Lifestyle development in Cabarete

windeguy

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Jul 10, 2004
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It is a story about illegal construction. Will anything be done about it is the question.
 

cavok

Silver
Jun 16, 2014
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Cabarete
The construction has been going on for over a year and now they suddenly decide it's illegal(?). Sounds to me like they waited so they could squeeze more money out of Lifestyles.
 

southern

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Dec 13, 2016
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It will do better than that Ahnvee place in Sosua. Even though you must cross the street to get to the beach it's only 100 yards away. More restaurant options, better beach, much better for couples, families and sports enthusiasts.It even has a little Sosua action sprinkled in.
 

visitante

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Jun 5, 2010
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The lifestyle project includes the construction across from the street from the 5 story building where dozens of 3 story units are to be built. The plan may still include a pedestrian bridge linking the property on both sides of the street. When questions arose regarding the lack of any permits for this new work on the beach side, the Lifestyle folks where able to get a quick presidential decree from their friend Danilo. There is no presidential decree covering the five story building or other work on the other side of the street, but no doubt they can get it if they are pressured due to the lack of permits from the ministry of tourism and the ministry of environment.
 

windeguy

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Jul 10, 2004
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It will do better than that Ahnvee place in Sosua.

Agreed beyond any doubt on that.

Even though you must cross the street to get to the beach it's only 100 yards away. More restaurant options, better beach, much better for couples, families and sports enthusiasts.It even has a little Sosua action sprinkled in.

For all the above reasons, including the beach club currently being built on the ocean side.

I cannot imagine breaking the laws regarding the project's construction having any impact on completion of the project. Why would such things make any difference?

The original plans, before Lifestyles purchased the abandoned project, were to have a pedestrian bridge for clients over the highway. Not sure if this is part of Lifestyles design.
 

Expat13

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Jun 7, 2008
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The lifestyle project includes the construction across from the street from the 5 story building where dozens of 3 story units are to be built. The plan may still include a pedestrian bridge linking the property on both sides of the street. When questions arose regarding the lack of any permits for this new work on the beach side, the Lifestyle folks where able to get a quick presidential decree from their friend Danilo. There is no presidential decree covering the five story building or other work on the other side of the street, but no doubt they can get it if they are pressured due to the lack of permits from the ministry of tourism and the ministry of environment.

The risk being if/when a new President, they may "TRUMP" the previous agreement!
 

ohmmmm

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Jun 11, 2010
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Once its built and people are there, another administration three years from now will not care nor want the publicity for the harm it would do to tourism.
 

visitante

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Jun 5, 2010
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I need to correct my prior post. Lifestyles did get a license for the beach side part of their project from medio ambiente in February. The presidential decree that authorizes limited use of the 60m from the water was from an unrelated prior project promoter in 1992.
 
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Cdn_Gringo

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Apr 29, 2014
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Unless something has changed, and I haven't heard that anything has - Lifestyles doesn't actually own any real estate in the long term. Generally, someone else owns the properties and lifestyles leases and runs them.

Eg, in POP, The villas, and the Suites are owned freehold by private individuals. The Tropical Hotel and Corfresi Palms are owned by other companies. Construction of new villas and suites is dependent on the Real Estate Dept selling them before they are constructed.

In Cap El Limon in Samana, there are only two villas that are completed. There is very limited infrastructure otherwise. Guests who go there have a private chef and butler and the use of a magnificent beach pretty much all to themselves. About 6 years ago, Lifestyles took about 300 Shareholders to Cap El Limon for what was essentially a sales call and that effort resulted in the sale of the two existing villas at 1.2-1.7 million apiece. Until more accommodations are sold and built, no further development will occur in this location.

As for Luperon, I have not been told of any future plans. If the same philosophy is applied here, a corporate investor will be sought to refurbish the existing hotel buildings and individuals will be pitched to construct additional suites and or villas or whatever new accommodations are desired. This approach to development as you can appreciate takes a lot of time. Unlike Samana where there was nothing onsite in the beginning, the hotel in Luperon either needs to reopen or be demolished first and that won't happen until investors are in place. Lifestyles won't be the entity that resurrects this hotel. It could be years before Luperon is operational as a full scale resort again. A lot depends on money, and the number of members who would be interested in travelling to Luperon after arriving in POP.

