC.

Demandante V. PUERTO RICO

FRESH FOODS, LLC

Demandado

Civil Núm.: AI2022CV00414. Sobre: COBRO DE DINERO. ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMÉRICA, EL PRESIDENTE DE LOS EE.UU., EL ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE P.R., SS. EDICTO.

A: PUERTO RICO FRESH FOODS, LLC.

P/C DE SU AGENTE RESIDENTE GILBERT ACOSTA. REPARTO ROBLES 160 CALLE 18, AIBONITO, PR 00705; CALLE TURQUESA #160, URB. REPARTO ROBLES, AIBONITO, PR 00705; URB. REPARTO ROBLES 160 CALLE TURQUESA, AIBONITO, PR 00705; #160 CALLE TURQUEZA REPARTO ROBLES, AIBONITO, PR 00705; REPARTO ROBLES #160 C18, AIBONITO, PR 00705; #127 PASEO LAS PALMAS, URB. EL VALLE LOS PRADOS, CAGUAS,PR 00727; URB. CIUDAD JARDIN CALLE AMAPOLA 229, CAROLINA, PR 00987. POR LA PRESENTE se le emplaza para que presente al tribunal su alegación responsiva dentro de los 30 días de haber sido diligenciado este emplazamiento, excluyéndose el día

del diligenciamiento. Usted deberá presentar su alegación responsiva a través del Sistema Unificado de Manejo y Administración de Casos (SUMAC), al cual puede acceder utilizando la siguiente dirección electrónica: https://unired.ramajudicial. pr, salvo que se represente por derecho propio, en cuyo caso deberá presentar su alegación responsiva en la secretaría del tribunal. Si usted deja de presentar su alegación responsiva dentro del referido término, el tribunal podrá dictar sentencia en rebeldía en su contra y conceder el remedio solicitado en la demanda, o cualquier otro, si el tribunal, en el ejercicio de su sana discreción, lo entiende procedente. Representa a la parte demandante la Lcda. Maristella Sánchez Rodríguez, Delgado & Fernández, LLC, PO Box 11750, Fernández Juncos Station, San Juan, Puerto Rico 00910-1750. Tel. [787]

274-1414. DADO en Aibonito, Puerto Rico, a 15 de febrero de 2023. ELIZABETH GONZÁLEZ RIVERA, SECRETARIA REGIONAL. MARINELLY MATOS COLÓN, SECRETARIA AUXILIAR DEL TRIBUNAL I.

LEGAL NOT ICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA SALA SUPERIOR DE BAYAMÓN ESTRELLA

HOMES III LLC

Demandante V. DANNY ALBERTO

GONZÁLEZ MEJÍAS, MARISEL LISTER VILLAVIZAR Y LA SOCIEDAD LEGAL DE BIENES GANANCIALES

COMPUESTA POR AMBOS

Demandados

Civil Núm.: DCD2016-0559.

(401). Sobre: COBRO DE DINERO Y EJECUCIÓN DE HIPOTECA POR LA VÍA ORDINARIA. AVISO DE VENTA EN PÚBLICA SUBASTA. Yo, EDGARDO ELÍAS VARGAS

SANTANA, ALGUACIL AUXILIAR PLACA #193, Alguacil de la División de Subastas del Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala de Bayamón, a la demandada y al público en general, les notifico que, cumpliendo con un Mandamiento que se ha librado en el presente caso, por el Secretario del Tribunal, con fecha 8 de febrero de 2023 y para satisfacer la Sentencia por la cantidad de $148,846.05 de principal y $21,733.29 de “Piggy Bank”, para un total de $170,579.34 de principal, dictada en el caso de epígrafe el 28 de diciembre de 2016, notificada y archivada en autos el 11 de enero de 2017, procederé a vender en pública subasta, al mejor postor en pago de contado y en moneda

del curso legal de los Estados Unidos de América, todo derecho, título e interés que haya tenido, tenga o pueda tener la deudora demandada en cuanto a la propiedad localizada en el: Municipio de Toa Baja, Puerto Rico, el bien inmueble que se describe a continuación: 1806 Boulevard Ave., Levittown Dev., Toa Baja, PR 00949. Lot. 1806-Z, Levittown Dev., Toa Baja, PR 00949. URBANA: Solar marcado mil ochocientos seis (1,806) del Bloque Z, de la urbanización Levittown, del Barrio Sabana Seca de Toa Baja, Puerto Rico, compuesto de cuatrocientos cuarenta y un metros, un decímetro cuadrado (441.01 m.c.). En linde: NORTE, en trece metros cincuenta centímetros (13.50), con un paseo público; SUR, en un arco de trece metros cincuenta y un centímetros (13.51), con Boulevard de Levittown; ESTE, en treinta y dos metros ochenta centímetros (32.80), con el solar número mil ochocientos siete (1807); por el OESTE, en treinta y dos metros cincuenta y dos centímetros (32.52), con el solar número mil ochocientos cinco (1805). Enclava una casa. Finca número 4407, inscrita al folio 217 del tomo 54 de Toa Baja, del Registro de la Propiedad de Puerto Rico, Sección II de Bayamón. Con el importe de dicha venta se habrá de satisfacer a la parte demandante las cantidades adeudadas, según la Sentencia dictada en el caso de epígrafe, por el Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala de Bayamón, cuyas cantidades ascienden a $148,846.05 de principal y $21,733.29 de “Piggy Bank”, para un total de $170,579.34 de principal, 6.5 % de intereses, los cuales continúan acumulándose hasta el saldo total del a deuda; $875.98 de gastos por cargos por mora, los cuales continúan acumulándose hasta el saldo total del a deuda; más costas, gastos y honorarios de abogado. El tipo mínimo para la subasta será la suma de tasación pactada, la cual es $152,022.55 para la propiedad descrita. Si no produjere remate o adjudicación la primera subasta, se procederá a una segunda subasta y servirá de tipo mínimo la cantidad de $101,348.36. Si tampoco hubiere remate ni adjudicación en esta segunda subasta, se procederá a una tercera subasta, en ésta el tipo mínimo será la cantidad de $76,011.27. Si se declarase desierta la tercera subasta se dará por terminado el procedimiento, pudiendo adjudicarse a opción del demandante. Para el lote descrito, la PRIMERA SUBASTA se llevará a cabo el día 23 DE MARZO DE 2023, A LAS 10:00 DE LA MAÑANA. De no comparecer postor alguno se llevará a efecto una SEGUNDA SUBASTA el

