Haile Village developers look to Mexico

Robert Kramer and Jeffrey Fleeman, two of the principal developers of Haile Village Center in Gainesville, Florida, expect to develop a 500-acre mixed-use community on Mexico’s Pacific coast 75 miles north of Puerta Vallarta. “It will range from quite urban, high density to jungle,” Kramer says of the project, Los Tres Pueblos, along steep seaside slopes in the Mexican state of Nayarit. About a dozen villas built by a couple from Washington, DC, are about all that has previously been developed on the site, Fleeman says. That section, on a hill near the fishing village of Platanitos, will be intensified into an artists’ cooperative, fashioned after a colonial Mexican village, including a plaza. Property will be sold at “affordable” prices to artists who will be selected on the basis of their talents and potential contribution to community life. Los Tres Pueblos will have three villages in all. The first, Pueblo Custodio, will include a luxury boutique hotel and spa, a marina, a golf course, and high-end residential areas. At the end of the Punta Gorda promontory, 250 feet above the ocean, will be an “architectural fantasy of a hotel,” according to Fleeman and Kramer. Along the north side of Punta Gorda’s central ridge, tucked carefully into what’s known as a “climax jungle,” will be luxurious tree houses, stilt houses, and “eco cabins.” The central of the three hillside villages, Pueblo Venecia, will contain single-family houses with larger lots and gardens, most of them intended to be primary residences, others serving as vacation compounds. Pueblo Venecia will also have public spaces and neighborhood bodegas. The southernmost village, Pueblo Platanitos, is expected to become the site for fiestas and other local activities. With open studios, classes, galleries, shops, and cafes, Pueblo Platanitos is expected to provide commercial and cultural attractions appealing to vacationers and homeowners alike. Language seminars, trips to archaeological sites, and arts workshops are three of the activities envisioned. On the other side of the mouth of an estuary and joined to Pueblo Platanitos by a rope suspension bridge is Boca El Custodio, an unspoiled area that will accommodate eco-tourism. A sea turtle conservation facility is situated next to the future Boca Beach Club, which will offer water sports and vacation housing. By clustering buildings and retaining large areas of jungle, the developers hope to preserve the architectural and cultural character of the Nayarit coast and create a series of places that seem to have grown from the local soil and tradition. Automobile use will be restricted. Bicycling and walking will be encouraged. Each village will have its own character, but each will be organized around plazas and parks designed to promote social interaction. The design team consists of Kramer, Oscar Machado, Michael Morrissey, and Mauricio Castro. The developers have also worked with architects and engineers from Guadalajara, Mexico. Within 30 miles are 15 different vegetative zones and elevations as high as the 7,000-foot San Juan Volcano. Fleeman and Kramer say they are aiming to avoid the high-rise hotels and crowded streets of conventional tourist areas in Mexico and instead “set a new benchmark for appropriate-scale resort development.” “Bob and I are in the middle of building a ‘Haile Group villa’ within the existing colony, and expect to spend quite a bit of time there as the project progresses,” Fleeman says. “In general, the government is quite enthusiastic about the project, and we expect to have all approvals within the next six months.”