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Finca Las Brisas development
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Wayne McDonald
- Finca Las Brisas
Wayne McDonald has over 20 years of construction and design engineering
experience. His background includes construction of custom
homes in the Bucks County, Pennsylvania and Princeton, New
Jersey areas. In addition to his hands-on experience, Wayne
became an expert in fire protection systems after working as
a designer for Grinnell Fire Protection. At Grinnell, he
designed and laid out fire protection systems, sized fire
pumps and designed underground water supply lines.
Wayne also worked as a Design Engineer
for Professional Systems Engineering, a life safety and
security engineering firm. At PSE, Wayne designed,
specified, and managed many large scope projects, including:
- Commercial Fire
protection and alarm systems for high rise buildings.
- Access systems for
universities. Information network
infrastructures for university dorm rooms.
- Emergency power systems
for high rise dormitories.
- Security systems and
touch screen control centers for maximum security
prisons.
- Water storage tank design
and placement.
Wayne also performed acoustic
evaluations and designed reverberation control and sound
attenuation systems for schools, gymnasiums, auditoriums,
television/radio stations, and commercial manufacturing
facilities. His experience also includes ADA code
evaluations for community buildings and government
facilities.
As Project Manager for such extensive
projects, Wayne's responsibilities included assessment of
client needs, surveying projects, preparation of schematic
design, development of specifications and construction
plans, cost analysis, preparation, and review of bids as
well as recommendation for contractor selection. He also
surveyed projects and conducted team meetings during the
construction phase and conducted client training for new
systems. Wayne currently refurbishes residential
real estate and manages a portfolio of rental properties.
Keith Jeffrey -
Finca Las Brisas
Keith grew up in central Pennsylvania Keith and work during
his teen years in his family's Country General Store, then
worked as an intern for IBM during college. For the past 20+
years Keith has lived in Philadelphia, working in the
software industry. Keith has worked primarily for two
Fortune 500 firms in his career, with dozens of brand name
clients, many in the Fortune 500, in management, sales and
operations capacities.
In the early 90's Keith took a break from corporate life to
run his own custom software company for 3 years, designing
and building over 25 custom systems. The system designed for
the local Philadelphia PBS station, Channel 12, continued in
continuous use until 2006, with virtually no maintenance.
Keith's career profiles a competitive agility along with a
capacity to understand and integrate clients' systems, while
maintaining the integrity of the client's culture and
business process. This has resulted in numerous strong
client relationships, and many successes over the years. For
his most prominent employer, Keith designed a methodology
and tool kit for accelerating project completion that became
a national standard. Recently, Keith led the sales team for
the northeastern US, coaching them and sometimes taking lead
in winning brand name deals like Xerox, IBM, Comcast, GE,
Nestle, Sony and many others. Along the way, Keith has
created new sales collateral, new presentation material and
has changed established business practices that has improved
competitive viability and expanded market share.
With strong individual performances and tenured corporate
team leadership in sales and project management as a
backdrop, Keith delivers results through strategic
relationships, analytic agility, and culturally sensitized
innovation. Relative to the FLB project, Keith is a lead
member on the construction team, and was in charge of the
road project. Using planning and negotiating skills learned
in his side interest of restoring old homes, and in his
cultural experiences gained in overseas charity work, he
guided the project gently, but firmly to completion. Check
out the progression of the road, from open field, gullies
and cow path to outline, and then a finished product. When
you travel to the site on the local roads, you will
appreciate the results of the road project.
In his rare but cherished leisure time Keith loves to
travel, fly fish and spend time with his daughter, Sarah.
Keith has traveled to 17 countries so far, and strives to
take one destination trip each year. The fly fishing trips
to Alaska and Jackson Hole are the most memorable to date.
The sights and sounds of Africa and Indonesia are the most
exotic so far. Sarah is an energetic, happy, thoughtful little girl.
She has provided Keith a reason to slow down a bit, and
really enjoy life. Keith is energized by the project -
spend a few minutes talking with him about it, and you'll
get a clear sense of his role and his vision for this
property over the next 20 to 30 years.
