Conservatorio
Conservatorio is the leading sustainable urban real estate developer operating in the historic Casco Viejo district of Panama City, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. For over a decade, the company has acquired and improved real estate assets in the urban historic center of Panama City, offering a mix of affordable, middle and high-end housing as well as commercial spaces that provide existing low-income residents and small business owners with improved livelihoods and the ability to participate and engage in their community without displacement.
Website link: https://www.conservatoriosa.com
Why we love the company
Revitalizing the downtown historic center of Panama City, creating low-income housing and a vibrant, safe community for residents.
The company has a one-for-one model which ensures building a minimum of one affordable housing unit for every higher end unit, resulting in the creation of a diverse and vibrant community.
Panama, like the rest of Latin America, is urbanizing so quickly that the great majority of its problems are urban problems. Traffic, garbage, crime and poverty have reduced quality of life for downtown residents, causing many to move far outside the city for affordable housing. The result is more inequality, more pollution, less commerce and a lower standard of living for all.
Cities are great generators of economic growth and social progress, but a city can’t be healthy if its core is rotten. Conservatorio believes that a company with vision, capital, and a cooperative attitude can make a huge difference in revitalizing a city’s downtown.
Dev Equity is a proud partner and investor in Conservatorio’s La Quince project. La Quince comprises 6 buildings in the core of Casco Viejo that include 73 affordable apartments, 60 market rate apartments, 52 commercial units and 73 parking spaces.
In Conservatorio’s own words
“When we imagine Panama’s four square kilometer historic core twenty years from now, we see it re-densifying, with a mix of housing that ranges from the most expensive in the city to some of the most affordable. We see it safe and clean.
We see downtown Panama thriving commercially. We see bustling retail and offices occupied by companies whose employees love the cultural vibrancy and central location.
We imagine many thousands of people who are currently stuck in traffic hours per day, walking or taking public transportation to work, freeing resources and time for things that make a difference in their lives. We imagine universities moving downtown, bringing their students’ energy with them.
We see the vibrant cultural heart of the city, home to its best museums and cultural institutions. We imagine exciting offerings that draw visitors from all over the world and make residents want to stay on the weekends so they don’t miss anything.
We see people currently too marginalized to believe they could work or purchase their own homes doing exactly that.”