First a little history about Franz Xaver Meier
After enduring World War II as a child in his native Bavaria, Franz grew up learning the disciplines of school, some play and hard work in the family hospitality business. After graduating from a private Hotel & Restaurant school, he worked for several years in prominent European resorts. When he was asked to join the German Bundeswehr, he left Europe and came to America. His early years taught him the injustice and misery of war and he refused to give up his personal freedom to any government, neither in Germany, nor later in America.​​
Through hard work he was fortunate to create a successful business career in Charleston, South Carolina. He has decades of experience in the hospitality field, in resort development, in project design and construction in the United States and overseas. He owned several restaurants, managed a hotel, and owned a commercial real estate company. In his last enterprise, he was the owner of a manufacturing plant producing 3D panels for telecom shelters, mining applications, and general home construction. Prior to his own business career, he worked for ten years for Charles Fraser on Hilton Head Island in South Carolina. Charles was considered the father of Eco Community development and Franz considered him his mentor.
Franz held designations as a Certified Club Manager (CCM) and Certified Hotel Manager (CHM). He founded the South Carolina chapter of “La Chaine des Rôtisseur”, one of the world’s oldest and most renown food and wine societies. He was recognized as “restaurateur of the year” and received many other rewards for his work in the food and beverage industry.
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Franz Xaver, known by most as Franz, has been an investor and a visitor of Costa Rica for more than 25 years. He visited Costa Rica for the first time in 1995 and after more visits he fell in love with Lake Arenal. He decided to purchase a home and the Marenal farm in the year 2000. While his dream of living here some day and converting his vision of creating an independent and sustainable community continued to flicker, it was not until 2024 that he was able to move here permanently and turn the flicker into a flame. Despite this long delay he was able to develop a strong and loyal local team that helped him to improve and maintain Marenal.
Franz now lives in his Marenal Community and has never regretted his move to this peaceful nation without an army, a comfortable climate and a happy population that teaches you “Pura Vida”!
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