The civic centre of Magdalena, the Plaza Monumental was redesigned and rebuilt in the early 1970s around the newly relocated remains of Padre Kino. The square is broad and open with a circle of leafy trees, low walls of pinkish stone, and clear sight lines to the surrounding mountains.
Shops selling religious mementos — wooden saints, candles, rosaries — ring the square. In the early evening the plaza fills with locals taking the cooler air. During festival days in early October it is the focus of one of the largest religious pilgrimages in Mexico. A statue of Padre Kino on horseback occupies the south end.