día 30 DE MARZO DE 2023, A LAS 10:00 DE LA MAÑANA. De no comparecer postor alguno se llevará a cabo una TERCERA SUBASTA el día 13 DE ABRIL DE 2023, A LAS 10:00 DE LA MAÑANA. La subasta o subastas antes indicadas se llevarán a efecto en mi oficina, localizada en el Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala Superior de Bayamón. De Estudio de Título realizado, no surgen gravámenes preferentes, surgen los siguientes gravámenes posteriores: Aviso de Demanda dictado el 20 de marzo de 2014 en el Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala de Bayamón, Caso Civil Núm. DCD2014-0748, sobre Cobro de Dinero y Ejecución de Hipoteca, seguido por First Bank Puerto Rico vs. los esposos González-Lister, donde se solicita el pago de la deuda garantizada con la hipoteca de la inscripción 9na., reducida a $146,741.98 o la venta en pública subasta, anotado al Folio 169vto. del Tomo 662 de Toa Baja, finca #4407, el 9 de abril de 2014, Anotación “A”. Se le advierte a los licitadores que la adjudicación se hará al mejor postor, quien deberá consignar el importe de su oferta en el mismo acto de la adjudicación en moneda de curso legal de los Estados Unidos de Norteamérica, giro postal o cheque de gerente a nombre del Alguacil del Tribunal y para conocimiento de la parte demandada y de toda(s) aquella(s) persona(s) que tengan interés inscrito con posterioridad a la inscripción del gravamen que se está ejecutando, y para conocimiento de los licitadores y el público en general y para su publicación en un periódico de circulación general, una vez por semana durante el término de dos (2) semanas consecutivas con un intervalo de por lo menos siete (7) días entre ambas publicaciones, y para su fijación en tres (3) lugares públicos del municipio en que ha de celebrarse la venta, tales como, la Alcaldía, el Tribunal y la Colecturía y se le notificará además a la parte demandada vía correo certificado con acuse de recibo a la última dirección conocida. Se les advierte a todos los interesados que todos los documentos relacionados con la presente acción de ejecución de hipoteca, así como la de la subasta, estarán disponibles para ser examinados en la Secretaría del Tribunal. Se entenderá que todo licitador acepta como bastante la titulación y que las cargas y gravámenes anteriores y los preferentes, si los hubiere al crédito de ejecutante, continuarán subsiguientes entendiéndose que el rematante los acepta y queda subrogado en la responsabilidad de los mismos, sin destinarse a su extinción el precio del remate. La propiedad a ser ejecutada se adquirirá

libre de cargas y gravámenes posteriores, previa orden judicial dirigida al Registrador de la Propiedad de la sección correspondiente para la cancelación de aquellos posteriores. Y para conocimiento de la demandada, de los acreedores posteriores, de los licitadores, partes interesadas y público en general, expido el presente Aviso para su publicación en los lugares públicos correspondientes. Librado en Bayamón, Puerto Rico, a 13 de febrero de 2023. EDGARDO ELÍAS VARGAS SANTANA, ALGUACIL AUXILIAR PLACA #193.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL GENERAL DE JUSTICIA SALA

SUPERIOR DE CAROLINA ORIENTAL BANK

Demandante V. SUCESION DE RAFAEL SIERRA GONZALEZ Y OTROS

Demandado(a)

Civil: CA2022CV02437. Sala:

409. Sobre: COBRO DE DINERO, EJECUCIÓN DE HIPOTECA POR LA VÍA ORDINARIA. NOTIFICACIÓN DE SENTENCIA POR EDICTO.

A: ELIZABETH MERCADO GONZALEZ, JUANITA SIERRA GONZALEZ Y FRANCISCO SIERRA GONZALEZ COMO MIEMBROS DE LA SUCESION DE RAFAEL SIERRA GONZALEZ. (Nombre de las partes a las que se le notifican la sentencia por edicto)

EL SECRETARIO(A) que suscribe le notifica a usted que el 17 de febrero de 2023, este Tribunal ha dictado Sentencia, Sentencia Parcial o Resolución en este caso, que ha sido debidamente registrada y archivada en autos donde podrá usted enterarse detalladamente de los términos de la misma. Esta notificación se publicará una sola vez en un periódico de circulación general en la Isla de Puerto Rico, dentro de los 10 días siguientes a su notificación. Y, siendo o representando usted una parte en el procedimiento sujeta a los términos de la Sentencia, Sentencia Parcial o Resolución, de la cual puede establecerse recurso de revisión o apelación dentro del término de 30 días contados a partir de la publicación por edicto de esta notificación, dirijo a usted esta notificación que se considerará hecha en la fecha de la publicación de este edicto. Copia de esta notificación ha sido archivada en los autos de este caso, con fecha de 21 de febrero de 2023. En Carolina, Puerto Rico, el 21 de febrero de 2023. LCDA. MARILYN APONTE RODRÍGUEZ, SECRETARIA. MARICRUZ APONTE ALICEA, SECRETARIA AUXILIAR.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA

SALA SUPERIOR DE BAYAMÓN

LEGACY MORTGAGE

ASSET TRUST 2019-PR1

Demandante V. LA SUCESIÓN DE VALENTÍN MEDINA

SANTOS COMPUESTA

POR FULANO DE TAL Y FULANA DE TAL COMO

POSIBLES HEREDEROS DESCONOCIDOS CON INTERÉS EN LA SUCESIÓN; LA SUCESIÓN DE MARÍA

PANTOJA GONZÁLEZ COMPUESTA POR MENGANO DE TAL Y MENGANA DE TAL COMO

POSIBLES HEREDEROS DESCONOCIDOS CON INTERÉS EN LA SUCESIÓN; CENTRO DE RECAUDACIÓN DE INGRESOS MUNICIPALES (CRIM)

Demandados

Civil Núm.: TB2022CV00348.

Sobre: COBRO DE DINERO Y EJECUCIÓN DE HIPOTECA POR LA VÍA ORDINARIA. EDICTO DE INTERPELACIÓN. ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMÉRICA, PRESIDENTE DE LOS ESTADOS UNIDOS, ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO, S.S.

A: LA SUCESIÓN DE VALENTÍN MEDINA

SANTOS COMPUESTA

POR SANTIAGO MEDINA

PANTOJA, MARÍA

MEDINA PANTOJA, FULANO DE TAL COMO POSIBLE HEREDERO DESCONOCIDO CON INTERÉS EN LA SUCESIÓN; LA

SUCESIÓN DE MARÍA

P ANTOJA GONZÁLEZ COMPUESTA POR

SANTIAGO MEDINA

PANTOJA, MARÍA

MEDINA PANTOJA, MENGANO DE TAL COMO

POSIBLE HEREDERO DESCONOCIDOS CON INTERÉS EN LA SUCESIÓN.

El Artículo 1578 del Código Civil de 2020, dispone: “Transcurridos treinta (30) días desde que se haya producido la delación, cualquier persona interesada puede solicitar al tribunal que le señale al llamado un plazo, para que manifieste si acepta la herencia o si la repudia. Este plazo no excederá de treinta (30) días. El tribunal apercibirá al llamado de que, si transcurri-

do el plazo señalado no ha manifestado su voluntad de aceptar la herencia o de repudiarla, se dará por aceptada.” Por la presente el Tribunal de Primera Instancia, conforme al Art. 1578, supra, y el caso Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria vs. Latinoamericana de Exportación, Inc., 164 DPR 689 (2005), les ordena que el término de treinta (30) días, hagan declaración aceptado o repudiando la herencia de los causantes, VALENTÍN MEDINA SANTOS y MARÍA PANTOJA GONZÁLEZ. Se les apercibe a los herederos antes mencionados que de no expresarse dentro de ese término de treinta (30) días en torno a la aceptación o repudiación de herencia, la misma se tendrá por aceptada. Los abogados de la parte demandante son:

Lcdo. Andrés Sáez Marrero

T.S.P.R. Núm. 18074

TROMBERG, MORRIS & POULIN, LLC

1515 South Federal Highway, Suite 100

Boca Raton, FL 33432

Tel. 877-338-4101 /

Fax: 561-338-4077 prservice@tmppllc.com / asaez@tmppllc.com

Expido este edicto bajo mi firma y sello de este Tribunal, hoy 21 de febrero de 2023. LCDA.

LAURA I. SANTA SÁNCHEZ, SECRETARIA REGIONAL.

ELIBETH TORRES ALICEA, SECRETARIA AUXILIAR DEL TRIBUNAL.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA

SALA SUPERIOR DE SAN JUAN

LEGACY MORTGAGE

ASSET TRUST 2019-PR1

Demandante Vs. ASSOCIATES INTERNATIONAL HOLDING CORPORATION; JOHN DOE Y RICHARD ROE COMO POSIBLES TENEDORES DESCONOCIDOS

Demandados

Civil Núm.: SJ2023CV01289.

906. Sobre: CANCELACIÓN DE PAGARÉ EXTRAVIADO.

EMPLAZAMIENTO POR EDIC-

TO. ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMÉRICA, EL PRESIDENTE DE LOS EE. UU., EL ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO, SS.

A: ASSOCIATES INTERNATIONAL HOLDINGS CORPORATION. US DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT, 451 7 HT STREET S.W. WASHINGTON, DC 20410.

A: JOHN DOE Y RICHARD ROE COMO POSIBLES TENEDORES

DESCONOCIDOS.

