From 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. today there will be no water for households in 12 urbanizations and in three industrial centers in La Aurora, southeast Heredia. 

The Empresa de Servicios Publicos of Heredia released this information late Tuesday afternoon and did not give much notice to the people of the affected area. An employee from the Empresa said that the works are necessary to repair damaged water pipes in that area and should not take longer than a day.  But for some companies in the area a water cut can be very costly. 

The industrial centers that are affected included the Ultrapark, La Zona Franca Metropolitana and Fresas del Tropico. Rosaura Vargas, supervisor of the production line at Fresas del Tropico said, "We only found out about the water cut five minutes ago, and it was just by chance. Something needs to be done about this. We need to be given more notice."

The affected urbanization's are El Oeste de San Augustín, La Victoria, Gran Samaria and Aries, as well as La Aurora which includes the condominiums Aprovia, La Florita and Navar, Jerez, Los Cafetos, Nuevo Amanecer and O. R.
 

Street vendors have won
concessions for aged, infirm

Street vendors evicted from their locations on avenidas 1 and 8 early Monday got a concession from the Municipalidad de San José Tuesday.

Municipal officials agreed that vendors over the age of 60 and those who were disabled or in extreme poverty would get business permits. Officials also said that the number of agricutural fairs in the city would be increased to five a week, about double the current number.

Some 450 vendors are affected by the evictions. They have been in the sites for as much as 10 years.

A group of elderly vendors already had taken the municipality up on an offer of relocation and had accepted new locations outside the central city core.

Johnny Araya, San José mayor, has been working for nearly a year to get the vendors off public sidewalks. He has the support of the municipal council.

Large Mexican TV station
charged with fraud by SEC

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. regulators have charged Mexico's second-largest television broadcasting company and its chairman with fraud.

The Securities and Exchange Commission Tuesday alleged that TV Azteca chairman Ricardo Salinas Pliego and two other company executives concealed Salinas' role in debt transactions through which he made $109 million.

The agency also alleged that Salinas and another company executive sold millions of dollars of company stock while shareholders were unaware of Salinas' role in the debt scam. 

The agency said it is seeking fines, repayment of illegal profits and injunctions against future securities violations.  TV Azteca is publicly traded in the United States.

The charges caused TV Azteca's stock to fall about 9 percent on Wall Street. Company shares also declined in trading in Mexico. 
 

Devaluation was at 9.45 percent

The annual devaluation of the colon was 9.45 percent in 2004, according to figures maintained by the Banco Central de Costa Rica.

On Jan. 1, 2004, the buy rate for U.S. dollars was 418.04. The rate Jan. 1 this year was 457.58.

The bank engages in a programmed devaluation every business day.

The buy rate is pegged to the U.S. dollar, which itself has declined in value compared to other major currencies over the last year.
 

A.M. Costa Rica Consultantes Río Colorado S.A. James J. Brodell........................editor Saray Ramírez Vindas...associate editor Avenida 11 bis, Barrio Otoya, San José  Voice: (506) 223-1327 FAX: (506) 223-1190  In Costa Rica:                            From elsewhere:      A.M. Costa Rica                           Consultantes Río Colo.      Apartado 12909-1000                  SB 11      San José, Costa Rica                     P.O. Box 025292      (506) 223-1327                          Miami, FL 33102-5292

When a San José resident flushes the toilet, the water and waste eventually flow into a river and then into the Pacific.

This is the dirty little secret of the country that prides itself on being environmentally friendly.

But Tuesday, the government’s water and sewer company announced an ambitious project to build a sewage treatment plant in Escazú and provide sewer service to an estimated 85 percent of the persons living in the greater metropolitan area by 2025.

The two-stage project is estimated to cost $437 million in today’s dollars.  Under a proposal explained Tuesday by Heibel Rodríguez, the first stage will provide sewage treatment for 65 percent of the metropolitan area’s population by 2015. He is manager of the Instituto Costarricense de Acueductos y Alcantrarillados, the water and sewer company.

