Tom McClintock, a former Lake Sammamish resident, is not unlike many potential second home buyers. Pushed along by a dramatic event, they have been forced to reconsider the way they live their lives. In McClintock’s case, the event was a February heart attack.
His master plan no longer includes adding sales clients and territories. He is scheduling an April 2005 retirement from the food service business, plans to sell his primary residence and purchase a summer cabin in Alaska and a winter home – and near-guaranteed sunshine – near the small fishing village of Loreto on the Sea of Cortez in Mexico.
“It’s relatively close to our friends and family, not as expensive with a lot fewer people,” McClintock said. “We know there’s a risk in everything we do, yet Loreto appears to be headed in the right direction. I am lucky that I can even think about the possibilities – a lot of people simply can’t.”
Why is Loreto headed in the right direction? Fonatur, the Mexican tourist development agency, has finally seen the light, and many Puget Sound snowbirds, second homeowners and vacationers will have an attractive new option.
Fonatur is actively putting its development dollars into the infrastructure of Loreto, a quaint town that served as the first capital of “the Californias.” However, unlike the high-rise condos of Los Cabos, Cancun and Ixtapa, the emphasis on Loreto will be community villages with dwellings of four or fewer stories designed to blend in with the Baja landscape plus shops, restaurants, bike lanes and sidewalks that encourage foot and pedal power rather than a reliance on automobiles.
And, the Loreto area prohibits the street and beach hustling of trinkets, timeshares, T-shirts and other dream-interrupting memorabilia so present in many Mexican tourist towns.
While some longtime Loreto fans and resident expatriates dread the thought of any major development near this special place, Fonatur appears committed to an actual environmentally sensitive environment in its fifth and final targeted tourist area 700 miles south of San Diego and 300 miles north of Cabo San Lucas.
Fonatur approached Victoria, B.C.’s Trust for Sustainable Development, a company with a track record of planning and delivering projects with positive social and ecological effects. The sustainability philosophy is an approach to development that improves livability while preserving natural resources and ecosystems.
For example, sustainable development was the primary force behind Shoal Point, a former Chevron bulk oil plant fronting on Victoria’s Fisherman’s Wharf. The former “brownfield” site is now a $110-million landmark residential and commercial development with 161 residential units and 50,000 square feet of commercial space dedicated primarily to marine-oriented and technology-based businesses. Shoal Point is an energy-efficient development with a blend of older architectural styles and state-of-the-art materials and technology.
Huatulco, at the foot of the Sierra Madre del Sur Mountains on mainland Mexico, is the other member of the “Fonatur Five.” While it doesn’t have the number of high-rise hotels found in Cancun and Ixtapa, it offers moderate hotels, all-inclusive resorts and the usual golf, water sports, shopping and dining.
What took so long for Mexico to consider an alternative to the high-rise concept? One answer is clear: money. Los Cabos – Cabo San Lucas and San Jose del Cabo – became much more popular than expected, forcing Fonatur to funnel most of its available funds to that area for roads and services. Why jump over easy dollars (Los Cabos) to get to perhaps more difficult dimes (Loreto)? Fonatur rode the glitz horse for as long as it could before taking on a new focus.
“Another reason is that Fonatur has always believed that Loreto would be the easiest area to develop for tourism,” said Jim Grogan one of the principal partners developing the Villages at Loreto Bay with the Victoria group. “It is the closest to the United States of Mexico’s five designated tourist areas, making it easier access for people from the states.”
Aero California and Aero Mexico have nonstop flights to Loreto from San Diego, Los Angeles and Phoenix. Alaska Airlines is expected to announce its new Loreto service before the end of the year.
Why does Alaska Airlines believe Loreto warrants new service, especially given the difficult times ahead for the airline industry? Loreto’s infrastructure – including streets, sidewalks, water and wastewater systems, and telephone lines – will be installed and maintained by Fonatur for at least 25 years. The agreement includes 350 home sites already fully serviced by utilities and streets.
They are building it … but will they come?
Tom Kelly can be reached via e-mail at news@tomkelly.com.
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