Marina San Cosme or
Another Punta Banda?
2-'04

Chayo, through phone called us in the woods, maybe mid Sept., '03, was first to sound the alarm: Jorge Gutierrez, the ejido chief, had come up with some investors, "Americanos." He'd sold them all the land from Alejo and Guadalupe's place to the top of Punta San Fernando; most of which was non-legitimized parcels that he'd bought up cheap, a small part more that was strictly ejdio land, or maybe again it isn't? A marina in the live estuary, that was supposedly what they were going to do there.

Our friend Joaquin, who visits Baja often, was here at Carrizalito in November. The report I got from him was pretty much the same. He told me how Martin, who's with Alejo's eldest daughter Estar, recited to him in quite glowing terms the "progress" that was about to strike the area, Martin, for certain, wanting to get just as close to the center of action as was possible. He and Gutierrez have struck up an extremely close relationship.

Stopping in the city of Loreto, us making our way towards winter camp here, our accountant brought up reading all about this grand marina project in San Cosme. Things were moving forward rapidly, I opinioned, especially considering all the problems existing in that immediate area.

Into a light rain we pulled south of that city, us not really too concerned. It looked to be but a brief winter shower. The drops intensified as we made for the Agua Verde road, by which time we'd changed our minds as to the weather's nature.

Once upon the Agua Verde road we found condition greasy slick...and worsening. And, too, we'd heard all the horror stories as to how bad the road in front of us already was. Marcia worried about pulling our road trailer down to San Cosme. Both Chayo and Alejo, whom we'd met in Guerrero Negro, had strongly advised against such an attempt. We got as far as Rancho Ultima Agua, this on our agenda of needed stops, at which we pulled in. Friends of ours. Quijanos. We work with them in varies facets of our shell business. Also, at this place we were warned away from trying to pull things further. The pickup "Si!" the trailer, definitely, "No!"

While there at Ultima Agua rumors we'd been hearing in regards to this grand marina project were further reinforced. I've seen nothing in print yet, though I'm sure it exists. The word-of-mouth that I have, which admittedly is second and third hand (tricky stuff to put much faith and confidence in) has it that these "investors" are going to put in a service station at the Agua Verde/Baja Rt. 1 junction, pave the Agua Verde road at least to the project site, approx. 25 mean ks down it, bring in power lines, construct a hospital facility supposedly for the locals, build a trailer park for the ejido at Playa San Fernando, dredge an immense amount of salt-saturated material out of that living estuary, construct a sea wall or malacon, put in all the rest of the facilities that a modern marina needs to attract enough wealthy patrons, and build expensive casas overlooking this grand plan.

Whew!

Knowing this place like I do, I can only tell ya that just writing all this stuff down simply takes my breath away.

Raul Quijano worried aloud about what a change a paved road would be to his and all the other cattle ranchers' lives. A disaster, he predicted. Raising livestock was a scratch existence at best. With the losses they'd suffer do to paved road, well, their livelihood would become impossible. He made the point that with all this development talk those planning this only stressed the positive, never the negative, of which he was sure there was plenty .

I agreed, adding that I wondered what their plan was going to be with regards to handlin g the salty dredgings from that laguna? This massive amount of spoils won't do anything but smother any earth surface that it's dumped upon, nothing able to grow upon it for lifetimes. And what about a garbage dump?

This certainly seemed a crazy plan to him. Me, too. We talked about the fact that the existing anchorages in the greater coastal area were going greatly underused, Puerto Escondido a very good example. I pointed out that Agua Verde, with an almost perfect natural harbor, mostly sets unoccupied. We wondered if these investors were speculating that Fonatur's "escalera nautica" scheme was actually going to fly. Ha! We both appreciated the joke of that governmental entities money-down-the-drain pipe dreams, Mexico being simply littered with 'em.

The rain intensified throughout the night. It was an easy call in regards to where our road trailer was going to rest through the winter. In the morning we restationed it close to casas there, unhooked, filled our pickup with large cargo box to the max, and then slowly made our way towards San Cosme, the entrance to the rancho.

No good. We tried making it down the steep and slippery grade but found a dump truck stuck with its right front wheel in a deep hole, the steep drop-off side of the road washed away so there was no way to pass. The problem didn't look like one that would be solved soon so we returned to our trailer there at Ultima Agua, where we'd spend another day and night.

Anyway, we do make it into camp here, and we're not settled long before more info., in what I still consider rumor form, starts funneling in here. Chayo tells us that Martin and Gutierrez are keeping the investors away from contact with concerned others. The four investors, with their girl friends er wives are taking their meals at Martin's casa, instead of Guadalupe's Restaurante San Cosme. Chayo also tells us that these investors have gone forward with their molestation of the eco zone surrounding the estuary without all the needed papers, something which has since been confirmed.

Wild stories come to us from gringos who claim that the one American-born Mexican investor is related into a powerful family in LaPaz, that's reputed to be involved in illicit business there. We get a story that Gutierrez, the ejido chief, did hard time for transport of illegal substances packed away in crates of oranges that emanated from his Constitution orange packing plant. Ten ye ?ars in the slammer, we're told. But this didn't jive exactly with other information we had. We've since had it confirmed that he had been busted, but that somebody bought up most of his time.