POR LA PRESENTE se les emplaza y requiere para que conteste la demanda dentro de los treinta (30) días siguientes a la publicación de este Edicto. Usted deberá radicar su alegación responsiva a través del Sistema Unificado de Manejo y Administración de Casos (SUMAC), al cual puede acceder utilizando la siguiente dirección electrónica: http://unired.ramajudicial.pr/sumac/, salvo que se presente por derecho propio, en cuyo caso deberá radicar el original de su contestación ante el Tribunal correspondiente y notifique con copia a los abogados de la parte demandante, LCDA. MARJALIISA COLÓN VILLANUEVA A su dirección: PO. Box 7970 Ponce, PR. 00732. Tel: 787-843-4168. En dicha demanda se tramita un procedimiento de cancelación de pagaré extraviado. Se alega en dicho procedimiento que se extravió un pagaré hipotecario a favor Associates lnternational Holdings Corporation, o a su orden, por la suma de treinta y un mil setecientos noventa y nueve dólares con noventa y nueve centavos ($31,799.99), con intereses con intereses al catorce punto setenta y ocho por ciento (14.78%) anual, vencedero el diecinueve (19) de abril de dos mil quince (2015), según surge del testimonio número ciento cincuenta (150) y la escritura número ciento treinta y seis (136) otorgada en San Juan, Puerto Rico, el día catorce (14) de abril de dos mil (2000), ante la notario Elaine Villanueva Martínez, y cuya obligación está inscrita al folio doscientos dos (202) del tomo mil doscientos cuarenta y cinco (1245) de Río Piedra Norte, finca número treinta y cinco mil sesenta y cuatro (35,064), inscripción cuarta (4ta). Deudora Delia lvette Caraballo Marcano. Que, la propiedad sobre la cual se constituyó dicha hipoteca es la siguiente: URBANA: Solar número ochenta y tres (83) de la calle Uno (1) según plano de inscripción del Proyecto de solares denominado Cayo Hueso, radicado en la zona urbana del término municipal de San Juan, Puerto Rico, con una cabida superficial de ciento treinta y dos punto setenta y siete (132.77) metros cuadrados. En lindes por el NORTE, con la calle número Uno (1), en una distancia de catorce punto ochenta y cuatro (14.84) metros; por el SUR, con el proyecto de la CRUV PRHA guion trece (CRUV PRHA-13), en una distancia de ocho punto noventa y seis (8.96) metros y el proyecto de la CRUVPR guión trece (CRUV PRHA-13), en una distancia de seis punto noventa y cinco (6.95) metros; por el ESTE, con el solar número ochenta y uno (81), en una distancia de diez punto treinta y dos (10.32) me-

tros; por el OESTE, con el proyecto de la CRUV PRHA guión trece (CRUV PRHA-13), en una distancia de uno punto setenta y cinco (1.75) metros y con la calle Almagro, en una distancia de seis punto setenta y cinco (6.75) metros. lnscrita al folio doscientos uno (201) del tomo mil doscientos cuarenta y cinco (1245) de Río Piedras Norte, finca número treinta y cinco mil sesenta y cuatro (35,064). Registro de la Propiedad Sección Segunda (2da) de San Juan. SE LES APERCIBE que, de no hacer sus alegaciones responsivas a la demanda dentro del término aquí dispuesto, se les anotará la rebeldía y se dictará Sentencia, concediéndose el remedio solicitado en la Demanda, sin más citarle ni oírle. Expedido bajo mi firma y sello del Tribunal en San Juan, a 21 día de febrero de 2023. GRISELDA RODRÍGUEZ COLLADO, SECRETARIA REGIONAL. KEREN OLIVERAS PADILLA, SECRETARIA DE SERVICIOS A SALA.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL GENERAL DE JUSTICIA TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA SALA SUPERIOR DE BAYAMÓN ISLAND PORTFOLIO SERVICES, LLC, COMO AGENTE DE FAIRWAY ACQUISITIONS

FUND, LLC

Demandante V. EDGARDO M. RUIZ VÉLEZ

Demandado(a)

Civil: DO2022CV00147. 402. Sobre: COBRO DE DINERO ORDINARIO. NOTIFICACIÓN DE SENTENCIA POR EDICTO.

A: EDGARDO M. RUIZ VÉLEZ.

(Nombre de las partes a las que se le notifican la sentencia por edicto) EL SECRETARIO(A) que suscribe le notifica a usted que el 21 de febrero de 2023, este Tribunal ha dictado Sentencia, Sentencia Parcial o Resolución en este caso, que ha sido debidamente registrada y archivada en autos donde podrá usted enterarse detalladamente de los términos de la misma. Esta notificación se publicará una sola vez en un periódico de circulación general en la Isla de Puerto Rico, dentro de los 10 días siguientes a su notificación. Y, siendo o representando usted una parte en el procedimiento sujeta a los términos de la Sentencia, Sentencia Parcial o Resolución, de la cual puede establecerse recurso de revisión o apelación dentro del término de 30 días contados a partir de la publicación por edicto de esta notificación, dirijo a usted esta notificación que se considerará hecha en la fecha de la publicación de este edicto. Co-

pia de esta notificación ha sido archivada en los autos de este caso, con fecha de 21 de febrero de 2023. En BAYAMÓN, Puerto Rico, el 21 de febrero de 2023. LCDA. LAURA I. SANTA SÁNCHEZ, SECRETARIA. ELIBETH M. TORRES ALICEA, SECRETARIA AUXILIAR. LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL GENERAL DE JUSTICIA TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA SALA SUPERIOR DE HUMACAO PALMAS DEL MAR HOMEOWNERS ASSOCIATION, INC

Demandante V. RICHARD KUSHNER

Demandado(a)

Civil: HU2022CV00704. Sobre: COBRO DE DINERO. NOTIFICACIÓN DE SENTENCIA POR EDICTO.

A: RICHARD KUSHNER: A SU DIRECCIÓN

CONOCIDA: 1654 FIFTH

AVENUE BAY SHORE, NEW YORK, ESTADOS UNIDOS 11706; P/C LIC.

JOSÉ R. GONZÁLEZ RIVERA.