Ray Coker -
Finca Las Brisas
Ray
is from Seattle and during college worked for one of the
first private nature developments in the country at the foot
of Mt. Pilchuck in Washington State. The concept was to put
in a private state park-like development with the
difference being that people purchased lots for their
permanent camp sites. It was a new idea at the right time.
When the first gas crisis hit in the 70s and people could no
longer afford to drive their Winnebagos all over the Northwest
state and the federal park systems so they flocked to this
development. In a few years the concept turned into one of the largest (in
acres) development companies in the country.
Over the years Ray has dreamed of working on a project like
this again and when the Finca Las Brisas opportunity (real
estate for sale in Costa Rica) came up
he didn't need to think twice.
Over the
last 20 years Ray has owned three project management
consulting/training firms. Currently his company
(PSSI)
deploys
Microsoft's Enterprise Project Management system.
Ray's company has taught project management tools,
techniques, and project management software to thousands of
people throughout North America, Europe, Africa, and Asia.
They have worked as both business and technical consultants
with a wide range of fortune 500 companies such as IBM,
AT&T, GE and Lockheed Martin, along with government agencies
such as the FDA, USDA, Secret Service, and NASA.
As a management consultant Ray
has been able to do what he enjoys more than anything else -
travel to interesting
places and working with all kinds of people across a wide
range of industries. If he isn't at Sears corporate or down
in the middle of Hoover Dam or at the US Naval Academy
helping them with their 10 year strategic plan, you might
just as likely find him in Ozark Alabama working with a
group of guys that refurbish
UH-1H/V/N helicopters, or in upstate New York at a
research lab with people doing research on hepatitis in the
middle of a Hassidic village. This project, working in
the rural hills of Costa Rica with a property that has US
State Park qualities, is something he really enjoys.
Before
being employed as a project management consultant at
Symantec, Ray taught at several colleges and universities
including Portland State University, University of Arizona,
The Wharton School of Business, and Temple University.
Darlene Coker -
Finca Las Brisas
Darlene has over 20
years experience in human performance training,
communication and sales. She has always focused her efforts
on the continued pursuit of new and innovative learning
methods. Darlene currently works as a
designer/consultant/developer of cutting edge training.
Previously she served as Vice President of Marketing and
Product Development at a Tampa-based training games and
simulations provider. She led the development and launch of
cutting-edge programs while also leading the marketing
department.
Darlene's career
experience includes extensive professional program design,
development and marketing. As Portfolio Manager for one of
the industry's largest sales training provider, she was
responsible for the development, customization and
life-cycle management of the entire suite of award winning
sales training programs. She also co-authored the popular
"High Performance Sales Organizations" book for McGraw Hill,
and consulted extensively with Fortune 500 organizations.
For Kepner-Tregoe, Inc., she worked as a management
consultant with expertise in the areas of project management
and analytic trouble shooting.
Darlene holds a
Master's degree in Organizational Communication from Temple
University in Philadelphia Pennsylvania. When she is not
creating learning experiences, she is traveling and spending
time with her husband and son. She enjoys distance running,
sailing,
and exploring their home city of Tampa and the family finca
in Costa Rica.
Al Benner - Finca
Las Brisas
Al Benner brings
a wide array of skills and experience.
Al's background is quite diverse, but
the pattern suggests a strong acumen for sales and
marketing, long-term vision, combined with skills associated
with motivating and empowering others. Al currently owns
and operates four specialty mail order/web businesses,
employs fifteen people, and has been in business for himself
for fifteen years. Al's educational background consists of a BS
degree in horticulture (thus the interest in the on site
community organic farm), and an MBA with a specialization in
marketing.
He recently conducted a survey of some
friends and employees for a self-enlightenment research
project. The goal of the exercise was to uncover ones' true
"unique ability". The surveys that came back were
consistent in their feedback. Al was repeatedly described
as someone who is "relentless in his pursuit of goals", "inspirational and motivational for others", and
"incredibly
trustworthy and dependable".
When Al was asked what his greatest strength was, his answer
was "anticipating what people will want in the future".
Al's long-term vision, creativity, and intense desire for
aesthetically pleasing surroundings, will align with his
business skills to produce a one of a kind community that
will attract buyers want to
be part of something truly unique and special.
