“We are reliving an urban death”, thus describing the architect Leonardo Martínez, the work he leads today. Volare Mare project – Artificial Island north of Cartagena.
A project launched in 2015 with the promise of a piece from Dubai, but on land in the Punta Canoa area: Between Cartagena and Barranquilla, on the fourth kilometer of the road to the sea.
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Spectacular television commercials and advertisements in print and digital media She has seduced more than 1,000 families with her dream of owning a little corner by the Caribbean Sea. because life by the sea is more delicious, They did not hesitate to pay the initial fee of 100 million pesos and get one of the apartments according to the plans.
“The first stages were sold for 233 million pesos in January 2016, but very quickly increased to 250 million pesos and the first two stages have already been sold.”, explains Isabel Vergara, one of the plaintiff buyers who paid an initial fee of 120 million pesos as the construction company requested a minimum of 40 percent.
It was RA Constructores, whose legal representative is Román Monrroy, who gave these families a bit of promise from Dubai.but in a rural area of Heroic City.
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However, they went bankrupt and only the foundations and some buildings under construction of the first phase, which will be delivered in 2018, remain.
Also came the pandemic and families who had invested their life savings – many bought 2 or more apartments thinking it would be good business to rent for tourists – came despair and uncertainty. A group of 60 affected people therefore filed a lawsuit.
Class Action is pending in the ninth civil court of the Cartagena circuit Number 2022-167 against RA Builders. Several affected families have also sued the Central Board of Trustees, which is responsible for the Volare Mare trust.
A judge gave the trustee a detailed report on the current status of the project. The same court also issued an interim injunction on the land where the works were carried out.
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“Román Monrroy told us that the financing of the project was intact: he said he would have Mexican partners first. After the partners become Chinese; then I would get investors from Dubai”, recalls Isabel, who sold her house in Melgar (Tolima) with the dream of buying it in Cartagena. Today, eight years later, it’s still waiting.
Altium Desarrollo Inmobiliario SAS adopts the project however, it took more than a year for the trustees to legalize the resources. Added time to business delays after the first construction company went bankrupt.
TIEMPO traveled to Punta Canoa county and visited the project before the Marahuaco box office.
It is 30 minutes from the Historic Center along Vía al Mar and then on an unpaved road. For strata 5, 6 and 7 we are located in one of the largest urban projection areas in the country, surrounded by urbanization and projects under construction.
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In this corridor is the highly awarded ‘The Dream City: Serena del Mar’, which houses Serena del Mar’s new hospital, the graduate headquarters of the University of Los Andes, a new transportation terminal and luxury residential complexes.
Residents of this sector also have a dozen beaches nearby and the city of Barranquilla, just over an hour away by road.
When we enter the land that will become the artificial island of Volare Mare, a desert welcomes us. Island, nothing. A dozen herons hover over the body of water that will surround the communities.
Two minutes later, the first white buildings of the first phase of the project appear. Three floors each.
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“We’re working at full speed to deliver the apartments for this first phase this year and complete what other builders have failed to do: resurrecting a city dead!”, says Martínez, the architect of the new construction company that resumed construction last November, which had been abandoned for three years.
“Currently, more than 90 percent of our active customers continue to believe in the project and defend it in all areas, despite the time and circumstances.”before the threat of lawsuit, the architect answers to Martínez.
The first four apartments were delivered this year and two families already live here.
“I just received my flat and it’s been completed. From the outside, we already have fences and pedestrian corridors that give us a positive perspective on the project,” says José Enrique Sánchez, who was the first person to receive an apartment on April 23. who paid 360 million in cash.
“We believed and we are rehabilitating this project to restore it and realize the families who believed in this project.”says architect Martínez from Altium.
The first phase progresses at a rate of 52 percent and consists of 576 flats.is divided into 12 blocks, with 48 units in each block. The last two blocks are still fundamental. The second stage is a series of gray skeletons on the asphalt with the Cartagena afternoon sun shining on me.
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Group Action also deploys magnifying glass to Altium Desarrollo Inmobiliario SASpromising to finish the project.
The current construction company is having the position of trustee in the Volare Mare project accepted by Fiduciaria Central SA on 22 December 2022.
“In the first project we made improvements with more pedestrian areas and there are changes that contribute to people’s quality of life.”, says Martínez, adding that the first phase is buildings and urban planning. He promises to begin construction of the huge pool that surrounds all the houses in June.
According to Diego González, Managing Director of ALTIUM, RA Constructores had promised elements that were impossible to implement: “The central tower, the height promised by the previous developer, exceeded the norm for five-storey bad buildings. Compared to photovoltaic energy, the solar panels offered by the previous developer were the previous builder’s de facto accessibility. invaded communal areas that it didn’t have”, among a long list of lies.
“The million dollar amount that families affected by Volare Mare should receive should be collected after all victims of the project have participated in Group Action, this is about compensation for damages and compliance with what is available to them when connected to the project.” says Carlos Adriano Tribín Montejo, attorney at law firm Tribin Asociados. There are 60 families for now, but they are waiting for more.
Tribín Montejo goes further and warns the District about permits from construction companies in Cartagena.
“This kind of thing happens a lot in Cartagena, and district officials need to be more rigorous and redouble their efforts because they end up issuing building permits to projects that don’t meet expectations,” says attorney Carlos Adriano Tribín Montejo. He also defends the victims of the Ocean Towers project in Bocagrande.
For example, Carlos Eduardo Martínez Marulanda, director of city control of Cartagena, recalls that Promoter Belong SAS did not fully comply with the legal requirements for the promotion and sale of housing.
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The ‘Aquarela’ Tower is the clearest example of the care that must be taken by buyers looking for housing in Cartagena: projects that promise paradise but eventually become embroiled in urban scandals and even scams.
John Montano
EL TIEMPO correspondent
Cartagena
From Twitter: @KitePilot
Source: Exame
I am Bret Jackson, a professional journalist and author for Gadget Onus, where I specialize in writing about the gaming industry. With over 6 years of experience in my field, I have built up an extensive portfolio that ranges from reviews to interviews with top figures within the industry. My work has been featured on various news sites, providing readers with insightful analysis regarding the current state of gaming culture.
