Let's Build Gonave, Haiti!

If La Gonave became a Special Administrative Region, one major way to bring in need revenue is to build outside of Haiti.  Building apartment buildings could bring in monthly revenue that could then be used to develop the region.  For example, the average house purchase in Seattle, is $500,000 US.  That is usually a 3 bdrm 1 bath house that is under 1,200 sq ft.  The average rent in Seattle for a 1 bdrm, 1 bath apartment of 6-700 sq ft is about $1,700 US per month! So by simply building a small container apartment building in say, Tacoma, which is just outside of Seattle, you can still have high rent, but on cheaper land.  Land in Tacoma is a little cheaper than Seattle, and you can find land that is literally a few blocks from Downtown Tacoma.  Tacoma even is expanding their light rail line, as well as their rail terminal, port, and University of Washington Tacoma campus.  All of which are downtown.  Tacoma is booming because Seattle is boomin...

La Gonave has an opportunity to do it right the first time.  Meaning that if the right people get involved and their goal is to help the Haitians to help themselves, then La Gonave could serve as the template for Haiti. La Gonave has many advantages over the mainland.  For one, with a smaller population the needs of food, housing, water, etc are less, so programs that are developed could easy cover this small population.  La Gonave is a blank canvas, so streets can be placed based on results that other cities around the world have tried.  La Gonave can build it's economy on just about any industry, although tourism and agriculture are probably the prime industries.  The list goes on and on. My point is that if done correctly, and La Gonave is a modern and vibrant place.  If La Gonave could have the majority of it's population literate, and that there are enough schools for every child.  If La Gonave could have a strong economy similar to the Baham...

Yes I talk a lot about shipping containers being used on Gonave.  Well the fact is, these containers are cheap to buy, Goave is surrounded by water, so these containers can be shipped in, they are durable against earthquakes and strong wind, they are fast to build, and the list goes on. With that said, I will post and re-post some pictures on the internet of shipping container apartment buildings that would make sense for Gonave.  ****I do not own these pictures and if rightful owners want them removed, please let me know.**** All of the above are made from shipping containers.  While some are obvious, others like the third picture may not be.  These containers make perfect sense and can help increase population density on a island of small size.  Now looking at these buildings you may think that they don't provide enough options, but you are wrong.   I will show you how the inside of these apartments can look.  Now again a spec...

In a previous blog I wrote about a company that wanted to bring a new business concept to Gonave Island.  The company would rely mostly on tourist, but also offer coffee to locals as well.  Coffee Cubes Limited would use shipping containers or build small stations that would allow the coffee to be delivered to customers. Just yesterday I spoke with the company again.  They still have an interest in the project.  I also asked where they get their coffee beans from.  Most of their beans are imported from South America.  I mentioned to them that Gonave currently has coffee operations that exist due to World Vision.  Not only were they excited of this news, but stated that this would potentially be an avenue that they would use to purchase coffee locally. There is more to come on this, but I wanted to get as much information out there as possible.  Be sure to recommend your friends and family to this site! Go Gonave!

I was recently approached by a family friend who said that creating a pod district, similar to what Portland has, can be a tourist draw, but also serve the needs of local Gonavians. So I am putting together a plan to build a small pod district that could serve food and beverages.  I have written before that beer stalls would be important as they can serve beer that is brewed from Gonave.  I envision burger, beer, tea, coffee, sandwich, asian food, etc as stalls that could be developed in this pod district.  I will be looking at a few ways that this could be implemented along with plans that Hurko has announced.  This could be achieved by using 20 ft long shipping containers, which would be rented out to locals who have a sound business plan and financing.  I will speak more about this later as I gather more input and concrete plans. Go Gonave!

Gonave this could be a realty for the island.  The cheap price of containers, and the fact that they are moveable can be a big draw.  Local brands could be developed which will spur the economy. This video below talks some about the video above and only touches on the container mall. This video is about a city built from containers. Go Gonave!

With construction cost being so high, and given Gonave's limited amount of resources, using shipping containers could be a viable option. These shipping containers can look like any modern store front.  Given how fast they can be put up, and given their sturdiness, these containers can be a major game changer for Gonave.  Imagine having some 20 shops opened for tourist.  As I mentioned in a previous blog about cruise ships, according to Seattle's  Economic Department, cruise ships bring $1.2 million dollars to the economy every time they dock.  Imagine a ship per week landing at a port in Gonave.  Bringing almost $5 million a year a cruise ship terminal will payoff.  Adding a retail center will bring in even more money.   As you can see this is a small mall that was created by shipping containers. These containers can be assembled in a matter of hours, and can provide immediate infrastructure. This is an example of how a motorbike s...