BULS

Costa Rica remains one of the safest and most attractive countries for foreign investment in Latin America. The government, its ministries, and financial institutions maintain a markedly pro-U.S. stance in regard to financial security and tax laws. The stated aim of this policy is primarily to entice high-tech corporations to take advantage of Central America’s most educated, computer literate, and disciplined workforce, along with the modern production infrastructure the country has been creating for the past decade. The economy is being transformed from its traditional dependence on coffee, bananas, and raising cattle to one focused on the production of microprocessors and providing high-tech telecommunications services.

This investment-friendly climate combines with current government policy to make Costa Rica “the Silicon Valley of Latin America”. This position has enticed commercial leaders such as Acer, Microsoft, GE, Abbot Laboratories, Continental Airways, and Intel Corporation to make substantial investments here, both financially and physically, with major production and distribution facilities. Western Union has chosen Costa Rica to host its Latin American regional operations center. Since 1998, Costa Rica has earned more each year from high technology exports than from coffee or bananas or even its thriving $2 billion per year tourism industry, though these industries continue to expand under Costa Rica’s economic reform programs.

Costa Rica is one of the most vocal supporters of continental free trade, and has had its own agreement with Mexico and other countries of the region for over a decade. The CAFTA trade agreement with the U.S., known locally as TLC, was passed at the end of 2007. Costa Rica’s numerous free-trade zones offer enticing trade opportunities. Benefits such as exemption from import duties on raw materials, capital goods, parts and components; unrestricted profit repatriation; tax exemption on profits for eight years and a 50 percent exemption for the following four years provide lucrative incentives for trade.

High-tech companies are driving the export boom, while traditional exports, such as coffee and bananas, will fall in percentages of overall revenue figures, but in terms of revenue within each industry, have continued to grow.

Costa Rica is building a competitive advantage for itself and the many high-tech companies who have chosen or are pondering the option to operate here. It is a country that has been successfully integrating itself into the modern world economy for over a decade. Those doing business here have profited greatly, and will likely continue to do so as Costa Rica expands its share of the global market.

This overall growth pattern has accelerated gains in real estate value as individual investors follow the lead of large corporations, realizing the potential of this expanding market. Fortunately, foreigners have the same absolute right to own real property in Costa Rica, as do citizens. Many countries have restrictions on foreign ownership of real estate but Costa Rica is not amongst them. Here all people, Costa Rican or otherwise, have the same legal rights, which are protected by the Constitution and reflected in the laws.

Now is the time to invest in Costa Rica, and Riverside Developers offers the perfect vehicle to enter this market. We provide turnkey investment opportunities with fantastic returns, a minimum of exposure, and the peace of mind that can only come from investing with a company backed by years of experience developing properties in Costa Rica.

Contact us today to find the investment opportunity that fits your budget, strategy, and personality, all while providing the many benefits of owning property in paradise!

testing
http://www.articlesbase.com/business-opportunities-articles/investing-in-costa-ricas-thriving-economy-686381.html

Technorati Tags: Costa Rica, Urban Investment, Urban Leisure

Amsterdam and water are closely linked, as they have been for centuries. It was specifically because of all that water from the River Amstel and IJ and the Zuiderzee that the first inhabitants settled here early in the thirteenth century.

Water was also the main reason of Amsterdam’s wealth in the 17th century, when it became the most powerful trading city in the world. The canals in the centre, with their beautiful merchant’s houses from the Golden Age, are what made Amsterdam really famous. The richly ornamented gables from this period are still to be admired. The finest facades and all the bridges over the canals are illuminated at night.

Amsterdam’s canals offer a lively spectacle the whole year round, thanks to the countless boats that tour around the whole day and most of the night. As a visitor, one can also witness exciting events on the water, from canal concerts to Chinese dragon boat races and rowing regattas.

Thanks to this all, Amsterdammers do live the year round with their favorite element Water. The intimate relationship between Amsterdam and the water is no longer so dramatic, but can still be seen and felt every day. That is clear to every visitor within half an hour. One only has to take a stroll through the city, and before one knows it one has crossed a dozen picturesque arched bridges over the canals. One must have seen tour boats and canal bikes pass by, and may even be a couple of paddling canoeists. Hundreds of houseboats and barges, often beautifully painted, show that not a single square meter is wasted.

