Chairwoman's Message

We must never forget the impact we have in the everyday lives of the communities we serve. Where they live, where they buy, work and travel, everything we do affects the people around us. I trust that we will all work together to lead industry change and advance policies and regulations in balance with development and respect for our environment and our communities

It is with great enthusiasm that I begin my term as president of the Puerto Rico Builder’s Association.

Puerto Rico faces one of its most challenging times in our history, and our industry has been affected in many ways.  As we turn into a third year of pandemic, we still face with the difficulties of reconstruction after hurricanes of 2017 and earthquakes in 2020, while new issues continue to arise that directly affect us, as are the rising costs in materials, the increase in minimum wage, among others.

All the pillars of our association: housing, commercial, industrial and tourism, have been affected in some way during this pandemic. On the other hand, we have seen a rise in demand in all sectors, and we are at a peak in tourism and housing. In order to keep moving forward, we will continue to collaborate with government and private sectors. 

We must never forget the impact we have in the everyday lives of the communities we serve. Where they live, where they buy, work and travel, everything we do affects the people around us. I trust that we will all work together to lead industry change and advance policies and regulations in balance with development and respect for our environment and our communities. 

As we all know, our industry consistenly faces the challenge of misinformation. We must be proactive in taking our message to our people, including the need for safe housing, the opportunities in tourism and the fact that we are a key economic sector for the Island and the advancement of industries and commercial development.

That is why today, more than ever, we must continue working together to make our industry stronger. I am counting on you to embark on this journey.

Vanessa de Mari Monserrate, AIA
Puerto Rico Builders Association