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In our gated community of 75 homes we are the ONLY
non-Ticos. We feel great here, everything secured, maintained. Pool, kids playgrounds and rancho always clean,
People are friendly and helpful.
We were working for 30 years very hard to save and have this home in Cr. This was our choice to live in Gated community and we do not need anybody’s approval or judjment to do so.
This is our retirement dream home and we want to feel secure, protected and free to come and leave any time without looking for house-sitter to look after it.
It is a “freedom” for us.
Best wishes to all of you.I’m really surprised that this thread has generated so much interest.
As a long-time resident, let me summarize my view on some of important points raised in the discussion.
First, to get the most out of living in Costa Rica, I think it’s essential to become a part of the community. This includes learning as much as you can of the language, the culture and the people.
Some of the elitist,segregationist attitudes referred to in the original post do exist here and can be a problem, whether or not you live in a gated community. On the other hand, it’s very easy for new residents to become lulled into a false sense of security and to become overly trusting of surroundings and of their new Tico friends and neighbors.
I’m reminded of Robert Frost’s poem, The Mending Wall. Sometimes good fences DO make good neighbors and I’m not necessarily referring to physical walls. We all need to create our own comfort zone where we feel safe, secure and nurtured by our environment. However, we must also be able and willing to see beyond our self-imposed boundaries and, if we are to grow, we must always be willing to occasionally venture outside our comfort zone.
My advice to all is to be cautious about your personal safety and security, whatever that means to you. At the same time don’t live in fear. Be willing to take a some risks and push your limits, understanding that you may sometimes get burned. That’s the way life works!
[quote=”sprite”]The decision to live in a gated community reflects, at the very least, an elitist and segregationist attitude [/quote]
I have a home in a development of 30 homes 10 townhouses, 1 pool…Gated for security. Everyone steps outside and walks or takes a bike or cart or vehicle for business or the beach. This is truly a working/vacationing group..sandals and surfboards. Hardly elistist.
The guards at the gate provide protection against theft. Its the only threat we have. Simple crimes of opportunity are eliminated.
As for mistrust: yep, the folks dropping by after dark uninvited are suspect.
As for fear: none on my part.RC,
I know your community. Has there been any robbery at all. Is it safe to leave your house simply locked up when you’re away?
We lived in a gated community in the US. The gate actually offered very little security. The plus for us was the pool, the walking paths, and the sense of community. Some people feel gated communities are elitist. So what? Each of us should choose what we like. We’ll be moving to CR next summer and will check out the various options. We plan on renting for 6 mo to a year but probably buying after that. We’ll see.
Gated communities are a sign of societal sickness. They are the result of economic stratification, the most destructive force in any human community. They are much more than just a wall between two neighbors. They are a declaration of absolute mistrust between entire groups of people within what is supposed to be one community.
Is it protection of property from petite theft or is it personal safety that drives North Americans and some Ticos into these protected zones?
Many gated communities, are not much more than a North American style of a subdivision, albeit sometimes with a gate that may or may not have a guard on duty.
In regards to the question of what drives expats or [i]Ticos[/i] to live in them, most I would [i]presume[/i] is they do not wish to live on a street front home, with an excess of cars, buses and vehicles with loudspeakers on them…so can expect some amount of privacy.[quote=”costaricafinca”]Many gated communities, are not much more than a North American style of a subdivision, albeit sometimes with a gate that may or may not have a guard on duty.
In regards to the question of what drives expats or [i]Ticos[/i] to live in them, most I would [i]presume[/i] is they do not wish to live on a street front home, with an excess of cars, buses and vehicles with loudspeakers on them…so can expect some amount of privacy.[/quote]we live in a world where there will always be a segment of society at large that will always try and take what does not belong to them.
You have this mentality of entitlement that is rampant here in this country. I mean the concept of aguinaldo alone should give an idea of this.
The idea of people setting up a home on property that does not belong to them with the hopes of eventually taking this over gives a point of view that is so foreign to most people.
I understand the concept of gated communities.. at the very least as a deterrent more than anything else
we have had many break in in our little residential.. and when we finally set up a gated scenario with a unarmed guard break ins totally stopped.
so I do understand this concept however weak it may be.
David, you are wrong about there always being a thieving segment in societies. Theft is rare in societies where members have all they need for living contented lives. It is only in societies with an economic system of designed scarcity and the resulting economic stratification where such aberrant thieving behavior is made common.
I have all I need and so I am not a thief. Would you take property from another? Don’t make the egocentric error of believing you have superior morals to some others because you are not a thief. There is not as much difference between us all as you may have been led to believe.
If we were coming to CR from time to time for vacation or an extended stay, we would probably have chosen a condo or gated community. After all, if your home is going to be vacant you need extra security.
But we aren’t visiting; we live here. We have a small farm, a fine caretaker, and nice neighbors. We joined the Tico community, support the local school, treat people with respect. We expect occasional problems and we know the police aren’t efficient.
Good luck with your choices. We made ours.
sweikgert posted [i]”…those are EVERYWHERE in Costa Rica”[/i] You make this sound as if this applies to every home, and[u] this is not true[/u]!
Many very nice homes homes do not have bars nor high walls….and some very poor homes have no glass in their ‘windows’.
How much of ‘[b]everywhere[/b]’ in the country did you actually visit?
And yes, you are making assumptions saying that “I suspect the people who live in them are not going to be the type of people I would get along with”. No, they probably wouldn’t like you, either.Living in a golden cage called gated community has nothing to do with luxury or elite. Luxury for me means Space and Privacy, not staring at other peoples roofs and into their back yards. Just my opinion, others may feel the opposite way.
I’m saying there are many homes [i]all over the country[/i] that do not have bars and high walls and that there are many more areas of CR that you didn’t see … than you did.
We are in a ‘subdivision with a gate’ that helps keep the neighborhood horse inside, where they are supposed to be, if indeed the gate is actually closed. We cannot see any other houses.[quote=”sprite”]David, you are wrong about there always being a thieving segment in societies. Theft is rare in societies where members have all they need for living contented lives. It is only in societies with an economic system of designed scarcity and the resulting economic stratification where such aberrant thieving behavior is made common.
I have all I need and so I am not a thief. Would you take property from another? Don’t make the egocentric error of believing you have superior morals to some others because you are not a thief. There is not as much difference between us all as you may have been led to believe.[/quote]
Sprite
in a utopian world.. I would agree.. but we do not live in a utopian world..:D:D:D
I never called you a thief.. strange that you would have this kind of reply and it does reveal interesting side of you.
I don’t feel any moral superiority in fact I see things the way they are no more no less.
in any society you will always have the haves and the have nots..
that’s a fact.. 🙂
and when this gap is stretched to the extreme you will see consequences that rise from this.
what we really need is a non aggression society that lets people live and let live based on thier values.. and a set of laws. and the thing that connect all different values and beliefs is commerce.
I watched a really interesting video about this.. if I can find it I will post it.
but going back to gated communities.. I like it 🙂
[b]sweikgert[/b], can you please post where you found these statements, that read [i]” …those lazy inept Costa Ricans who can’t be trusted to operate a nuclear power plant or even to build a bridge properly so as to prevent it from being washed away in a flood. (I didn’t pick those 2 examples at random – those are sentiments I am paraphrasing from comments posted on this very message board.)” [/i] and see for myself how it relates to gated communities.
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