Diario Libre reports today that the government passed a RD$170 million relocation package for squatter families living in Montellano. Diario Libre reports that the previous government had turned down relocating the people given the high relocation cost. The small town lies on 17.7 million square meters of north coast land near the Playa Dorada 14-hotel complex. The government hopes to sell the property to investors prior to the end of this administration. Some 2,000 persons would be relocated to 229 dwellings.
The contract with the building company that was hired established that the dwellings would be ready five months after these received the cash advance, or prior to the 16 May election. According to Diario Libre, the move began in October 2003 following a decision from the Comite Administrativo del Proyecto Costa Norte, directed by Aida Gonzalez of the Central Bank. The committee oversees the sale of government property in the north coast. The newspaper says that the Monetary Board authorized the construction of the project on 4 December.
Montellano is located five kilometers west of the Puerto Plata International Airport. The beaches of Bergantin and Los Cocos make it attractive for resort development.