Towering cloud covered mountains, rushing white water rivers, billowing volcanoes, endless mysterious canals, Toucans and Jaguars and Parrots. I’ll bet the word Caribbean did not pop into your mind when reading that sentence!

Throw in turquoise waters, palm covered beaches and world class surfing you are starting to get the picture of what the Caribbean side of Costa Rica is all about.

Now add the new $1Billion port renovation in Moin, just north of Limon and you’ll see why investors and lifestylers alike are getting excited about the new Costa Rica opening up right now.

Since moving here four years ago I have discovered what many people have never known or if they did it has been long forgotten. Costa Rica’s Caribbean side is a spectacular mix of wildlife and natural beauty. In addition, it has developed a vibrant and growing business economy that makes it the new hotspot of opportunity for entrepreneurs and businesses.

Ever since the ratification of CAFTA, the Central American Free Trade agreement, Costa Rica has been transforming into a country that is far from the “Third World” status that most people have pictured. The Port modernization is a huge project and is now at the forefront of change making the Limon Province of Costa Rica the focal point of growth.

This project is contracted to the Danish Company, APM and they are the largest container ship operator and supply vessel operator in the world. As part of the shift in the world’s economy Costa Rica has become a natural center of distribution for Central and South America. There are plans of tapping into the huge market that the Panama Canal now controls. As a byproduct of this commercial growth in Moin there are other changes in the area that are cropping up to support the growing infrastructure and job opportunities.

One example is the new Free Trade Zone outside of Limon. Costa Rican Free Zones have been a magnet drawing in dozens of Fortune 500 companies including IBM, Proctor & Gamble, HP and Intel. Incredibly, Intel is now manufacturing almost 90% of their IC chips here in Costa Rica!

There are other projects shaping up here as well. A mega-marina in the Port of Moin is planned that will provide safe harbor for up to 550 boats and yachts during the north’s Hurricane season. We have been blessed by the fact that Costa Rica does not experience hurricanes.

To meet the anticipated higher electric demands in our area work has commenced on another Hydro-Electric project on the Reventazon River. Reventazon HPP will be one of the largest hydropower plants in Costa Rica and is expected to generate 11% of the country’s total electricity supply in 2015.

Supporting infrastructure will also be improved. To meet the obvious demands of the families and workers needed for these projects our local towns are building new shops and stores to provide for these needs. The main road from San Jose to Limon, Rt. 32 will be widened from two to four lanes as part of the contract with APM. Grand View Estates’ commercial center is right on this road and I cannot imagine having a better location to take advantage of the burgeoning traffic count!

As with all growth of this type we need to be careful that we don’t grow too fast too soon as this can have detrimental effects on the local population. In my next installment I will share some to the cultural and local aspects that make Costa Rica a great place to live.

Gill Phelan is one of the owners of Grand View Estates. He has lived in Costa Rica for 10 years and can be reached through his website www.gvecr.com