It is beyond the scope of this post to explain how the business of this leasing arrangement between Lifestyles and corporate/private interests works, but in the case of Cabarete, a private consortium does own the hotel under construction and it will be managed and operated on their behalf by Lifestyles. From the lessons learned in Samana, it is difficult to lure private villa & suite investors until there is infrastructure in place. Luperon will sit idle until some deep pockets are lined up. Lifestyles trades on its reputation and existing membership base and offers investors the opportunity to make all of their investment money back, but offers nothing in the way of a long term guarantee and holds no real assets of its own.
 

windeguy

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Jul 10, 2004
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And Lifestyles also works with RCI, one of the two major timeshare companies along with Interval International. RCI provides Lifestyles with another sales and marketing outlet.

From the description above, Lifestyles just sells a very expensive version of timeshares which can be used through their own internal exchange company or using RCI for exchange from other vacation clubs.
 

Cdn_Gringo

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Apr 29, 2014
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"Timeshare" is not a very accurate description of what is offered. The classic timeshare details a specific period of time each year that one can make use of a particular accommodation unit. Lifestyles is more of a "club" with no such restrictions. You can travel as often as you want and stay as long as you want, where you want, in a range of accommodation types. Unlike a timeshare, all membership fees are paid in advance so there are no yearly maintenance fees due even if you do not travel to Lifestyles that year. Accommodation pricing is locked in at the time you join, and the contracts run in the neighborhood of 30 years or so. The price you sign at today is the price you pay to stay 20 years from now. One membership is good for access to all of Lifestyles manged resorts and yes stays at Lifestyles can be traded within RCI and other affiliated timeshare trading organizations including one run by Lifestyles themselves.

The trading aspect can be a pain in the a$$. Years ago, memberships included a free one year membership with RCI but that is no longer the case and each of these trading companies have their own fees, processes and headaches for making use of their services.

Without nitpicking, yeah, a Lifestyles membership is a means of accessing a particular class of accommodations and services within Lifestyles at a fixed price and other accommodations around the world for a known price far into the future.

Memberships are transferable if the original member passes on before the end of the contract. It is a pretty slick money making machine if one is convinced that the entity that is Lifestyles will still exist in 20 years. The economics of membership only makes sense for those who travel often and prefer to travel to a Lifestyles managed resort that offers the class of accommodation/services offered in the membership contract. A Villa member who wishes to travel to a resort that doesn't offer villas is limited to staying in the accommodation class that is offered by the resort property they wish to stay at - which sometimes means you can get an entire floor at a Holiday Inn Express for a really good price but it is still a Holiday Inn.
 

windeguy

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Jul 10, 2004
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It is yet another version of Timeshare as the industry tries to re-invent itself after going from fixed weeks, to flex, etc, etc, etc.

You can call a turd whatever you want to call it, but it is still a turd. If they could not be traded on RCI , your argument might be a bit more persuasive.
 

AlterEgo

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Jan 9, 2009
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We were corralled into listening to their spiel, not for us, but some people like them. Both our children belong to the Disney vacation club, and our son and his wife have used it to go to Punta Cana. They stayed at Ocean Blue for free, had to pay for food though.  
 

Cdn_Gringo

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Apr 29, 2014
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Me, I don't really care one way or the other. It is up to the individual to determine is the "product" being offered is a good value for them and they are the only ones who can determine if the "product" being offered is something that they will be able to fully use. Not all Fords are Pintos, but all Fords are still a Ford. I'll give you that much. :)
 

windeguy

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Jul 10, 2004
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We were corralled into listening to their spiel, not for us, but some people like them. Both our children belong to the Disney vacation club, and our son and his wife have used it to go to Punta Cana. They stayed at Ocean Blue for free, had to pay for food though.  

Trust me, they did not stay for free. They paid initially for the time share (tens of thousands of dollars) and they almost certainly pay an annual maintenance fee and with Disney, I bet that fee is a steep one each year. For example:

DVC Dues
Animal Kingdom Villas $6.2989
Aulani (purchased before 7/27/11) $4.8940
Aulani (purchased after 7/27/11) $6.5100
Bay Lake Tower $5.0504
Beach Club Villas $5.9748

https://disneyvacationclub.disney.go.com/membership/dues/

And they still paid a daily AI fee which was probably around $80 a day per person.
 
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chico bill

Dogs Better than People
May 6, 2016
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"Timeshare"...slowly I turn, step by step...
Who among us has not been suckered into this old vacation gimmick or at least been uncomfortably buttonholed by some poor slob trying to hawk this crappy idea to a slightly tipsy tourist ?

Regarding Lifestyle - the proper political contributions solve a lot of problems the world over.
 

visitante

Member
Jun 5, 2010
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The owner of the property is the Wynn Group from Toronto. The work was suspended on both sides of the road as of late yesterday. Word is the Ministry of Environment has some questions.