For the last few years, Cap Cana has been billed as the Caribbean’s “Next Great Destination.” With each week, it is becoming clear that perhaps it is time to drop the word “Next.”

Cap Cana, which in less than two years has opened a world-ranked golf course, has set global property sales records, and this week is hosting a new addition to the Champions Tour, announced today that it has been selected by Jack Nicklaus as one of up to 25 destinations worldwide to share the unique distinction of being a Jack Nicklaus Golf Club.

The announcement during the opening round of the Cap Cana Championship was made by Jack Nicklaus and Dr. Ricardo Hazoury, President of Cap Cana’s board and Vice President of the Abrisa Group, one of the chief economic groups in the Dominican Republic.

Cap Cana becomes the 10th property to join the Jack Nicklaus Golf Club, which was created as an exclusive access and reciprocity program for a limited number of elite Jack Nicklaus Signature Golf Courses located in ideal markets around the world.

Never before has a club been branded with the Jack Nicklaus name, and as part of this unique license, the Jack Nicklaus Golf Club of Cap Cana will be able to offer up to 35 Associate Club Members reciprocity at other Jack Nicklaus Golf Clubs, as well as access to a Nicklaus Home established on each property for use by Jack Nicklaus, his family and other JNGC Members worldwide.

In addition to the reciprocity privileges and the use of the Nicklaus Home at each club, there are no membership fees or annual dues, no green fees and benefits include access to club amenities and tee times at all Jack Nicklaus Golf Club locations.

The Jack Nicklaus Golf Club of Cap Cana will be tied to Las Iguanas, the second of three Nicklaus Signature Golf Courses that will eventually play across the property’s 30,000 acres situated along more than five miles of coastline on the eastern tip of the Dominican Republic.

But with the availability of the Punta Espada course, one of Golf Digest’s 100 Greatest Courses Outside the United States and site of this week’s Cap Cana Championship, Jack Nicklaus Golf Club members will have immediate playing privileges. JNGC members will have complimentary access to a luxury villa at Cap Cana that will be completed in two months, and then a Nicklaus Home once Las Iguanas is completed.

In addition, Jack Nicklaus Golf Club of Cap Cana members will have access to Jack’s Florida and Ohio home courses, The Bear’s Club in Jupiter, Fla., and Muirfield Village Golf Club in Dublin, Ohio.

“We are delighted to have Cap Cana join the family of Jack Nicklaus Golf Clubs,” said Jack Nicklaus, who visited Cap Cana for the opening round of the Cap Cana Championship and for a site visit to work on his course design for Las Iquanas.

“The addition of Cap Cana gives us an existing facility with a tremendous worldwide reputation as we expand the Jack Nicklaus Golf Club. To have immediate access to courses like Punta Espada, The Bear’s Club, Muirfield Village, and Kinloch in New Zealand, gives us a wonderful start and foundation for our initial Club members. Cap Cana is a terrific destination, and I think our other Jack Nicklaus Golf Club members will find that out soon.”

Locations for future Jack Nicklaus Golf Clubs will encompass some of the world’s most sought-after markets and destinations. Current JNGC sites include Tuscany; Scotland; New Zealand; Royal Island (Bahamas); St. Lucia and Anguilla in the Eastern Caribbean; the Patagonia region of Argentina; Vancouver Island in Canada; and Mount Holly, a private ski destination in Utah.

Cap Cana (www.capcana.com) is considered one of the most important tourism and real-estate projects in the Caribbean, with a master plan investment projected at $1.5 billion. The phase of the project will be developed over the next 12 to 15 years, and will comprise 8,680 of the 30,000 available acres and 3.5 miles of beachfront. The initial phase will have three 5-star hotels and five golf courses, three of them being Jack Nicklaus Signature Courses.

Anchoring one end of the property is arguably the Caribbean’s largest, most complete and state-of-the-art marinas, and it is surrounded by shopping, residential, as well as fine and casual dining. Cap Cana’s initial phase will include a total of 5,000 residential units and 500 hotel rooms.

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Representatives from one of the largest real state tourism developments in the Caribbean, Roco Ki, presented the project’s future plans to potential investors who attended an international infrastructure forum in Miami today.

“We were extremely well received by a select group of investors who have expressed interest in participating in our project,” said Nicholas Tawil Fernandez, President and CEO of Roco Ki. Tawil presented the project to representatives of banks, construction firms, financial companies and other attendees of the 6th annual Latin American Leadership Forum ‘Building the Region’s Global Network for Competitiveness and Opportunity,’ which was organized by CG/LA Infrastructure Strategy Group.

In the coming years, Roco Ki has plans to build seven luxury hotels and about 4,000 residential units and aims to offer top-notch facilities and services such as:

– A world-class marina scheduled to open in 2010 is part of the initial phase of an internal navigable canal of approximately 3 miles in length and a capacity to dock 320 mega yachts.
– A botanical garden with a wide representation of local plants and vegetation.
– An exhibition of ancient Taino Indian artifacts found in the area.
– An added six top quality hotels.
– Three additional golf courses.
– An aquatic sports center that offers numerous activities such as diving, snorkeling, sailing, kayaking, parasailing and whale watching.