Anyone walking along the canals at night might be lucky enough to see a less known feature of Amsterdam’s relationship with water. Since time immemorial, about 40 sluices in the centre have been closed between 7 and 8.30 every night so the water in the canals can be refreshed. This work is still mainly done by hand. One site to see this is at the sluices in the River Amstel by Carré Theatre, or at the Haarlem Sluice in the Singel. Two men turn an enormous wooden wheel to close the sluice gates. When their work is finished, an enormous pumping station on the artificial island Zeeburg to the East of the city is started up. In one night, the station pumps about 600,000 cubic meters of water from the IJsselmeer into Amsterdam’s canals. To allow the water to flow through rapidly, between two and four sluices on the West side of the city are left open. The water from the canals flows through these sluices into the River IJ (the section of the harbor between the IJsselmeer and the North-Sea Canal) to find its way to the sea via the North-Sea Canal. So about every three nights, the whole contents of the canals are refreshed.

Draining the canals takes place seven days a week, 52 weeks in the year. It is only occasionally stopped in the winter, when the water freezes over. After about three days of severe frost the layer of ice is thick enough for the skaters. The posh Keizersgracht is then converted to a cheerful ice rink for everyone to enjoy.

Technorati Tags: Amser, Urban Leisure

The monumental quality of the Amsterdam city centre is largely determined by numerous 17th and 18th century houses, once owned by wealthy merchants and prominent citizens. Moreover, the warehouses deserve mention. Amsterdam warehouse architecture is unique in the world. Most of the state controlled monuments, however, are dwellings. The ring of canals is the location of approx. 2,200 buildings, 1,550 of which are listed as historic buildings. Amsterdam’s beauty is largely determined by the style of these buildings, better described as “citizens’ architecture”. The choice of this style was a conscious one. The aim of the people of Amsterdam is to replace the Gothic style with its vertical accents and religious overtones by a profane Classicist style. The Royal Palace e.g. contains many supreme examples of symbolism derived from Classical Antiquity.

Amsterdam is not a city of churches and palaces, but of monumental mansions. The only two houses in Amsterdam worthy of the name palace are the Royal Palace in the Dam Square and the Trippenhuis. And even these two were not commissioned by royalty or aristocratic clientele. Originally, the Royal Palace was designed to serve as Amsterdam’s town hall and the Trippenhuis was built for wealthy citizens.

In the second half of the 19th century this monumental body of Amsterdam was severely threatened. Canals were filled in, streets were widened and bridges lowered. Many exceptional buildings were pulled down in the process of restructuring the city.

In the 1950s plans were made to fill in canals and pull down historical buildings. Fortunately, these plans were only partially realized. The Jodenbreestraat was widened and alike policy were made with respect to the Sint Antoniebreestraat. However, the successful restoration of the important Huis De Pinto proved a turning point.

Large-scale projects affecting the historical city centre in order to accommodate the needs of modern traffic are no longer to be anticipated. The monumental mansions which underwent drastic alterations during the 19th and 20th centuries, when many of them were turned into offices, are now being restored to their original residential functions. Since the Municipal Department for the Preservation and Restoration of Monuments and Sites was founded in 1953, over 4,000 premises underwent restoration. Almost 10% of these projects were completed.

About 20,000 buildings make up the historical city centre. One third was built before 1850. Approximately 6,700 “national monuments” (i.e. historic buildings preserved by the national government authority) are located in this area, whereas another 290 “municipal monuments” are preserved by the Amsterdam council. A further 1,160 buildings fall outside these categories. They are labeled “original premises” because of their intrinsic cultural historical interest. The Amsterdam city centre is eligible for a place on the UNESCO World Heritage List. After all, Amsterdam is the proud owner of one of the most important intact historical city centers of the world.

The historic buildings are lovingly restored and saved from destruction. The ring of canals is to become once more the stylish residential area it once was.

Rahul Viz
http://www.articlesbase.com/travel-articles/restoring-the-grandeur-of-amsterdam-54424.html

Technorati Tags: Amsterdam, Urban Leisure