The first phase project is being backed by a $100 million infusion from the Japan Bank for International Cooperation. However, Rodríguez said the additional individual cost for each citizen in the metropolitan area would be about $8 a month. Some $150 million more would be needed, according to institute figures.

Costa Rican governmental agencies have a habit of announcing major projects and then taking many years to actually complete them. But Rodríguez in his presentation at Casa Presidencial Tuesday outlined the deteriorating condition of the area’s sewers.

Basically the main sewers follow one of four rivers, from east to west: the Rivera, the Torres, the María Aguilar or the Tiribí.  These sewers total 85 kms. in length, some 53 miles. Via a 1,000-km. system of secondary collectors, 575,000 persons are serviced. Rodríguez showed photos of rusted pipes dumping sewage into streams and of children playing in sewer runoff.

Eventually the existing system dumps the sewage into rivers than flow into the Río Grande de Tarcoles. That 

The project does not seem to make any provisions for 

Heibel Rodríguez

the rapid growth that is taking place in Escazú and points west, including Santa Ana and Ciudad Colón. The institute estimates that population in the 270 square kilometers encompassed by the plan will be 1.6 million by 2025. Eastern Escazú is the likely site for a sewage treatment plant because it is at a lower elevation than the communities to the east. The proposal calls for rehabilitation of the existing sewers,

A timetable released by the institute shows that no construction would begin until 2009. Until then design and acquisition of easements would take place.

The main benefits of the project would be improvement in the public health by reducing contamination of rivers and streams and the improvement of the subsurface water table by eliminating sewage infiltration, said the institute.

The institute is an independent agency, and it can develop its own projects subject to the country’s general laws. Financial help is needed from the government, and the session Tuesday allowed President Abel Pacheco to announce that the sewer work was starting.

A Texas-based market leader in surgical products, dermatology and tissue testing has entered into a distribution agreement with Elcom of Costa Rica. 

The agreement grants Elcom exclusive distribution rights for Oasis products in Costa Rica, El Salvador and Panamá. Based in San José, Elcom provides technologies for the medical market in Costa Rica and surrounding countries. The Texas company is Healthpoint.

The products are like a temporary skin to help wounds heal and natural skin to grow back.

Oasis products are made from a biomaterial that can be used in the management of partial and full-thickness skin loss injuries, such as pressure, venous, and chronic vascular ulcers, diabetic ulcers, surgical and trauma wounds, second degree burns, abrasions, and autograft donor sites, said an announcement.

"It is a small enterprise made up of nurses, doctors and salesmen who are well equipped to manage this," said Jiménez of his firm. 

Oasis is a natural matrix used to manage a variety of wounds by providing an environment that  allows a patient’s body to rebuild and repair damaged tissue. 

"Elcom is pleased to be Healthpoint’s distributor in Costa Rica, El Salvador and Panama," said Jiménez.  "We believe there is significant market potential for this innovative wound matrix and look forward to  developing Oasis for patients throughout our national healthcare market." 

Purchasing property in a proposed subdivision is risky at best. Even the best-intentioned developer can become the victim of economic forces.

A prudent land purchaser should ask the following questions:

1. What governmental approvals are necessary for this development and which ones already have been granted?

Land without a platted subdivision is just raw land. Here and elsewhere the subdivision process is expensive, long and filled with official obstacles

2. Who actually owns the land?

Frequently a developer will begin a project with just an option to purchase the land at a later date. The developer’s degree of commitment is an indication of the chances the project will be finished.

3. Where are the plans for the water lines, electricity, sewer lines, roadways and other utilities?

In a typical subdivision, the developer makes an initial investment in utilities and infrastructure before the first lot is sold. Roads and other utilities are in. This is an expense of development that is later passed on to the individual buyers. The quality of life in the subdivision is linked to the quality of the infrastructure. 

If the water lines are too small, water pressure will be inadequate. If the roads do not have sufficient base, as persons in Costa Rica are well aware, giant potholes and expensive repair jobs are not far away.

Sewage runs downhill. Sewer lines should, too.

4. Specifically how will sewage be treated?

Many U.S. jurisdictions prohibit subdivisions that use septic tanks. A septic tank on a sprawling farm is frequently adequate. However, hundreds of septic tanks in a subdivision can cause serious health problems and an eventual major expense to put in sewers. Or the area may become uninhabitable.