(Nombre de las partes a las que se le notifican la sentencia por edicto) EL SECRETARIO(A) que suscribe le notifica a usted que el 16 de febrero de 2023, este Tribunal ha dictado Sentencia, Sentencia Parcial o Resolución en este caso, que ha sido debidamente registrada y archivada en autos donde podrá usted enterarse detalladamente de los términos de la misma. Esta notificación se publicará una sola vez en un periódico de circulación general en la Isla de Puerto Rico, dentro de los 10 días siguientes a su notificación. Y, siendo o representando usted una parte en el procedimiento sujeta a los términos de la Sentencia, Sentencia Parcial o Resolución, de la cual puede establecerse recurso de revisión o apelación dentro del término de 30 días contados a partir de la publicación por edicto de esta notificación, dirijo a usted esta notificación que se considerará hecha en la fecha de la publicación de este edicto. Copia de esta notificación ha sido archivada en los autos de este caso, con fecha de 22 de febrero de 2023. En HUMACAO, Puerto Rico, el 22 de febrero de 2023. IVELISSE

C. FONSECA RODRÍGUEZ, SECRETARIA. ILEANETTE RIVAS SERRANO, SECRETARIA AUXILIAR.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL GENERAL DE JUSTICIA TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA SALA SUPERIOR DE GUAYAMA

ISLAND PORTFOLIO SERVICES, LLC COMO AGENTE DE ACE ONE FUNDING,

LLC

Demandante V. LUZ M. SANTIAGO RAMOS

Demandado(a)

Civil: GM2021CV00603. Sobre: COBRO DE DINERO. NOTIFICACIÓN DE SENTENCIA POR EDICTO.

A: LUZ M. SANTIAGO RAMOS, URB CAMINO DE LA PRINCESA, 9 CALE AURORA, GUAYAMA PR 00784.

(Nombre de las partes a las que se le notifican la sentencia por edicto) EL SECRETARIO(A) que suscribe le notifica a usted que el 22 de febrero de 2023, este Tribunal ha dictado Sentencia, Sentencia Parcial o Resolución en este caso, que ha sido debidamente registrada y archivada en autos donde podrá usted enterarse detalladamente de los términos de la misma. Esta notificación se publicará una sola vez en un periódico de circulación general en la Isla de Puerto Rico, dentro de los 10 días siguientes a su notificación. Y, siendo o representando usted una parte en el procedimiento sujeta a los términos de la Sentencia, Sentencia Parcial o Resolución, de la cual puede establecerse recurso de revisión o apelación dentro del término de 30 días contados a partir de la publicación por edicto de esta notificación, dirijo a usted esta notificación que se considerará hecha en la fecha de la publicación de este edicto. Copia de esta notificación ha sido archivada en los autos de este caso, con fecha de 22 de febrero de 2023. En Guayama, Puerto Rico, el 22 de febrero de 2023. MARISOL ROSADO RODRÍGUEZ, SECRETARIA. ILEANA SANTIAGO VEGA, SECRETARIA AUXILIAR.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL DE PRIME INSTANCIA SALA SUPERIOR DE CAGUAS

BANCO POPULAR DE PUERTO RICO

Parte Demandante Vs. CHRISTIAN D. MONTAÑEZ ORTIZ, FULANA DE TAL Y LA SOCIEDAD LEGAL DE GANANCIALES COMPUESTA POR AMBOS

Parte Demandada

Civil Núm.: CG2022CV03517.

Sobre: COBRO DE DINERO. EMPLAZAMIENTO POR EDICTO EMITIDO POR EL TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA DE PUERTO RICO, SALA DE CAGUAS.

A: CHRISTIAN D.

MONTAÑEZ ORTIZ, FULANA DE TAL Y LA SOCIEDAD LEGAL DE GANANCIALES COMPUESTA POR AMBOS. BANCO POPULAR DE PUERTO RICO VS. CHRISTIAN D. MONTAÑEZ ORTIZ, FULANA DE TAL Y LA SOCIEDAD LEGAL DE GANANCIALES COMPUESTA POR AMBOS, CIVIL NÚM.: CG2022CV03517 SOBRE COBRO DE DINERO. Se les notifica a ustedes, CHRISTIAN D. MONTAÑEZ ORTIZ, FULANA DE TAL Y LA SOCIEDAD LEGAL DE GANANCIALES COMPUESTA POR AMBOS, que en la Demanda que originó este caso se alega que ustedes le adeudan a la parte demandante, BANCO POPULAR DE PUERTO RICO, las siguientes cantidades: a. $50,000.00 de principal, $1,852.52 de intereses devengados hasta el 15 de septiembre de 2022, más los intereses que se devenguen a partir de la fecha de radicación de la Demanda al tipo legal, hasta el total y completo pago de la obligación, $179.88 de cargos por mora y otros y la suma estipulada de $5,203.40 para las costas, gastos y honorarios de abogado por concepto de un préstamo desembolsado cuyos últimos 4 dígitos son 0201. Se les emplaza y requiere que presenten al tribunal su alegación responsiva dentro de los treinta (30) días siguientes a la publicación de este edicto, a través del Sistema Unificado de Administración y Manejo de Casos (SUMAC), al cual pueden acceder utilizando la siguiente dirección electrónica: https://unired. ramajudicial.pr, salvo que se represente por derecho propio, en cuyo caso deberán presentar su alegación responsiva en la secretaría del tribunal. Deberán notificar a la licenciada: María S. Jiménez Meléndez al PO Box 9023632, San Juan, Puerto Rico 00902-3632; teléfono: (787) 723-2455; abogada de la parte demandante, con copia de la contestación a la demanda. Si ustedes dejan de presentar su alegación responsiva dentro del referido término, el tribunal podrá dictar sentencia en rebeldía en su contra y conceder el remedio solicitado en la demanda o cualquier otro, si el tribunal, en el ejercicio de su sana discreción, lo entiende procedente. Expedido en Caguas, Puerto Rico, a 9 de febrero de 2023. LISILDA MARTÍNEZ AGOSTO, SECRETARIA GENERAL. JESSENIA PEDRAZA ANDINO, SECRETARIA AUXILIAR.

