Cuba and the Politics
of Construction Under the Sun...continued
Building Design Standards
US Construction standards were the norm in Cuba when Meyer Lanski, the mafia don, built his Hotel de Nationale in the 1950's. Today this five star hotel, one of three in Havana, sees thousands of tourist visitors each year. Under Russian influence, construction rules were somewhat compromised to what would get by. Poured concrete without rebar is common Russian construction technique. Since the mid 1990's, new construction mostly adhered to the standards of the investing country, . . . "providing it meets the approval of the authorities." This is not to say that unknowledgeable people are reviewing proposed construction projects. More recently Canadian and Spanish standards have been commonly accepted.
Investment in Cuba is problematic. Presidential Decree # 77, the Cuban Foreign Investment Law passed in 1995 by the Cuban Government, requires Cuban participation in any new real estate project. Although an investor may provide 100% funding, 50% ownership is the best that can be typically obtained. Your partner normally is an agency of the Cuban government. In spite of the heavy hand of the Cuban government, reports say the Cubans meet their contracted agreements in capital and fund transfers. The chief complaint is the time involved, 13 months or more, getting business deals approved by the ministries of historical antiquities, economic development, architectural standards, public utilities, plus the Committee for the Defense of the Revolution and the like. Build-Own-Manage-Transfer, as done in other developing countries, is not permitted.
Failed Thinking
With the increased momentum of construction taking place, and given an increased shortage of housing, one would assume that individual construction firms would be springing up. Not so. In spite of desperate need for local housing, the Castro government continues to discourage any trace of individualism. Only on a limited basis are family owned businesses allowed to exist, commonly as a family-run restaurant. Without the authorization of local governments, the law prohibits Cubans from building houses or additions, selling their homes, or swapping small housing units for larger ones, even if the difference is paid for. Moreover, people that are authorized to build houses on their own must prove that they purchased all materials from cement, sand, to the last brick, from state enterprises.