5. What financial setup guarantees the infrastructure?

Developers frequently post performance bonds to insure municipalities and potential buyers that the promised amenities really will be installed. The bond is backed by a big financial institution like a major insurance company. If the developer fails to do the work, the bonding company has to come up with the cash to get the job done.

6. What are the geological and soil conditions under the subdivision.

No one wants to build on a seismic fault or a former 

In cases where drilled water wells are planned, a land buyer should first have evidence that water exists and at what depth. In addition, water wells may require additional permits.

7. What zoning restrictions will govern the subdivision and how will they be enforced?

Most housing subdivisions have covenants that restrict the use of the land. The idea is to keep the area residential. A neighbor raising a pig may be quaint. A neighbor with 50 pigs, 20 dogs, five horses or a body and fender shop may generate noise, smells and other problems that will restrict the nearby homeowners’ use of their properties.

Many subdivisions set up a homeowners association to oversee life in the community and to enforce the rules.

8. What will be the taxes and other expenses on the property?

A cute trick by some developers is to borrow money against the land and create long-term debt obligations. Then they sell off the land, leaving the homeowners stuck with the debt even after they have paid top price for the property. In Costa Rica, such financial obligations may be hard to trace, particularly when multiple companies are involved.

9. Who will hold the money?

Expats in Costa Rica have been hit with a number of financial scams, investment disasters and bank failures. Getting quick court action is nearly impossible.

When money is put into a trust fund, the obvious question is who is the person holding the money and where have they put the trust fund. Is it in a recognized banking institution?

Costa Rica has several well-known, independent title companies that do this type of work.

10. What is the history of the developer with similar-sized developments?

Potential purchasers should visit other developments built by the same firm, talk to residents and check with local officials to see if the developer lived up to commitments. Every development hits rocky situations and there usually are a few unhappy people. But the would-be purchaser should try to get the general attitude of the community.

A  responsible developer generally welcomes serious buyers and would have no trouble providing adequate responses to these questions.
 
 

EDITOR’S NOTE; These questions and comments come from a multitude of sources, including the writer’s personal experiences.

A home for the unwanted elderly in La Rita de Pococi has to come up with funds for a funeral, and public support is sought. The institution is the Tom and Norman Home, which has been a favorite charity of expats.

Eduardo Rojas Rojas, about 80, and a four-year resident of the home died New Year’s Eve in Hospital Calderón Guardia, said Alexis Baquero Benavides, director of the Fundación Ángel de Amor, which operates the home. The man had totally no resources and did not even have a Costa Rican cédula to prove his identity. Therefore, there was no government financial aid for the burial, said Baquero.

The local Funeraria Vida Eterna provided burial services on credit, said Baquero, but now it is time to pay the bill, some 110,000 colons or $240. The Angel of Love Foundation or Fundación Ángel de Amor has a checking account at Banco Nacional de Costa Rica (051-4886-6) to which deposits may be made. The foundation also is trying to build a new wing at the home.

Ambassador, wife are victims

A 31-year-old Colombian woman identified with the surnames Castro Gaviria has been arrested in connection with a theft involving the German ambassador to Costa Rica, Volker Fink and his wife. The incident took place Christmas Eve.

The ambassador and his wife were having lunch at a restaurant in San Rafael de Escazú, said police.  A bag belonging to the ambassadors wife was snatched. It contained a mobile phone, bracelet and cash.  The thief is believed to have escaped by taxi. 

The robbery was reported to the Judicial Investigating Organization by the ambassador. The suspect was found and arrested in San José center Monday evening. Officials said she was identified by the ambassador. 

A construction worker with four children was the winner of a bicycle raffle by Farmacia Alvarez in Heredia. The winner is Juan Giron Liros. He lives in Santa Barbara de Heredia. The raffle took place Christmas Eve. 

"It’s nice to see the people win and cry because they are so happy," said Glenn Tellier, who operates the pharmacy. "We sure felt good  at the pharmacy . . . "