Master Plan for Pedernales

[NALs]

Urban Perfil presented to the public the master plan for the controversial tourism development of Pedernales. It will take place in Cabo Rojo. The first phase includes 4,700 rooms in 830 HA. The entire project will have a total of 12,000 rooms in 4,384 HA. It will also include the first two golf courses in The South. It doesn't say how many jobs will be created during construction and once it's completed and operating, but I wouldn't be surprised if this will be one of most, if not the most, job creation in that part of the country.

Arquitectura, Diseño y Construcción en Rep. Dom. on Instagram: "Presentan Máster Plan oficial del Proyecto de Desarrollo Turístico de Pedernales, con la asistencia del presidente @luisabinader, en el marco de la celebración de la edición 42 de la @fi

2,088 likes, 110 comments - perfilurbanord on January 22, 2022: "Presentan Máster Plan oficial del Proyecto de Desarrollo Turístico de Pedernales, con la asiste..."

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The Pier and Marina

A Small Botanical Garden, also the first in The South.

The Village with shops, restaurants, entertainment, etc.

A Wetland Nature Preserve

 

[NALs]

Satelite view where the master plan will be created.

 

[NALs]

That's how tourism on the north coast was started. The Central Bank is the owner of Playa Dorada and developed the place in the 1980's as the first mass tourism destination in the DR. Then the rest followed up and down the coast. It's very difficult to believe the same will not happen in Pedernales unless one of two things happens: the government would enforce zoning (judging by what happened in al, the other Dominican tourists destinations, I say this is highly unlikely) or it goes bust. The most possible result is that if this master plan is a success, tourist development would sprout up and down the coast and there will be stronger pressures to reduce the Jaragua National Park.

 

[william webster]

And remember, Playa Grande golf course was a gov't project until sold to Boykin Curry not that long ago

Typically Dominican... the course was designed in the early 70's..... not built until early 90's

In fact , the LAST Rob't 't Trent Jones ever built - trivia/Jeopardy question...

 

[CG]

Curious if the Rainieri's have any part of this project or any other land interests down there?...

 

[NALs]

They are involved in the Puntarena development project near Bani.

 

[CristoRey]

That's how tourism on the north coast was started. The Central Bank is the owner of Playa Dorada and developed the place in the 1980's as the first mass tourism destination in the DR. Then the rest followed up and down the coast. It's very difficult to believe the same will not happen in Pedernales unless one of two things happens: the government would enforce zoning (judging by what happened in al, the other Dominican tourists destinations, I say this is highly unlikely) or it goes bust. The most possible result is that if this master plan is a success, tourist development would sprout up and down the coast and there will be stronger pressures to reduce the Jaragua National Park.

An airport with ease of access, nice paved roads and working electricity 24hrs a day does wonders.

 

[JimW]

Full disclosure... I'm not Dominican, I'm an American living in the USA (married to a Dominican) so it's not my land or my future but to me, this project seems like the beginning of the end of one of the last, most beautiful, pristine areas of the DR.

I went to Bahia de Las Aguilas for the first time two years ago and it is absolutely stunning. The clarity and stillness of the water, the landscapes you drive through getting there, the authenticity of the towns and the people - it's incredible. It's truly untapped beauty. I understand completely the want to bring new job opportunities to the Pedernales region but once you get thousands of tourists coming in and out on a daily basis it won't be long before the beautiful water and beach have a constant film of suntan oil on it, that crystal clear water is cloudy with suspended sand and dirt through the unending churn of feet shuffling through and the flora and fauna along the shore gone from the trampling of feet.

And even though it's SAID it won't encroach on the National Park, make no mistake there's no guarantee that future governments will see it that way. I don't care if you're talking the DR, the US or any other country in the world, it's happened time and time again - it just takes one Act of a legislature to change a law, a boundary or even a National Park when it's determined it's in the 'best interests' of the State. And those whose hands are on the levers of power to make those changes will not be the ones living there who suffer the consequences.

And even though this is being billed as a "Cabo Rojo-Pedernales" project, also make no mistake, it's about Bahia de Las Aguilas. While the red mining beach of Cabo Rojo is interesting, it's not something that would attract legions of tourists. If Bahia de Las Aguilas didn't exist, this project wouldn't even be considered. This means that Bahia dLA will be the star attraction with shuttles, boat rides, tours etc. going to the beach through the National Park constantly.

Once the beach ceases to be pristine, tourism then dies and since the South as a whole is a long way from the rest of the major population or vacation centers the jobs that were created are lost, hotels close, decay sets in etc. and all that's left in 20 years is a shell of its former self. The South has almost desert conditions which means water for this project will be drawn from the aquifer which will probably be depleted to the point of taking decades to recharge.

I/M/O there's nothing sustainable about this type of tourism.

 

[CristoRey]

I won't go into the pros and cons of these types of projects as they've been discussed several times already in previous threads however JimW made some excellent points.

 

[bob saunders]

Full disclosure... I'm not Dominican, I'm an American living in the USA (married to a Dominican) so it's not my land or my future but to me, this project seems like the beginning of the end of one of the last, most beautiful, pristine areas of the DR.

