Municipality of Zapallar

Although it is difficult to establish a foundational milestone, the origins of Zapallar can be traced back to 1846, when Francisco Javier Ovalle Errázuriz acquired the Hacienda of Catapilco, which had almost exactly the same area as the current town of Zapallar. Later, in 1892, Olegario Ovalle founded the beach of Zapallar, laying out roads, streets, squares and accesses to the beach, giving land to his friends on the condition that they would build within a maximum period of two years. However, on August 16, 1906, an earthquake left most of the buildings destroyed, after which what is called the “second building period” began.

In 1909 the first church of Zapallar was built, which is the current Zapallar Theater, while in 1915 the house of Carlos Aldunate Solar was built, which since 1971 has functioned as a municipal building. Meanwhile, in 1916 Zapallar became independent from the municipality of La Ligua, which two years later would celebrate the first “Zapallarina Week”.

In 1930, the construction of the so-called “Rambla Alejandro Fierro” began. The first section covered the entire extension of Zapallar beach, then the pier joined the beach, while the third stage covered the northern area, between the beach and Isla Seca. Cerro La Cruz (now a Nature Sanctuary) became municipal land. It is said that Rosa Pérez Ovalle and Elvira Carvallo Pérez planted the pine tree that crowns the highest point of this hill.

In 1979, the Island of Cachagua, also known as “Island of the Penguins”, was declared a Nature Sanctuary, while in 1989 it also acquired the category of Natural Monument and the coastal area between Mar Bravo and Seca Island was declared a Typical Area (TA) of Zapallar. To the initiatives framed in the sustainable development of the town, the urban wetland La Laguna – Catapilco estuary was added in 2022, while at the end of 2023 Cerro La Cruz was declared a Nature Sanctuary in a joint work between the municipality and organizations such as Bosques de Zapallar Corporation and Corporation for the Development of Zapallar.

In 2023, the Municipality of Zapallar signs a Collaboration Agreement with Capital Azul Foundation with the aim of strengthening the work in the territory as a collaborator and strategic partner of the municipality, which has constantly supported the initiatives associated with the TURF-Reserves program.