With a quick violation, MLB gets a taste of the pitch clock

By JAMES WAGNER

In the first inning of a spring training game against the Seattle Mariners in Peoria, Arizona late last week, San Diego Padres third baseman Manny Machado placed his left foot in the batter’s box, tapped his bat on home plate and twirled it around before coming set. It is a routine he has done countless times.

But in this case, Machado was out of time. Ryan Blakney, the home plate umpire, stood up from his crouch, pointed to Machado and then his left wrist to signal the first pitch clock infraction in Major League Baseball history — albeit one that came in an exhibition game.

Under a set of new rules intended to speed up the game and inject more activity, there will now be a 30-second clock between batters. Once an at-bat has begun, pitchers will have 15 seconds to start their motion with the bases empty or 20 seconds if there is a runner on base.

Batters, though, have their own regulations. They must be in the batter’s box and looking at the pitcher with eight seconds left on the clock. Machado was ready with roughly six seconds remaining. So, before he could even see a pitch or swing the bat, he was already down one strike in the count.

“That time goes by fast,” Machado said after Friday’s 3-2 loss. He joked later, “We’re in the record books at least.”

Spring training, after all, is practice. The 2023 regular season begins March 30, so the next five weeks are not only for pitchers to build up their arm strength and for batters to hone their timing but also for everyone — from umpires to coaches to players — to adjust to some of the biggest single-season rule changes in the sport’s history.

“It’s going to be an interesting year for sure,” Machado said.

Over the decades, MLB games have grown longer and, for a variety of reasons, featured less action. The average game time in 2021 set a record at 3 hours, 11 minutes while in 1976, for example, the average game took 2 hours, 29 minutes. MLB’s overall batting average last season was .243, the lowest it has been since 1968, according to Baseball Reference. Strikeout rates have risen to record highs in recent years.

So as part of the collective bargaining agreement between MLB’s team owners and its players’ union before the 2022 season, the sides agreed to an 11-person committee —

which featured players but was controlled by MLB — that tackled rules changes. The result for 2023: adding a pitch clock, banning defensive shifts and increasing the size of the bases.

“The first weeks of spring training will be an adjustment period, and it’s our intent to change the behavior as quickly as we can,” said Morgan Sword, who oversaw the rule-book tweaks as MLB’s executive vice president of baseball operations. He, along with other MLB executives, descended upon the Peoria Sports Complex in the Phoenix area Friday to watch one of the first games this spring training.

They expect games to look more like it did in the 1970s and ’80s: more stolen bases, more hits, more athleticism on the field.

“I think you’re going to see a game that moves along with more pace,” MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said. “I think you’re going to see more balls in the play. I think you’re going to look at the field and see players in positions the way that most of us grew up seeing them positioned. I really do think they’re going to see a movement toward the very best form of our game.”

The Mariners and the Padres provided glimpses of what might be coming. During his two innings, Padres starting pitcher Nick Martínez, a relatively quick-paced pitcher who takes longer when runners are on base, delivered most pitches with several seconds remaining on the clock. But the clock got dangerously close to zero on a few.

“I had to speed up,” Martínez said after the game. “I thought I was not even going to think about it today, and I was definitely conscious of it.” He added later: “There are times where I like to kind of slow the game down so that’ll be interesting. Those happen more in the season because there’s more on the line.”

But, in turn, Martínez said he also noticed batters hurrying to get into place. When leading off the game, Mariners second baseman Kolten Wong stepped entirely out of the batter’s box but quickly hopped back in and was ready with one second to spare.

“Guys are going to get a little bit tired working at this pace, whether it’s starters or relievers throwing a lot of pitches,” Padres manager Bob Melvin said. “There’s going to be an endurance factor to this as well.”

Seattle Mariners starting pitcher Robbie Ray said he was ready for the tempo and didn’t feel rushed during his two innings.

“I feel like a couple of times, I took my time getting back to the mound and I thought, ‘Oh, I better speed it up a little bit,’ and I

looked up and had 11 seconds on the clock,” said Ray, who, like Martínez, added that the pitch-calling devices used by catchers and pitchers also helped streamline the process.

When the clock was ticking down on Machado, Ray said he could hear the umpire tell Machado to hurry. Machado admitted he was trying to push it timing wise and Blakney warned him when he had two seconds left.

“That is going to speed up guys,” Machado said, adding later: “When you’re hitting, you have to get up there and go. You don’t really have the routine you’ve been doing for 10, 11 years.”

The new rules have been the focal point everywhere in baseball, from Arizona to Florida to MLB’s headquarters in New York. Los Angeles Angels two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani — among the slowest working pitchers in baseball, particularly with runners on base — said adjusting to the new pitch clock was his biggest concern entering spring training. To help, the Angels, like many teams, set up clocks on the practice fields. And the rules have a fair amount of nuance and some potential for strategizing.

“If you ask anyone in our camp or anyone around baseball if they have it down pat, I would call BS if everyone is up to speed yet,” San Francisco Giants manager Gabe Kapler said of the rules. He added later about his play-

ers, “What I’m seeing that I’m pleased with is there’s a lot of questions being asked.”

During the first inning Friday, the impact of another one of the new rules was apparent. After Machado’s violation — the only one in the game — he singled. Then Juan Soto, a left-handed hitter, smacked a single to the right side of the infield that most likely would have led to an inning-ending double play if not for the ban on defensive shifts. The new rules require two fielders to be on each side of second base, which allowed more space for Soto’s ball to get through.

“Lefties are going to love it,” said Machado, who raced to third base as a result. “It’s going to be cool to see more offense and more first-to-third and more runs probably going to be scored. But then you’re also going to see some pretty good defense.”

About 10 miles away from Machado, the Kansas City Royals defeated the Texas Rangers 6-5 in a high-scoring affair Friday. In that game, there were three pitch-clock violations, all by pitchers.