I went to Bahia de Las Aguilas for the first time two years ago and it is absolutely stunning. The clarity and stillness of the water, the landscapes you drive through getting there, the authenticity of the towns and the people - it's incredible. It's truly untapped beauty. I understand completely the want to bring new job opportunities to the Pedernales region but once you get thousands of tourists coming in and out on a daily basis it won't be long before the beautiful water and beach have a constant film of suntan oil on it, that crystal clear water is cloudy with suspended sand and dirt through the unending churn of feet shuffling through and the flora and fauna along the shore gone from the trampling of feet.

And even though it's SAID it won't encroach on the National Park, make no mistake there's no guarantee that future governments will see it that way. I don't care if you're talking the DR, the US or any other country in the world, it's happened time and time again - it just takes one Act of a legislature to change a law, a boundary or even a National Park when it's determined it's in the 'best interests' of the State. And those whose hands are on the levers of power to make those changes will not be the ones living there who suffer the consequences.

And even though this is being billed as a "Cabo Rojo-Pedernales" project, also make no mistake, it's about Bahia de Las Aguilas. While the red mining beach of Cabo Rojo is interesting, it's not something that would attract legions of tourists. If Bahia de Las Aguilas didn't exist, this project wouldn't even be considered. This means that Bahia dLA will be the star attraction with shuttles, boat rides, tours etc. going to the beach through the National Park constantly.

Once the beach ceases to be pristine, tourism then dies and since the South as a whole is a long way from the rest of the major population or vacation centers the jobs that were created are lost, hotels close, decay sets in etc. and all that's left in 20 years is a shell of its former self. The South has almost desert conditions which means water for this project will be drawn from the aquifer which will probably be depleted to the point of taking decades to recharge.

I/M/O there's nothing sustainable about this type of tourism.

Having been there multiple times I fully agree with your assessment.

 

[Gadfly]

Am I missing something? Where will the employees come from? Pedernales & Barahona? Small towns. Remote location. Where would employees live? Employee housing?

 

[JD Jones]

Am I missing something? Where will the employees come from? Pedernales & Barahona? Small towns. Remote location. Where would employees live? Employee housing?

They'd be bussed in, just like Punta Cana employees are bused in from Higuey and surrounding areas.

 

[windeguy]

That's how tourism on the north coast was started. The Central Bank is the owner of Playa Dorada and developed the place in the 1980's as the first mass tourism destination in the DR. Then the rest followed up and down the coast. It's very difficult to believe the same will not happen in Pedernales unless one of two things happens: the government would enforce zoning (judging by what happened in al, the other Dominican tourists destinations, I say this is highly unlikely) or it goes bust. The most possible result is that if this master plan is a success, tourist development would sprout up and down the coast and there will be stronger pressures to reduce the Jaragua National Park.

Careful, there is a poster that might tell you he will pay for a room there when it opens and then renege on that.

As for those who don't like such projects, we are not the ones that make the decisions. We can just sit buy and watch the show.

 

[windeguy]

Pedernales, DR—

The Spanish-owned hotel chain Iberostar, which will operate the first hotel to be built in Cabo Rojo, with 580 rooms, assured the generation of 2,000 jobs of the 15,000 jobs that could be generated by the Pedernales Tourism Development Project through the public-private partnership modality, under the responsibility of the Pro-Pedernales Trust.

The information was offered after the public hearing for the Environmental License of the hotels in the hall of the Governor’s Office, with the presence of Governor Altagracia Brea de González.

According to estimates, it is expected that within the ten hotel constructions that are part of the tourism project, the remodeling of the Cabo Rojo pier, goods, and services, the province of Pedernales will generate a lot of labor, which is currently lacking.

According to the progress in the construction of the hotels, some rooms could be available for the arrival of the first cruise ship, which was announced on December 18 of this year and will mark a milestone in the history of this impoverished southern community.

PUBLIC HEARING
The public hearing held last Tuesday at the Governor’s Office had an agenda in which at the protocol table the engineer Jaime E. Lokward, who presented the project; Brainer Féliz, representative of the Pro-Pedernales Trust, and Danneris Santana, for the Environment. There was a space for participants’ questions and project hosts’ answers.

PROJECT
The Pro-Pedernales project aims to turn this province and surrounding areas into a leading world destination in conservation tourism and a model of sustainable development in the entire Caribbean and Central American region, promoting responsible tourism in compliance with Agenda 2030 and taking care of the proper conservation of Jaragua National Park, Sierra de Bahoruco National Park, protected areas of Playa Bahía de las Águilas, Cabo Rojo wetlands, Playa Larga, Playa Blanca, Salados and existing mangroves.

The Pedernales area has between 68% and 66% of protected areas, and its territory has a wide diversity that the United Nations observes.

LEARN MORE
TOURISM PEDERNALES
Pedernales is a southern province located on the border with Haiti. It is considered a nature sanctuary, so activities focus on ecotourism.

ATTRACTIONS
The beach of Bahía de las Águilas is a great attraction, although others have great beauty, rivers, mountains, and adventure trails.

CRUISES
The current government has announced that the first tourist cruise ship will arrive in Cabo Rojo, Pedernales, in December.

The construction of hotels in Cabo Rojo and the pier are a source of new jobs in the area.

Cabo Rojo tourism project secures more than 2,000 jobs

<p>Pedernales, DR— The Spanish-owned hotel chain Iberostar, which will operate the first hotel to be built in Cabo Rojo, with 580 rooms, assured the generation of 2,000 jobs of the 15,000 jobs that could be generated by the Pedernales Tourism Development Project through the public-private...

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