One of our friends camped at the rancho here, he'd camped on Playa Carrizalito, told us that he'd met the Mex/American investor partner...who'd told him that he'd boughten part of that beach too (not in the same deal as the marina one), and was planning to build his own house there. This after Gutierrez cleaned up some small problems that still lingered "right" there. We hear too that these investors are also buying Playa Coyotito from that same grand actor. (Gosh. I hope my countrymen haven't yet loosened their wallets much on any of these wild things.)

Theories advanced around here as to the hows and whys of all these goings ons, I admit are wild. Most are sure that all this movement is fueled with major dr ug money. Though that may indeed be true, I remain unconvinced. Drug money doesn't necessarily have to be something so stupidly spent. Surely in Mexico money could be laundered into things that could gain a return rather than just be hurled to the four winds.

Through Chayo I sent word, him to the spanish-speaking partner, that I'd really like to have a talk with these gents. He got a not-too enthusiastic response. And, two months into things, none have shown here on the ranch. Well...one did, but not to visit with me. Perhaps this one couldn't read. On a four-wheeler he'd slipped under the chain at the gate, then past the sign that spoke of private property and permission required. From there this machine managed to leave tire scars on all the beaches and in all sorts of places where its tracks won't be erased very easily. We heard its motor but thought it was a friend on a motorcycle who knew the rancho and its rules. Had I thought differently I'd have gone to investigate and definitely we'd have talked.

They're gone away now, presumably back to the States, but I have hopes of them returning soon, and then maybe I'll get the chance to introduce them to this web site, which I'm sure they've never seen. I want to assure them that their antics are going to be featured here.

It's slow in coming together but there seems to be a coalition of concerned others that is building to counter that live estuary's destruction. Yes they've done some irreparable eco damage around that lagoon already, but I'm hoping that as soon as these investors realize the magnitude of the cow pie they've stepped off into, and with who, they might try to withdraw and reconsider things.

I refer to Punta Banda in the titling of this piece. I'll move into my reasoning fer this: Punta Banda was a modern development south of Ensenada, northern Baja; paved streets, street lights, sewer, water and electricity, etc. Many people bought into it, constructing lavish houses on their relatively inexpensive lots, this compared to S. Ca. standards. The developer had bought the land from an ejido, the chief of the Reform Agraria assuring the purchaser that it was legitimate ejido land. This complete with all sorts of great looking stamped and signed papers. All the above with just a faint background noise that there was some other claimant to the same land. Long after a lot of U.S. money was firmly invested there, the original claimants to this property won their case at the highest appeal level in Mexico City. The legal owner, with the assistance of the military, went around and simply collected everyone's house keys. They got the boot and were left holding empty bags. This was like only two er three years ago. And, naturally, this generated lots of U.S. press and did nothing too help the land-investment climate down the whole of Baja.

Palo Blanco is the historic rancho that is the bottom layer of this marina project's problems. The Quijano family, a very large and extended one, mostly from up in the mountains around here (although they're spread out all over), is the collective owner of very old papers.

The Reform Agraria, with its maliciously flawed Plano Definitivo for Ejido San Jose de LaNoria, essentially erased Palo Blanco from the map, plastering over part of it a Rancho "Punta Pasquel," with a non existant owner, and no historic remembrances of its existence in the area, (this is all stuff I've written much about long ago). An interesting side note is that the then chief of the Reform Agraria, a guy with last name of Cholet, had bragged to acquaintances of mine that he's the proud owner of this from-thin-air Punta Paquel.

The Quijanos and the ejido have been battling about ownership of this large rancho (more than 1200 hectares) for over 25 years! At one point, about a year and a half ago, it looked like all sides in the fight were willing to settle for what was essentially a 50/50 split. On the day of that agreement signing, in LaPaz, all parties and agencies present for this historic event, at the very last moment, the representative from the Reform Agraria, by an urgent phone call, was instructed not to sign, effectively torpedoing the agreement.

The Reform Agraria was in a bind with that accord. Since they were the authors of Plano Definitivo, which supposedly was the ultimate word, a deal recognizing any part of Palo Blanco blew a hole in that scam, rendering the whole document suspect and changeable. Too, they were certainly aware of the states political climate (Populist), and most likely understood that the fix at that level was definitely in.

In May of '03 the state Tribunal director sent an official statement to the Quijanos that they were to immediately abandon Palo Blanco in favor of the ejido. The Quijanos, who keep some family members in residence there full time, weren't about to com ply. Their lawyer dashed off to Mexico City to appeal this ruling and in November of same year the higher authority in the national capital ruled unanimously in favor of the Quijanos and their claim. Not for half of Palo Blanco, but all of it.

None of this is second hand or hearsay. I've reviewed the documents, thanks to our relationship with the Quijanos in total. The last hurtle for them is one more judge's signature in LaPaz, for which they've now been waiting five months. And for which I'm predicting they'll wait a good while longer, because, again, this is a political thing, and the judge will be greatly affected from above.

Anyway, that's the bed-rock footing for this marina fanitisy because historic Palo Blanco lies under all of its land surface. Moving on to the next layer of their legal positioning is the fact that the parcels wrapped up in this land deal are illegitimate, the ejido never getting its "Proceedi," the extra ejido land that Gutierrez sold in the deal being non salable for this same reason.

Now add to this stew an ejido commissioner who can't legally even be an ejido member, let alone the chief. And then top this off with that clown's resume, and there you've got the cake, or shit sandwich, that those investors have bitten into.

Anybody want to pluck any major money down on this marina thing's future?

Email: david@dondavidonbaja.com