Choosing to lay a groundwork of mutual respect has been an essential part of the foundation for our business.

We believe it has contributed to the fact that we have not had any issues with neighbors or our direct community about property lines. We have a respectful relationship with most of our immediate neighbors.

The strained relationships are strained because we value following laws and regulations, and our neighbors do not have faith in that system. We get it. The infrastructure of the legal system and the government of a long-forgotten province is limited. People have not been accustomed to abiding by the law within such a scenario. Why? Because it is not enforced at all levels. It goes toward the low-hanging fruit and foreigners first when it is attempted. Local people get a pass. Again, it makes sense, but if this community wants to sustain itself in the long run, it needs to include equal enforcement under the law as it charts its path towards regeneration.

As a lawyer, I may be more apt to see these things, yet it is visible. Any time you choose or allow officials to determine whether to enforce a law – it opens the door to corruption. Then there are the laws that might make sense in some parts of the country but not in others. When attempting to enforce a law that physically cannot be applied – officials must turn a blind eye. If the site is to prosper, passing a more limited law or one specific to an area must be part of the plan.

There is a tiny mangrove island islet in front of Tranquilo Bay. We didn’t want anything to be developed on it, so we needed to buy it. Two different people claimed ownership of it, yet neither had occupied it, so it was impossible to confirm. One party had been around longer and had permitted the other party to build in front of a different piece of land. That second party never purchased any land – only built over the water in front of a piece of land. Over time the second party expanded its footprint and abused the gift the first party had given them. We knew that we had to purchase whatever rights both parties believed they had to eliminate any possible issues in the future. So we did – we bought the possessory right to that islet from two different people.

Why? We purchased a tiny island from two parties to maintain community and to dispose of any future problems for ourselves. Lauren Morton defines community as act, “Community is an intentional action rooted in faith, peace, truth, and love.” We chose to buy land from two non-possessory parties because it circles back to having a permanence mindset as part of our decision-making compass.