 Christoph Hubmann
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Costa Rica Land Reforestation Expert and Project Manager
Originally
from Switzerland,
Christoph has resided in nearby Nosara for
over nine years. Married to a tica, Magda, Christoph is the
father of three children. His passion is the land and
trees, and as a Swiss Forester, he believes in a more
sustainable way of managing natural forests.
Christoph has been involved with many
reforestation efforts throughout Costa Rica for several
years, and he is currently acting as a reforestation
consultant and site management supervisor for the Las Brisas
project. His enthusiasm, vast knowledge of the local flora,
experience with construction, as well as his willingness to
help out on a wide range of projects, brings real value to
the team. Plus he's a great tour guide if you really want
to learn about the natural world around you in detail. It
also doesn't hurt that this highly intelligent man speaks
four languages.
Working under Christoph are 4-5 hardworking
and highly skilled men from the surrounding mountain
communities. Christoph has selected the most dependable
guys from a ready and willing local labor force, and
provided them with good paying jobs as independent
contractors on the FLB site. These jobs come complete with
liability insurance in place paid by our contract with
Christoph. This
protects workers in the event of injury while on site.
It is the vision of the team to promote
these men to higher levels of responsibility and
compensation as the project expands, making them more
responsible and instilling in them a sense of ownership for
the project and making them feel a part of the community.
Once the construction begins, some of these workers will
most likely transition to a construction team, while some
will remain doing site work, including reforestation, and
helping to establish organic gardens, landscaping, hiking
trails, etc.
 DEPPAT
- Costa Rica Real Estate and Land Engineering Environmental Firm
Eugenio Bermudez and his father Alfredo are owners and
managing partners
for
the engineering firm, Deppat, from San Jose. Deppat is
a full service engineering firm with vast experience
throughout Costa Rica for over 20 years.
DEPPAT was founded by
Mr. Alfredo Bermudez, along with three other partners in
1985, as a response to key frustrations of clients with
development projects. Those frustrations were centered in a
lack of clarity as to how to manage the planning, proposal
and approval processes for projects in the physical and
environmental planning fields.
Mr. Alfredo Bermudez has more than 30 years of experience in land use
planning, architecture and environmental planning. He has
been involved in many projects as the leader/planner with a
creative solution to our clients and the communities needs
throughout the country.
Eugenio Bermudez, Master in Project Management and
General Manager
Mr. Eugenio Bermudez
is the son of Alfredo Bermudez and was incorporated to the
firm in 1990. His experience is managing the firm's projects
and developing administrative and marketing activities.
His degree in project management, allows him to incorporate many tools and
keys to improve the development of the projects, such as
scope, timing, cost, and risks management.
Deppat has been selected for provide
all site engineering work, including Master Plan, individual
plot (lot) plans, and all necessary environmental studies,
surveys, and permits necessary for the development process.
Several firms were thoroughly profiled
before the FLB team decided upon Deppat for this very
critical stage of the project. It was Deppat's attention to
detail, follow through, and responsiveness, as well as their
ability to clearly define the scope and flow for the various
stages of the process that ultimately won them the
contract. More information about the firm and their
services can be found at:
www.Deppat.com
 Vanessa Calvo
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Legal Counsel, Costa Rica Real Estate and Land Development
Vanessa
Calvo, lawyer, with a masters degree in international trade
and political science. She is a native Costa Rican specializing in
real estate law, corporate and tax structures, and the director of real estate
projects in the Northern Pacific, Central Pacific and
Caribbean Coast of Costa Rica. For over 10 years she has been
representing investors from the US, Canada and Europe, and
is an active member of the Costa Rican-American Chamber of
Commerce and Board member of the Costa Rican Chamber of
Commerce. Her law firm is one of nine in Costa Rica that can
set up escrow accounts for real estate transactions. Ms.
Calvo lived in the US for almost 10 years working in real
estate in Florida and California.
Development Crew
Many of the workers that come in for special
jobs are from the neighboring village of Naranjalor, such as
Bernardo Modesto (the son of the man we purchased most of
the finca). Alberto the school teacher works for us from
time to time as do a dozen other locals.
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