Business View Caribbean - April 2016 21
ing.” As an example, he cites the need to bulk up the
rental housing market. “Rental was not something that
was traditionally a big business. A very large number
of people here owned their own property – way higher
than in the U.S. – so there wasn’t a culture of rental.
Now we’re starting to see developers come in and de-
velop projects for rental purposes.”
A similar change is taking place regarding mixed-use
communities and seniors housing. “Because of the
‘suburb mentality,’ you almost didn’t get any mixed-
use communities; but you’re starting to see a revital-
ization of those,” Diaz states. “Elderly home projects:
you’re starting to see a lot of those, too. That was not
a part of the culture, before. Assisted Living was not a
business model for years, here. It was actually frowned
upon if you sent your parents to one of those facili-
ties. Now it’s seen as a very good option. Affordable
housing – HUD (the federal Housing and Urban Devel-
opment agency) has determined that there is a need
over the next five years for 30,000 more housing units
and out of those 30,000, most of them are affordable
housing. As a matter of fact, affordable housing is go-
ing to be the pillar of development in the next five to
ten years.”
As the local landscape for the island’s construction
industry continues to change, Diaz says that the As-
sociation’s structure will likewise continue to grow and
adjust. “We are in the process of finalizing some stra-
tegic relationships,” he reports. “For example, we’re
going to sign an alliance with Habitat for Humanity
Puerto Rico, which is going to become our social side
of the Association instead of developing our own. We
also are strengthening a relationship with the govern-
ment. We just signed an agreement with the Roosevelt
Roads Redevelopment Authority, which is a quasi-gov-
ernment agency that’s looking to develop 8,000 acres.
And we want to work together with them to develop
ideas and projects for our members. We also have
a relationship with ‘Together for Puerto Rico,’ which
is a local foundation that’s focused on creating new
options and developments for the island. And finally,
we’re in the process of creating a new chapter for the
Urban Land Institute, the ULI, through our Association,
the same way that we are part of a national builders
association chapter, we will become the ULI chapter in
Puerto Rico, with a focus on land planning.”
When asked why membership in the Association is the
smart thing to do, Diaz is unequivocal in his response:
“If someone is looking to invest and do business in
Puerto Rico, in matters of construction and real es-
tate, certainly, they need to find out how to become a
member,” he says. “Because as soon as they do that,
they’re going to have access to many people, locally
and internationally, who have done it before, who are
successful, who would add value to their investment,
and direct them in the right way - from permits to de-
velopment, to land ownership – all those things can
be done through our Association. So, for many of the
people who are moving to Puerto Rico, or are looking
to invest in Puerto Rico, our Association would be the
first place to look. The first place to call is our Associa-
tion.”
