We made this page to explain to our friends our plans without 5000 text messages…
HISTORY
Many of you know the story, but I will repeat the short version here:
After my house got sold in Malaga, I started looking for a new place or project. We found a bigger better place, but couldn’t get a mortgage with 50% upfront.
Then we looked at land around Malaga, but couldn’t build anything. Then the project at the twins’ land fell through at the last minute. I realized I needed to find a cheaper better option in south America. It has been like 5 years now, working and traveling to Colombia searching for something worthwhile.
Just before I left last year I got very lucky and found something great. In march I signed the papers, paid and notarized. Of course, with plenty of help from my parents. They reluctantly help me out with my crazy plans….
IDEA
Many nights we talked about our ideas and plans and projects and the obstacles keeping us from them. Mostly because we were poor… I always wanted to build and make stuff, others talked permaculture projects, others self-sustainability ideas and communities, social and economic ideas.
I always thought we could combine our talents and limited resources more effectively on a big piece of land, that we owned, investing in our ideas and futures
PLANS
I have been making plans for this (in my head) for too many years, but finally I got place to do them! One of these plans is to gather my family and friends here to do there plans here too.
SHORT TERM
The first thing we are doing now is fixing up the house, water, roof, septic, lights, etc. so we can live there and visitors can come too. We are starting the food garden and planting more fruit trees and bamboos too.
But the main objective is to get the moto access path to the house and farm. This will take about 3 guys about a year of work to finish; first cutting and leveling the path to start, then a meter-wide pavement.
We are organizing the location, tools and help with the neighbors at the moment. Also, the cell signal amplifier antenna so we can communicate.
MEDIUM TERM
The most important thing I want to set up by the end of the year or next is to set up the rum still. We have cane growing and so do all the neighbors, so the main ingredient is ready.
While I am back in the states, I will be assembling and experimenting with the still, then ship it there before I return, set up the logistics and train the folks how to make rum.
I think this one project alone can fund all the staff and projects we have planned, by middle of 2022. Next will be to set up good internet for the land.
There are several options, but I am sure some of you may know about internet for remote areas too. If so, please tell me!
We must get the food garden, fruit trees and bamboos planted too so we can feed ourselves which is more labor and time than cost.
LONG TERM
The main goal I have for the farm is for my friends to come, find a nice spot and build their house.
First a vacation, then longer term residence where we can unite our talents and make a community to be self-sustainable as possible and serve as our safety net/retirement plan.
It will take about 1 to 2 years before I get the title for the land, once I have that it is 100% mine and can buy/sell it or whatever. My plan is to sell it to a company I will form here (it is called a SAS.)
Once that is done I can sell shares to you all so you have your legal rights to the place, which will help with visas too. Dividing and selling bits and pieces is a legal pain in the ass, expensive, time consuming and not what I want. Since this project will be for us only, we can delineate and stipulate who gets what, where and etc. within the SAS.
CURRENT NEEDS
We are currently fixing up the house, garden and coffee, but I spent all my money already buying the place and getting started. There are several bigger items I need help with.
- Mules: 2 mules to haul stuff and folks up and down the mountain until the moto path is compete, and then ride trails and such afterwards. $500 each or $1000. Wanted horses but all the neighbors said mules were better.
- Cellular antenna: yea, we are waaay far out there and the 30 min hike to get signal gets old quick. There are cell signal amplifiers for $300. It will be the first step. Good internet will take more time and money…
- Battery powered tools: Please save us from hammers and nails, hand saws and such… It takes fucking ages and we are not in the iron age anymore. The ones I have seen here are about $300.
- Salaries: I have friends there and others coming who will be working on these projects knowing I won’t have much cash until I get back to work, but a bit of help from you guys would make them happy. $300/month per person, 3 boys = $900/month for 2 or 3 months. $2700
DETAILS
Legal stuff
At the moment I have a type of lease for 100 years paid for. It’s the cost of the land but I must wait until the title for the land is done before it is actually sold to me, a foreigner, legally. The Agencia Nacional de Tierras is currently in process of doing this for the whole province of Cienega, which the land is part of. I have talked to them, and basically said to wait a year until its done…which means 2 years…
Once the title is done, then transferred to my name, we can start the business and put the land in its name, which will help everyone to legally invest and get visas, etc. Our agreements and plans can be done thru the business, protecting us and the land. There are quite a bit more steps to get to this point, but with the lease as a safety plan, we are protected until this process is done.
How to get here
The closest big city with airports and such is Santa Marta, about 2 hours drive to Tagua, the closest access point and village to the land. From there we organize the mules from the neighbors or ours to make the 4-hour trip to the land. Walking take me about 5 hours, but these mountain folks can do it in 3 hours walking. In about a year we should be able to ride the motorcycle there from Tagua. I have one already, and a shit van too, which we can pick you up from the airport or bus station.
To be exact: 11°01’54.9″N 74°01’06.0″W
Google Earth has a pretty good map of the land and area.
How to give me your money
I cannot guarantee anything as a return until the title is done and the SAS is formed. So, for now this is donations only. But I am not going to be charging rent to any of you anyway, so think of it as vacation money if that helps… I may be able to send some of our coffee too, after harvest season ends in December.
Wise (formerly transferwise) Brian_justice@hotmail.com
Paypal (American account) or xoom (international) intercambiomalaga@gmail.com
They will ask for bank details and etc. just write me and I can send it to you.
Give Heather or Hendrik money, they can send it to me…
When I am in Colombia: +57 321 705 5530
When in America: +1 912 318 3224