Well for me, (I know I will take some heat), it is difficult for me to take any serious business advice, either real estate or immigration from a person with a double nose piercings and covered in jailhouse tattoos.
- Thread starter windeguy
- Start date
Sosúa Beach Renovations
I feel bad for those that used to run those shacks. I saw them up early in the morning (6.30ish) cleaning the front of the shacks, setting out chairs and preparing for the day's business (and most with a smile and a 'bueno dia') when I went for morning walks in beach.
Do people have to buy the new shacks or will they be able to rent from the government at reasonable rates ? In my native country, the local government builds commercial complexes and rents out shops for rates that are less than market rates (but lots of corruption in getting the shop allocated). In my adopted country, everything is quite privatized and efficient but the high street shops are too costly to rent and the taxes are high.
I am going to guess it is the DR government building the new shacks (through contractors) that is making the construction progress at the speed of light (sarcasm). May be if they let the beach bar owners association take this over, then it might have been completed faster and with less drama.
Do people have to buy the new shacks or will they be able to rent from the government at reasonable rates ? In my native country, the local government builds commercial complexes and rents out shops for rates that are less than market rates (but lots of corruption in getting the shop allocated). In my adopted country, everything is quite privatized and efficient but the high street shops are too costly to rent and the taxes are high.
I am going to guess it is the DR government building the new shacks (through contractors) that is making the construction progress at the speed of light (sarcasm). May be if they let the beach bar owners association take this over, then it might have been completed faster and with less drama.
My guess is that they will be rented from the authorities and will be at unreasonable rates.
I relly miss La Costera. Maybe she can get a spot in one of the Plazas on Sosua Beach when they are finished in 5 or 6 years?
Good idea to take the squalid shacks one at time for now until the next shocke and awe take them all.
There are no new shacks. Places in rhe 2 plazas will be rented to the businesses. I have not seen any rental pricing for the plazas. Has anyone else? I doubt any of the current shack businesses will be in those two plazas, no matter what promises were made about low rental prices for them.
I don't think there will be any real beach association when this is done years down the road at current progress. Just business owners renting and coming and going and going and coming....
Why would any government relinquish any part of their donated asset which would allow others to share in the spoils?
La Costera was not just a Name , it was 99.999 % the German Owner who was the Experienced Chef and Ran it with an Iron Fist ..
Same as Romanoff with Andy and Klaus .. Klaus went back to Europe, but Andy now has his own Spot , El Rancho by Playa Alicia.
But point is ( sorry for veering off) that the OWNER sometimes IS the entire BUSINESS. You cant just replace him overnight
That is the height of Delusion .
Romanoff the New " owners" Dominicans I think , not sure
but they actually had the audacity to Photocopy the old Romanoff Menu and put their Name on it .. the absolute balls .
I went there just to see it with my own eyes at the time.
As to the Beach , does anyone know if Andre's Seafood is still there . he has a big spot near Charamicos .
My last couple of experiences were not like it used to be years ago when he had the best Seafood on the Beach .
The Parties we had with Table Spreads on the Beach will always be remembered .
But I got cheated last time there, as the Lobster I picked I know he did not use in our dish .
So in some ways even the vendors who were once the best , kind of did it to themselves .
They are all Hustlers , dont kid yourself .
We were told that the German chef/owner there was once the personal chef to a VERY high-ranking German political figure. The food at La Costera was outstanding, was never really very busy and was sort of an unknown gem back then.
No.
In reality what they are doing is putting these people out of business long before any plaza is finished. I've no doubt the rents for a space will be (their presumptive) market rates which are way higher than they should be at the moment and of course the best spots within the plazas will go to he who is well-connected or to the highest bidder.
Sosua Beach as we have known it over the last few decades is finished. Slowly (be it at a snail's pace) the rest of the vendors along with the low-budget travelers they've always attracted will be permanently removed and replaced by day trip cruise ship passengers who will be happy to pay their inflated prices.
All good things in life come to an end and as I've said in previous threads regarding the transformation of Playa Sosua...
It was tolerated until it was abused.
It would have been nice if the 'travellers' were discouraged without having to destroy the beach business and the charm but I suppose that did not work out.
I have not been to many parts of the DR. Are there any similar beaches to Sosua (shade/trees close to the water, shacks selling food/beer, easily accessible from the village/town) by foot ?
I liked Playa Magante but it requires a car and is a bit of drive.
It was tolerated until the government got their hands on it and looked at the dollars involved.
It was tolerated until Muppets from different parts of the world felt it their duty to show the rest of the world what goes on there. It was a major blackeye on the DR's tourism industry as a whole and you better believe the cruise ship companies along with their investors were not happy about it either. I'll bet team Luis recieved a phone call or two from real money and that was that. Call it the straw that broke the camel's back.
I went to La Costera many times with my wife and brought others as well. The German owner used to be the chef for the Chancellor of Germany. I was sad when he left. I had no idea the woman tried to run it... The German went back to Germany with his Dominican wife and child so they could have a better life than being in Sosua.
The muppets and the bad reputation from them is why we have all these discussions about Sosua and the changes being attempted and being actually made.
Playa Magante is good. And also Playa Caleton ( just the other side of Rio San Juan. ) You're right - they are a bit of a drive - but well worth it. Especially Caleton.
There's a nice beach in RSJ. I stayed in a hotel right on one end of this small beach. I forget the name, but right in town.