When the Padres threatened in the ninth inning — there was a mound visit and the addition of a pinch-runner — the game still breezed along. They loaded the bases, but David Dahl flied out to deep right field for the final out.

The final time: 2 hours, 29 minutes.

Penn Murfee on the mound for the Seattle Mariners for a spring training game against the San Diego Padres where baseball’s new pitch clock was in effect, in Peoria, Ariz. on Friday, Feb. 24, 2023. Under a set of new rules intended to speed up the game, once an at-bat has begun, pitchers will have 15 seconds to start their motion, or 20 seconds if there is a runner on base.

US colleges are training the world’s female Olympians

led the WNBA and USA Basketball.

According to NCAA data published in December, the share of international students on teams in Division I, the association’s most prominent tier, steadily increased until the coronavirus pandemic. But the association still reported that more than 3,300 international students, most of them women, played for the first time in 2021. Six years earlier, there had been 2,720.

“You’re treating them like an elite Olympic athlete so they’re prepared by the time they get to their national team,” said Nadine Muzerall, the women’s ice hockey coach at top-ranked Ohio State, which won last season’s national championship.

“I don’t really care where they come from,” she added, “as long as they’re a good human being and they have talent.”

A wide talent pool

By ALAN BLINDER

Sini Karjalainen could have played ice hockey closer to home.

She could have stayed in Finland, where she was born. Sweden, with its elite women’s league, was a nearby proving ground. To Karjalainen, though, the most direct route to her goal — a place on Finland’s Olympic roster — ran through the University of Vermont in Burlington, thousands of miles away.

“It was the easiest,” she said, “the most simple.”

Many of the world’s most athletically gifted women are following similar paths.

In the half-century since Title IX banned discrimination on the basis of sex in nearly every educational setting, millions of American women have embraced vastly expanded opportunities in college sports.

More subtly, though, the law has also made the United States an athletic incubator for women from beyond the nation’s borders. Attracted by the training programs and facilities made possible by Title IX and often constrained by a lack of opportunities at home, thousands of women have competed on American campuses before joining national teams around the world.

At last year’s Winter Olympics in Beijing, where Karjalainen won a bronze medal playing for Finland, every women’s ice hockey team had skaters with some American college experience. And as this year’s college hockey postseason plows ahead — on Saturday, Vermont beat New Hampshire in a conference tournament quarterfinal — many college teams will send recent Olympians onto the ice.

The story is much the same for summer sports: At the Tokyo Games in 2021, at least 75 countries fielded women who had competed for American colleges.

“They’re here because of the opportunities on college teams that were made possible by Title IX, ranging from roster spots to scholarships and other benefits,” said Val Ackerman, the Big East Conference commissioner who formerly

As women’s sports expanded in the United States in the decades after Title IX was signed into law in June 1972, college coaches increasingly caught on to what the statute did not say: that the women filling rosters had to be Americans. To some coaches building teams, often at low-profile schools with a shortage of skilled players, the global talent pool was where breakthroughs could happen.

“I did it right out of the gate, and the rest is history,” said Shannon Miller, who led Canada to a silver medal at the 1998 Nagano Games before she steered Minnesota Duluth to five NCAA women’s ice hockey titles. “A lot of the coaches that I was coaching against really attacked me publicly and personally. They were throwing stones left, right and center that were ridiculous, and it was just sheer jealousy.”

Miller was offering something that women in many other countries could not easily get: a college experience that seamlessly blended higher education with athletic training and competition. In Europe, especially, athletes and executives from one country after another, in one sport to the next, lamented that their existing system was more suffocating than supportive. Without American-style college sports programs, with big coaching staffs, glittering facilities and a culture that eased the coexistence of coursework and athletic training, many said they thought it was virtually impossible to balance education with sports, and to be able to earn enough money to make ends meet.

Some European coaches and executives chafe at the exodus. Lena Wallin-Kantzy, one of Swedish basketball’s leading power brokers, recalled how some in her sport had privately floated imposing rules that could limit the appeal of moving to the United States.

“I said: ‘OK, but then we need to come up with better possibilities. They choose to go there because they think they can develop,’” Wallin-Kantzy said. “It’s better to help the kids go to the right place, and then when they come back, they can play for a Swedish club and they can play for the national team and so on.”

Her own daughter went to America to play.

An opportunity abroad

In any given school year, close to half of first-year women’s ice hockey players come from outside the United

States, trailing only tennis, according to NCAA statistics. Thousands more head to American campuses for sports such as basketball, golf, soccer, swimming, and track and field, and even fencing and bowling.

But top-tier ice hockey players have been especially drawn to America because the United States, along with Canada, is one of women’s hockey’s foremost powers, stirring a talent development network that includes colleges.

“For many young women who are playing in the Czech Republics of the world, they don’t really have a great system once they graduate from high school,” said Joel Johnson, the University of St. Thomas coach who led the silver-medalwinning U.S. team in Beijing. “To this point, there has been no better overall development, for age 18 to 22 or 23, than the U.S. college system.”

Tynka Patkova, a Czech player who is from a small town near the border with Germany, has sometimes yearned for family back home since she enrolled at Vermont. But being in Burlington, she said, had given her greater discipline than she might have developed in Europe. Coaches in Europe said that players with American college experience often had comparable athletic skills to women who remained in Europe but that their strategic sense and mental toughness often seemed superior.

“Because of playing here, I was able to train for that long to keep myself in the game and was able to keep getting better,” Patkova said. “I would guess I would not make the Olympics without it.”

Risking a backlash

Schools and coaches accept some risks when they sign an international player. Language barriers can complicate admissions, academics and team chemistry. Some students face challenges with the whirlwind of long-distance travel and international competition schedules.

