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Real
Estate Investing : Costa Rica
Costa Rica Real Estate Investment
Costa Rica, the country where ecotourism
was born, may well be the country where ecologically sustainable
building becomes the standard. Not only does this make good
environmental sense, it is increasingly what prospective
buyers prefer.
“My clients are looking for properties
in Costa Rica that help preserve the very things they fell
in love with in the first place here: the natural beauty,
and the incredible variety of plant and animal life,”
says Diego Quesada, co-owner with Mike Fonseca of the Intl-Investors
Group (www.intl-investorsgroup.com).
This growing market preference generates
momentum for the routine implementation of measures by private
developers to protect and even improve Costa Rica’s
rich and diverse ecological heritage, to be good stewards
of Costa Rica’s natural “golden goose.“
That, in essence, is what “sustainable building”
or “ecodevelopment” is: a strategy to lessen
the negative impact of human habitation on the natural world
that incorporates a comprehensive series of considerations
into the planning and execution of housing and other facilities.
How? Some of the measures make obvious good
sense, such as minimizing the energy costs associated with
the routine use of the building over time through insulation
and the incorporation of natural means of lighting, heating,
and/or cooling; protecting and restoring air and water quality
and indigenous biological diversity; and designing with
an eye to the relationship between the building, the contours
of the land, and the habitats that surround it. Other recommendations
are more subtle, such as choosing building materials based
on the environmental impact of their production and installation;
supporting non-fossil-fuel-dependent activities by installing
hike, bike, and horse trails and even adapting the project
to the livelihood and development aspirations of the local
community.
Experts on sustainable building agree that
ecodevelopment makes good economic sense for everyone involved.
“Most green buildings are high-quality buildings;
they last longer, cost less to operate and maintain, and
provide greater occupant satisfaction than standard developments,”
says Dr. Sam C.M. Hui, a leading researcher and author of
Sustainable Architecture. “Sophisticated buyers and
lessees prefer them, and are often willing to pay a premium
for their advantages.”
This doesn’t mean, however, that sustainable
buildings must be more expensive. According to Olivier Luneau
of the United Nations Sustainable Building and Construction
Initiative, "To achieve improved energy efficiency
in buildings you often do not need to use advanced and expensive
high-tech solutions, but simple solutions such as smart
design, flexible energy solutions, and provision of appropriate
information to the building users."
More and more area developments are incorporating
principles of sustainable building into project design.
Says Robert Irvin, developer of The Oaks in Tamarindo, “We
began our conservation effort at The Oaks with something
simple. Instead of clearing the site for construction like
so many developers, we preserved over 70% of the trees…providing
natural shading for the buildings and preserving as much
as we could of the pre-existing landscape. We then designed
ecological corridors, or bridges, over the site so that
internal roads would not disrupt the habitat of the howler
monkeys that live on the property, and they could move from
one feeding area to another without having to leave the
trees.” Green areas occupy 7 of the project’s
31 acres and include an aviary as well as orchid and butterfly
farms.
Many of today’s developers are already
taking steps in the right direction with features such as
a wastewater treatment plant that restores all water from
domestic use to over 95% purity where they then use that
water for irrigation. Rainwater capture systems to conserve
excess water from the green season along with other measures
such as the use of low-water toilets, front-loading washers,
and compact fluorescent light bulbs show how simple and
easy it can be to produce significant energy and water savings
One of the area’s largest developments,
Hacienda Pinilla just south of Tamarindo recently earned
certification as an “Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary”
in recognition of its efforts to preserve the local ecology,
including leaving large tracts of tropical dry forest on
the 4500-acre property undisturbed. The nearby Sea Breeze
Mountain, a low-density gated community between Tamarindo
and Junquillal, features its own well and windmill-driven
water delivery system. Nature trails wind through a 60-acre
“reserve” of undisturbed forest.
The 2300-acre Reserva Conchal Beach and
Golf Resort has set aside 700 acres of forest and 95 acres
of mangrove wetland as a wildlife refuge and research center
in association with the Costa Rican Ministry of the Environment.
Landscaping in the resort, residential areas, and on the
golf course favor native plants, this translates into lower
maintenance costs and less dependence on year-round irrigation.
Buildings have been designed to take advantage of features
such as shade, wind, and sun for natural lighting and ventilation,
and riding and hiking trails are part of the project’s
25-year plan. Reserva Conchal Beach and Golf Resort has
reached out to the local community by organizing volunteer
fire brigades, environmental education courses, job training,
and programs for youth.
Tierra Pacífica Environmental Estates
in Junquillal is similarly ambitious in pursuing sustainability,
even linking the project’s design and implementation
to an ongoing series of on-site courses offered by the University
of Vermont on issues related to local ecological restoration
and entrepreneurship. Members of Tierra Pacífica’s
management team include Tom Peifer and Will Raap, respected
leaders in the sustainability movement. The development
features a wetlands-based storm water retention system,
the organization of a farming cooperative for organic fruits
and vegetables, and an on-site nursery for the regeneration
of local flora.
“It’s exciting to see these
important innovations already in the market, and setting
a precedent for future development.” says Diego. “After
all, keeping Costa Rica beautiful and healthy is in everyone’s
best interest.”
Mike Fonseca, http://www.intl-investorsgroup.com
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