The present stage of Roco Ki which includes a 157-room Westin Roco Ki Beach & Golf Resort hotel and 341 residential units that are being built in the Macao area, near Punta Cana will be ready at the end of this year and will have seven restaurants, several bars, a gourmet market, 24-hour room service and an 11,500 square foot Heavenly spa.

Other highlights include a pristine, 5.7-kilometer beach, spectacular cliffs crowned by an 18-hole, par 72, golf course known as “The Faldo Legacy Course” designed by Nick Faldo. The golf course was built in accordance with the Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary Program, which shows the resort’s respect for the environment and at the same time honors the name of the project, which translates to “Honoring the Earth” in the language of the area’s original inhabitants, the Taino Indians.

The tourist center, which also features a conference center with a 700-person capacity, is located just 25 minutes from the Punta Cana International Airport, one hour from La Romana International Airport and two hours from Santo Domingo’s Las Americas International Airport.

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The Roco Ki tourism project being built in the Dominican Republic will call for an estimated total investment of US$90mn in infrastructure works, a project promotion official revealed during the 6th Latin American Leadership Forum, held in Miami this week.

The initiative is being developed in Punta Cana, on the country’s eastern coast. Infrastructure development for the initiative was divided into two phases, of which the first will require an investment of US$40mn, the official said.

First stage works include local road development, the construction of an 8-9 km aqueduct to provide the area with potable water, and power and communications infrastructure.

Authorities are currently planning each individual project in the tourism complex and some are already underway, but many have yet to be carried out, making this an attractive opportunity for investors, the official said.

Access from the local airport to Roco Ki will improve once a new boulevard connecting the Punta Cana airport to the area is finished.

Travel time from the tourist resort area to international airports La Romana and Las Américas is also expected to improve once the construction of the highways connecting the terminals to the Punta Cana area is completed, the official said, adding that these two initiatives are not included in the US$40mn.

The remaining US$50mn investment will take place during the second phase of infrastructure development.

Authorities have yet to determine when to carry out this phase and which projects it will include. These issues will be defined depending on the success of the complex.

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In a special visit to Cap Cana, Punta Cana’s premier luxury resort and real estate community, Donald J. Trump held a press conference to highlight the many recent developments in his Trump at Cap Cana project, announcing a new condo hotel, beach club and world-class golf courses on site.

Accompanied by Dr. Ricardo Hazoury, President of Cap Cana’s Board of Directors, and Fernando Hazoury, Vice President of the Cap Cana Board, Trump expressed his passionate belief that “Cap Cana is one of the most wonderful places in the world, known world wide for its highest level of luxury and exclusivity - with beautiful natural surroundings as well as a solid plan for its development.”

Dr. Hazoury expressed his pride in the Dominican Republic and its recognition as a prime destination for luxury real estate tourism development, attracting great brands and foreign investment that make significant contributions to the national economy. “This is the future of our country.”

Trump has invested an important sum into this project which will increase over the maturity of its development. He emphasized the country’s stability and safe climate, as well as Cap Cana’s solid reputation as his main reasons for making this ongoing investment.

“The present real estate crisis in the United States has not affected Cap Cana, as its property owners do not come from one single country, but rather from all over the world. My perception is that within the next 12 months, the situation in the United States will resolve and will stabilize.”

Trump also announced that Hanse Golf Course Design Inc., one of the leading international golf course design companies, will be designing the first of Trump at Cap Cana’s new golf courses, Farallón and Dolinas, perched well above sea level on the project’s stunning bluff.

The team at Hanse Design firmly believes that the world’s best golf courses begin with the quality and foundation of the land. The supervision of this construction process is constant and committed through all its personnel in each international project, as is the case for Trump at Cap Cana.

The bluff’s courses will have strategically placed challenging sand traps, greens, and will be close one another without interfering in the development and design of the other course. Farallón, which consists of 7,215 yards of championship golf, is set amongst natural flora and a landscape dominated by the sand and sea, with three fabulous holes bordering the cliff face. Dolinas, boasting 7,290 yards of championship golf, will have a clean and clear native landscape, bordered by the abundance of trees, flowers, and spectacular dolinas.

About Cap Cana

Cap Cana is the most important tourism and real-estate project of the Caribbean. With a master plan investment projected at $1.5 billion, the first stage of the project will be developed in a span of 12-15 years and comprises an area of 35 million square meters (8,680 acres) of a total of over 120 million square meters (30,000 acres); 5.5 kilometers (3.5 miles) of virgin beaches and privy to a privileged climate. In its initial phase, the project will have more than four 5-star hotels, five golf courses, three of them being Jack Nicklaus Signature Courses, one of the most complete and modern marinas in the Caribbean and a total of 5,000 residential units and 500 hotel rooms.

http://dr1.com/realestate/developments/capcana/

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