There is also, coaches acknowledged, the risk of consternation among spurned American prospects and their parents, and questions about whether colleges in the United States should be paying to train athletes who might play under other flags.

Minnesota, whose women’s hockey team has won six NCAA titles, has largely remained an in-state operation, but Brad Frost, the Gophers’ coach since 2007, recalled some pushback when he first brought in two Finnish players.

“Just wait until you see these players,” he remembered telling naysayers. The players won national championships and, later, Olympic medals. The dissent quieted.

Winning, coaches said, usually silences skeptics. As beneficial as collegiate training might be to a player, their new schools and coaches are looking for returns, too.

As coaches across college sports have faced mounting pressure to win, many of them have come to believe that they cannot afford to overlook any potential star anywhere.

“My job is to be competitive, and if I’m not, I’m out of it,” said Sparky Anderson, the skiing coach at Alaska Anchorage, where 91% of the female skiers are from abroad. “If I could get a whole bunch of Alaskans and they were going to be top 10 at NCAAs, I’m all in. But that’s just not the reality.”

Natalie Mlynkova, center, of the Czech Republic, who is also a member of the Czech Republic national ice hockey team and plays with the University of Vermont Catamounts women’s ice hockey team, in Burlington, Vt., Nov. 1, 2022.

Sudoku

How to Play:

Fill in the empty fields with the numbers from 1 through 9.

Sudoku Rules:

Every row must contain the numbers from 1 through 9

Every column must contain the numbers from 1 through 9

Every 3x3 square must contain the numbers from 1 through 9

Crossword

Answers on page 38

Wordsearch

Aries (Mar 21-April 20)

There’s a sense of something taking shape, and it all seems very exciting. The focus on your psychological and spiritual sector hints at possibilities that you may have never considered. Watch your dreams Aries, as they could reveal much about something that’s coming into being. A jolt of inspiration may also bring the answer to a pressing issue that’s been on your mind.

Taurus (April 21-May 21)

You may be in a generous mood and ready to do what you can to make others feel good. But under today’s compassionate sky, you could overextend yourself. Some people might appreciate it, some may realize they are on to a good thing and try to take advantage, and some could end up feeling smothered. How about showering yourself with kindness and enjoying some self-care?

Gemini (May 22-June 21)

Gemini 22 May - 21 June : You could probably do without too many distractions, especially if you have a lot on your plate. The temptation to linger over interesting conversations or to engage with social media, could mean you miss out on an opportunity. With Neptune in the picture, it’s wise to make a list of the most important tasks and get those done first. Don’t dismiss the details, as mistakes are possible.

Cancer (June 22-July 23)

Your vision of life could be rose-tinted, as idealistic influences encourage you to see the best in everything. You may be more aware of the beauty around you, and even be open to the sights and scenes that you would normally pass by. You may have a yearning to relax somewhere soothing and peaceful, and if you get the chance today, it could truly regenerate you, Cancer.

Leo (July 24-Aug 23)

This may be a day to focus on the spiritual rather than the material, Leo. An uplifting blend of energies can help you to find pleasure and deep enjoyment, especially when connecting with a partner or other close ones. It’s also possible that an encounter could have quite an effect on you. Someone may seem to be everything you’re looking for, which will be very hard to resist.

Virgo

(Aug 24-Sep 23)

You may choose to be with people who are uplifting and a joy to be around. Today’s positive Moon/ Neptune tie, is excellent for getting out with friends or family and doing something a little bit different. A trip out to somewhere beautiful could leave you happy and at peace. You might also be drawn to cultural events, such as music, art, crafts or a movie that truly inspires you.

Libra (Sep 24-Oct

23)

There are so many reasons to cut back on your responsibilities and tasks today, and focus on enjoying yourself. And yet you could be easily persuaded to help with something that you don’t want to do. Be strong Libra, and just say no. You can assist them later when you have time, but don’t give up a social event or date just to be nice, as you’ll benefit from having some fun.

Scorpio (Oct 24-Nov 22)

The Moon’s hook-up with soothing Neptune may enhance your imagination, making this a perfect day for creative endeavours and for romance. If you haven’t been on a date night recently, current influences might enhance passion and inspire devotion too. Looking for love? Someone may not be quite as they seem, Scorpio. It’s best not to take anything for granted.

Sagittarius (Nov 23-Dec 21)

You could lose yourself in a book or movie, and forget that the rest of the world exists. With a dreamy focus on the cards, you’ll be drawn to novels or other forms of entertainment that allow you to escape into another world and leave this one behind. If you decide to connect with friends, it might be a more proactive and adventurous day, when an encounter could blow your mind.

Capricorn (Dec 22-Jan 20)

Wondering about a friend’s advice? If so, you’re far better off listening to your own intuition. Someone may draw your attention to alluring possibilities, but if you are interested, you would be wise to examine them thoroughly, especially if you have that feeling that it sounds too good to be true. It won’t hurt to ask a few questions, and would certainly be in your best interests.

Aquarius (Jan 21-Feb 19)

Watch your money and keep your personal details safe, as you may not be as alert and attentive as usual. The Moon’s alignment with aquatic Neptune in your money zone, can blur your usual savvy ways with cash. You could buy something that turns out to be useless, despite good reviews, or you may misread terms and conditions. If it’s important, double check everything.

Pisces (Feb 20-Mar 20)

With delightful vibes surrounding you Pisces, you might enjoy meeting with friends for a yoga or meditation session, or even a green tea and a chance to chat. You’re already very open and aware of other people’s energies, and this can be intensified at this time. Try not to absorb their moods or negativity though. Being around buoyant people can leave you vibrant and much more upbeat.

Speed Bump