José Ignacio, Uruguay: Tiny town turned world’s hot beach spot

The arrival of progress

However inevitably, the inhabitants of José Ignacio were desirous of basic utilities. Led by Blanca Martorell, the granddaughter of the town’s founder—the surveyor Eugenio Saiz Martínez—by the 1980s, the community organised to bring electricity, running water, and the telephone, and ensure orderly development of the small dirt roads that separated properties.

At first, there were just a few private phones all connected by a telephonist who would ‘helpfully’ interject her local knowledge into the conversations.

In 1981, a bridge was built over Laguna José Ignacio. The village was now within easy reach of the coastal highway and Punta del Este. Its fate was at a crossroads.

The shape of things to come?

In between José Ignacio and Punta del Este lay La Barra, a picturesque fishing village. Turned off by the high-rise boom in Punta, first artists, then Argentine celebrities and longer-established families, began decamping to La Barra. In the wake of this vanguard, like trend-seeking bloodhounds, were high-end commercial interests from Buenos Aires, the Argentine capital.

Correspondingly, exclusive brands, like the iconic 80s jeans brand Guess, set up shop in Punta del Este, throwing promotional parties, catwalk shows, and associating their brands with the beach scene —the sunset, music, DJs, and gastronomy. These events received endless primetime coverage on Argentine TV and in magazines. Brands flocked in and by the 1990s, peak season La Barra was a Uruguayan Ibiza—heaving with nightclubs and bars and brands.

Residents want progress but of a certain kind

“All those Argentines holidaying in Punta del Este wanted to come and check out this peninsula in the middle of nowhere where a few crazy chefs were doing amazing things with gastronomy,” said Nacho Ruibal.

But once the bridge over the Laguna José Ignacio physically connected José Ignacio with its neighbours to the west, alarm bells went off —especially when the building housing the iconic La Posada del Mar was leased by Guess. They knew development was inevitable. Indeed, they’d lobbied for amenities. But high-rises, large-scale developments and frenetic nightlife was not what the families of José Ignacio wanted for their own community. They knew change was coming, but there needed to be a way to keep growth ‘orderly’.

Legal protection to preserve the family character of José Ignacio

Once again galvanised by Blanca Martorell, the community lobbied the local government in Maldonado to come up with a legal framework to manage the development of ‘the José Ignacio region’. The region—which at its most populous has never been a permanent home to more than 150 families—stretches just over seven miles (12 km) from the José Ignacio lagoon to the Garzón lagoon, and from the ocean to Route 9, another 7.5 miles.

Comparatively, no town or region within a department—as Uruguay’s provinces are known—had ever had region-specific ordinance. It took them two full years, but in 1993, José Ignacio became the first locale to have its own unique set of regulations.

The prohibitions

The plots of land on the peninsula had been divided up back in 1908 and were long and skinny. The new regulations limited each plot to single-family use. To avoid over-development, the maximum wall length of any individual construction was restricted to twenty metres—about one-third of the narrow plots. This encouraged the construction of airy ‘casas patio’—patio houses. A casa patio was comprised of a construction at the front of the property adjoining the street, followed by a patio or open-air gallery, and then another building at the back. Dwelling heights were limited to about twenty-foot (6-7 metres) high—so nothing over two storeys was permitted.

Likewise, the regulations also protected the peace and quiet of the peninsula and surroundings. Clubs, discothèques, pubs, and amplified music are banned to this day. The lagoons and dunes are protected from all motorised vehicles—from speedboats to quad bikes.

The prohibition of the building of multi-dwelling units effectively meant a ban on the construction of hotels and apartment blocks. The regulations consolidated the character of José Ignacio as a resort for families. There were also material benefits. Because of pure supply and demand, rental prices skyrocketed.

With a change of government, the regulations were relaxed in 2007. However, there is still significant protection, and the 1993 law still applies to the peninsula. The legislation has consolidated the character of José Ignacio and what some locals refer to as ‘the José Ignacio brand’.

Despite its international profile, in part due to regulations setting larger minimum plot size than elsewhere on the Uruguay coast, there is still land for sale in José Ignacio. Ocean-side lots on the seven-mile coastline start at 3,280-foot sq (1,000 m sq). Plots furthest inland are termed ‘chacras marítimas’ or maritime estates and start at twelve acres (five hectares).