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The town, also known as Rocky Point, is already seeing an increase in tourism, officials said, with about 2 million people visiting in 2014 and a projected increase of about 20 percent for 2015.

While the beaches may be getting more crowded, the most visible sign of progress is a large crane and heavy construction equipment at the western end of Sandy Beach.

Workers spend their day dumping rocks and adding enormous concrete blocks to the breakwater that eventually will allow the construction of an almost mile-long dock for cruise ships.

Although there are several ports where cruise ships can stop while visiting Mexico, Puerto Peñasco will be the country’s first home port, not only a stop but a point of origination.

The port’s proximity to the United States and a growing tourism market in Mexico make it a perfect location, officials said.

“The potential market for the Puerto Peñasco home port is estimated to be about 1.9 million cruisers,� said Diana Nieves, marketing manager at the port administration. “The cruise industry is growing 7.2 percent per year and the Sea of Cortés is one of only two routes that have yet to be serviced by the industry.�

The other route is Cuba, she said.

So far cruise liners have been receptive and open to the possibility of another home port and a new route, but they are taking a wait-and-see attitude before making commitments, Nieves said.

Right now her job is to keep the city alive in the minds of the big cruise companies and educate travel agents, the biggest source for cruise bookings, about what the area has to offer.

“Outside of ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ or the Southwest, Puerto Peñasco isn’t as well-known as say Cancun, Conzumel or Los Cabos,â€� she said. “Even with some travel agents, you have to say, ‘OK, here’s Los Cabos, here’s San Diego, here’s Puerto Peñasco.’â€�

If everything goes as expected, the city will see about $120 million per year in crew and passenger spending, Nieves said, but the port is already benefiting residents.

About 300 direct and 600 indirect jobs will be created during construction and 200 direct and 1,000 indirect jobs will be available once it’s in operation.

Another beneficiary of the home port will be the city’s airport, located about 27 miles outside of downtown. Sixty million potential customers live in the area covered by a two-hour flight to Puerto Peñasco from Mexico and the United States, officials said.

Although there are no commercial flights coming in yet, the Mar de Cortés International Airport will be ready to receive them by the time the port opens during the first half of 2017, said airport administrator Alonso Domínguez.

The airport, which opened in 2009 as a public-private partnership between the state and Grupo Mayan Resorts, sees about 6,000 passengers per year, he said. Almost 30 percent of arrivals are American general aviation and 8 percent are charter flights from the U.S. and Mexico.

A new regular flight from Scottsdale to Puerto Peñasco is also scheduled to start soon, Domínguez said.

Residents hope an increase in tourism will bring more money to the area but some wonder what Puerto Peñasco has to offer beyond its beautiful beaches and elegant resorts.

“You look around and see unpaved streets, abandoned buildings and general messiness,� said lifelong resident Ramíro López. “If this benefits all of us, then great, but so far I don’t see it.�

Along with increasing investment and economic development, making the surrounding city live up to the promise of the gleaming towers and luxury condos is one of the main goals for mayor-elect Ernesto Munro.

Speaking before representatives from the ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Hispanic Chamber of Commerce on a trade mission to Puerto Peñasco, the Phoenix-born mayor laid out his plan to revitalize the city.

His large-scale proposal, broken down into five focus areas, includes revamping urban infrastructure and utilizing abandoned building projects, building a city park and cultural center, relaunching tourist real estate and investing in a public transportation system and clean energy.

The boldest part of his proposal is a change to the city’s administrative structure.

“We have an overstuffed bureaucracy and expenses that are too high,� Munro said. “The way we’re working now there is no way to measure results and we have no effective execution of municipal projects.�

Under Munro, city departments would be consolidated and many top positions eliminated, freeing up money for development.

But even if the changes he’s looking for pass the city council, there’s no guarantee that the next mayor won’t hit the reset button after three years, or for that matter, abandon any projects begun under his administration, Munro said.

Until recently, re-election was not part of Mexican law. Starting in 2018, federal representatives can be re-elected and eventually state and local level offices will be affected as well.

“Now you have a mayor come in and he has a clear vision of what he wants to do, but he leaves his predecessor’s projects by the wayside. Sometimes they ignore prior proposals, even if they’re beneficial for the whole, which inevitably affects residents,� he said.

His plan to combat this is to set up a citizen participation committee and a municipal planning institute, oversight groups designed to help maintain continuity between administrations.

“We’re trying to put up an ambitious program of economic development but with support and sustainability as well,� Munro said.

With a tight city budget leaving little room to spend, that support would come from private interests ready to bet on Puerto Peñasco as well as investors willing to partner with the public sector to get projects off the ground.

Part of that investment will undoubtedly come from ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥, officials said. With 70 percent of U.S. visitors coming from the state, the city’s fate is tied to its northern neighbor.

“We want to reaffirm that we’re ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s beach, that ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ns feel secure while visiting us, but above all that they feel secure in investing with us,â€� Munro said. “That way we can truly integrate as an economic region.â€