Jaco Beach is undisputedly Costa Rica’s biggest and best beach town and for good reasons. It’s located only an hour or so from 2-million residents of the Central Valley including the capitol city of San Jose. When they go ‘Beachin’ they come here and they always will. But what would be the Crown Jewel of this Pacific Ocean town? What’s the dream?
A first-class, 1,200-feet-long, concrete and steel reinforced fishing and pedestrian pier! Wind and solar powered totally self-sustaining except for water. Built out in front of a new and shinning hotel and condo complex. St. Louis has its huge Arch, Seattle has the Space Needle, but Jaco Beach has nothing like that.
But it could! What a difference it would make!
All over Jaco large construction projects are underway. Excellent parcels of land are for sale awaiting buyers with millions, but also vision. Vision to see into the future and realize Jaco Beach needs an identity.
People love piers and they make money! They have been built all over the world and no two are alike. With the correct management piers take on a life of their own full of vitality and real Pura Vida!
Imagine something like this on Jaco Beach
Piers take you somewhere you cannot go. The sunsets, the concerts out over the Pacific Ocean. You can’t beat a pier for an attraction that draws people to it, to experience the never-ending gentle ocean breeze from above. It’s pretty much a secret but the fishing in Jaco Bay is excellent, but hard to do without a boat. Piers attract fish. Local Tico kids fishing. Take your dog for a walk on the pier. This People’s Pier would be for everyone.
Where would this hotel, condo, pier project be built in Jaco? There are several locations, but the best would be on CalleBohio where the old Bohio Beach Bar once was located. Here is a through one-way street offering access for everyone including the handicapped!
Calle Bohio in downtown Jaco Beach
This Calla Bohio location – including parcels A & B — are for sale. These lots offer about 400-feet or more of direct beachfront. The design possibilities are endless, but the hotel & /condo complex should include both parcels building over the road creating a tunnel on Calle Bohio for dual-side access.
The other strong possibility would be to build it between Villa Montana and Clarita’s Hotel & Beach Bar. This large lot is vacant and for sale. With the right design access to and from would be possible. Having this hotel, condo, pier complex at this location would vitalize Jaco’s North End.
This pier would welcome sunrise yoga classes, church services, business meetings, evening dances, etc. What a great place for wedding ceremonies than on the pier and other private celebrations or events.
The future openair restaurant & bar to be built out past the waves would be Jaco’s #1 eatery on Day 1. Jaco’s evening lights would greet people for dinner while listening to the sweet sounds of pure ocean waves and feeling that constant sea breeze.
Nags Head Pier Restaurant & Bar
Many people in and around Jaco cannot afford to go deep-sea or in-shore fishing, but those same people can afford a fishing pole, a bucket and some bait. On the People’s Pier should be a special convenience store complete with drinks, food, deli sandwiches, snacks, fishing pole rentals, bait sales and so on. But sell no glass items!
Management is everything to the success of a community pier. Rules should be common sense like no glass on the pier and no jumping from the pier. The pier should be designed so little trash blows into the ocean while at the same time keeping children safe from falling from the pier. Pier staff should regularly patrol the beach for any garbage from the pier.
At the end of Jaco’s pier should be a covered area for concerts and another restaurant & bar. In between should be covered seating areas with benches and picnic tables along the pier. It’s all just common sense.
Building a pier is not much different from building a bridge over a river that is 30-feet wide and 1,200-feet long with expanded sections to accommodate a restaurant over the waves and a covered sound stage at the end with a 2nd-floor observation deck for sunset viewing and sunbathing.
Water depths along Jaco Beach will accommodate a fishing and pedestrian pier as measured by a local kayaker
Financing for such a pier project would mostly come from the adjoining hotel and condo complex, but since this pier would be for everyone Costa Rica should ease beach concession restrictions and help with the cost. Costa Rican taxes would apply.
There are many large hotel builders that will build another one so why not Jaco Beach?
But be assured, many would buy or rent a condo if that pier — was just out the front door — that opens at sunrise and closes at midnight or so.Experienced surfers say piers help improve surfing in and around the pier. Piers and surfers have long gotten together well.
