Las Catalinas

Enespera Article on Las Catalinas

Charles Brewer — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 17:46:18 +0000

A nice article on Las Catalinas just came in in the Enespera magazine in Costa Rica. Spanish version and English version. Well done!

Link to PDF

Las Catalinas a Big Moneymaker for Atlanta Ballet

Charles Brewer — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 19:17:59 +0000

On Saturday night one of our Las Catalinas houses (mine) was included in the live auction at the Atlanta Ballet Ball. After a rousing reception for a live performance of the song, “A Las Catalinas Day”, there was a veritable frenzy of bidding for a one week stay in the house. In the end the bids got so high and that we agreed to offer a second week in the house and each sold for $20,500 – a total of $41,000! These were by far the highest prices paid for any items in the auction, easily trouncing a fine house in St. Barth and a mansion in Sea Island. (Note that our selling prices for houses at Las Catalinas are rather drastically more affordable than those places. Hmm.)

One of the winning bidders said “my children told me that I had to win this, or else!” The other winner told me “I am going to do everything I saw in that video.” I’m sure he will. To quote from the song, “… this town … is fun.”

- Charles

Professional Video of Las Catalinas Mountain Bike Trails

Charles Brewer — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 17:21:07 +0000

Here is a new video of riders on the Las Catalinas trail system. Very nice! Mountain Biking has really been coming into its own at Las Catalinas over the last couple of months. Our first 10 kilometer bike route was completed late last year. Over the Christmas break we were “discovered” by the San Jose mountain bike community, and our trail use is way up. Mountain biking is a very popular sport in Costa Rica, but it nearly all done one back roads and jeep tracks. There is no single track of real world class quality like ours anywhere else in the country, so what we have is quite a draw. For experienced mountain bikers it is wicked fun. I love seeing all the riders around town – seeing people on bikes makes me happy!

In our next segment of trail development we are creating an easier, more beginner friendly route over to the Zapotal Valley on the back side of Las Catalinas. There we have more gentle terrain, lots of wildlife and fun exploration down to some beautiful deserted beaches. This new trail should open up cycling fun for even more people at Las Catalinas.

Enjoy the video!

A Las Catalinas Day – The Song

Charles Brewer — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 22:46:20 +0000

Do real towns have songs? Yes! From “New York, New York” to “Lodi”. Do real estate developments have songs? No!

As further proof that Las Catalinas is a town, not a real estate development, I hearby present “A Las Catalinas Day”, a song written by the Brewer children with assistance from me. Enjoy!

Sneak Peek of New Liberia Airport

Charles Brewer — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 15:19:57 +0000

You see it here first! The new Liberia airport opens on Thursday. The people are gazing in wonder…

Las Catalinas Holiday Report

Charles Brewer — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 04:15:17 +0000

The year-end holidays were sort of a coming out party for Las Catalinas. All our houses were full, and we had several hundred daily visitors coming to enjoy the beaches, the trails, and the businesses at Las Catalinas. It all felt just the way I had always hoped it would. Happy belated holidays, and I hope you enjoy this selection of photos from the holiday season at Las Catalinas!

- Charles

McHenry Peak Hiking Trail is Open

Charles Brewer — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 13:37:34 +0000

Our ace trail building crews have created a new hiking trail through the central high peaks of Las Catalinas. This is one of the most dramatic hikes you will ever experience with stunning views in all directions. The trail is generally in the open, on the ridgeline, artfully looping back and forth to keep the gradient manageable, and with steps where needed. At this time of year I recommend late afternoon as the best time for this hike. The wind will cool you, the light takes on a golden hue – magical.

Las Catalinas Article in Aspen Magazine

Charles Brewer — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 13:20:37 +0000

Here is a good article in Aspen Magazine on Las Catalinas. There are some real similarities between Las Catalinas and Aspen – a primary point of the article. In both cases the main attractions are the walkable town itself and recreation on the natural landscape (or sea-scape) surrounding the town. And Aspen, despite its ritzy image, is less “exclusive” than you might think as it is an open town with lodging, food and other necessities available at a variety of price points.

In creating Las Catalinas we have tried to take lessons from lots of great towns – and Aspen is high on the list. Among the lessons I take from there are:

The joy of having unspoiled nature right at the edge of town where you can walk to it.
Wagner Park – this is really just a rugby field, but it is located right downtown adjacent to the pedestrian blocks. The scene here on a pretty summer evening with kids and families playing is the best thing in Aspen.
The Pedestrian Streets – a few key streets of downtown are pedestrian only. They are the liveliest, most successful streets in the downtown (contrary to accepted conventional wisdom regarding what works and what doesn’t).
The tiny plaza in front of Paradise Bakery -the place for evening musical performances (instrument cases open for donations).
The importance of good food!

Rock on, Aspen, and thanks for the shout out, Aspen Magazine.

Las Catalinas Article in The Atlantan Magazine

Charles Brewer — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 17:40:53 +0000

There is a nice article about Las Catalinas by Wendy Bowman- Littler in the current issue of The Atlantan magazine. Here is a link to a synopsis of the article:

http://www.modernluxury.com/the-atlantan/articles/the-great-escape

This digital reader has the whole article on page 76:

http://media.modernluxury.com/digital.php?e=ATLA

Notre Dame Final Studio 2011

Charles Brewer — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 15:42:28 +0000

Yesterday we had the final studio presentations at the Notre Dame School of Architecture for this term’s studio work on Las Catalinas. Very exciting! Most importantly I think we now have an excellent plan for the area just inland from of the public road from beach town. Also we got some well thought out building plans and some great images. What a day – one of those days when my work is so much fun it is hard to think of it as work.