Real-estate brokerage firm Christiansen & Portela, founded eight years ago by partners Jerry Christiansen and Rafael Portela, started out 2006 strongly with several commercial and industrial properties now on the market, as well as important developments in sister operations Par Builders and Allied Management Group Inc. Partner Rafael Portela sat down with CARIBBEAN BUSINESS to reveal present and future projects.

Chief among Portela’s concerns is relocating the firm’s offices. Allied Management Group Inc., which is dedicated to investing in commercial and industrial properties, was the owner of Citibank Towers in Hato Rey until it was sold to Gable Holdings in March 2005. Although today Portela is a tenant in a building that was formerly owned by his company, the businessman is working to change that. “We are currently looking at some acquisitions in the Santurce area to relocate our offices,” said Portela. Although he wouldn’t specify a specific location, Portela stated the strongest candidates are in Ponce de León Avenue or surrounding areas.

Another related operation is Allied Financial, which is a different kind of mortgage bank from those people are accustomed to. “We don’t do personal loans; instead we do commercial and industrial loans that are mainly through short-term financing,” Portela explained.

Portela is also a partner in Par Builders, an upstart company dedicated to the development of residential areas. Together with fellow partners José Armstrong and Héctor Rivera the company has started development in small communities in Carolina and Toa Baja, as well as a bigger project in Río Grande with homes priced around $200,000. “We also had a project in development in Hormigueros, but we decided to sell it instead because it was too far off geographically speaking,” explained Portela.

Portela’s venture into the residential development business has proved successful. Nonetheless, as with almost all developers, the company has faced unforeseen hurdles along the way “The permitting process is unpredictable and it changes from project to project. And it’s not always agencies such as the Regulations & Permits Administration (ARPE) or the Planning Board that delay things. Our Río Grande project, for instance, was delayed for close to two years waiting for permits from the Puerto Rico Aqueduct & Sewer Authority to have sanitary lines installed. It’s definitely a slow process,” said Portela, who estimated the permitting process for relatively small projects takes two to three years, while bigger projects can take up to five years to obtain all necessary permits. “We look for properties that already have preliminary zoning permits to try and shorten the process, but we haven’t been able to go faster than a couple of years,” he said.

Although Portela’s plate is full with all the different operations in which he has a hand, he admits the most visible remains Christiansen & Portela. This is evident in the ample portfolio of properties the company has on the market, including the Chevron Texaco industrial lot and manufacturing facility in Guayanilla, Sea Lovers Marina in Fajardo and several empty lots bordering PR167 in Bayamón, as well as new additions to City View Plaza Building next to De Diego Expressway and Gam Tower in San Patricio. Portela estimated total sales this year for the firm will be around $80 million.