MEXICO CITY - Mexican tourism officials have ratified an agreement with a Canadian/American company to develop the next major tourism destination in Mexico. The Villages of Loreto Bay will be a series of seaside villages built on 3,000 acres in the foothills of the Sierra de la Giganta Mountains and along three miles of coastline on the Sea of Cortez near the historic town of Loreto.

Development of the area has already begun. The first 60 homes were offered recently and sold out in the first day with a total value of sales in excess of $30 million. Many of the buyers were visiting the area for the first time. The next homes will become available February 14th, 2004.

Mexico's president, Vicente Fox, has visited the site and participated in project meetings with developers and state and local officials. Fox has expressed his support for the Villages at Loreto Bay, and welcomed the jobs and tourism revenue the project would bring.

The Villages of Loreto Bay is the last of five areas identified by FONATUR, Mexico's tourist development agency, as prime tourist development sites in Mexico. The others are the well-known destinations of Cancun, Los Cabos, Ixtapa-Zihuatenejo and Huatulco. The project will begin construction immediately. When completed, the seaside community will include 5,000 homes, hotels, service and retail businesses, and cultural and recreational facilities.

FONATUR has partnered with The Trust for Sustainable Development to develop the new community. The Trust is led by Canadian David Butterfield who has partnered with James Grogan, a well known Arizona developer and Chairman of the Arizona Tourism and Sports Authority to lead the Loreto Bay management team.

"We are honored by Mexico's invitation to build an extraordinary and authentic Mexican seaside community," said Butterfield. "The natural beauty of this area is literally soul-stirring and it is our responsibility to complement it with ecological sustainability and architecturally enchanting villages."

James Grogan said, "This is a terrific opportunity for people to own seaside homes starting in the $150,000 U.S. price range.... homes they can reach in a couple hours thanks to Loreto International Airport. At the same time it's an unknown escape for visitors and a great deal for investors." He added that each home built would create one new job and generate significant economic activity to the area.

For more information visit www.loretobay.com.

The Trust for Sustainable Development is an inter-disciplinary group of professionals committed to envisioning, designing and building sustainable communities (towns and buildings). A small core staff works full-time at The Trust in research, education and project pre-development. During project development, The Trust partners with respected industry professionals, consultants and institutions.

FONATUR is Mexico's Tourism Development agency and for 26 years has contributed significantly to the growth of Mexican tourism industry through its development and promotion of Mexico as an international tourism destination. . Fonatur is one of the most dynamic sectors of the economy, ranking 8th place in the worldwide visitor arrivals, and 12th place in the world in the capture of foreign exchange from tourism.

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