Problems continue to plague Mel Gibson's property on Playa Barrigona, in the Costa Rican province of Guanacaste. In a report issued March 29th, Nicoya's Municipalidad (town council), where the property is located, has stated that the five buildings constructed over 10 years ago never acquired the proper municipal permits.

This was confirmed by Mayor Marco Jiménez, after several town council inspectors visited the actor's estate at the beginning of March. Upon inspection, they were able to determine that five buildings, including several homes, pools and a restaurant, were built without any of the construction permits required by the Municipalidad.

"We have indeed detected unauthorized buildings on Gibson's property, for which this town council has not issued any permits. We will be assessing the situation along with the Architects Board in order to determine if they had previously approved the architectural plans," the Mayor explained.

However there are two structures, which include several storage areas and a laundry room, that were recently built that do have the necessary permits and have been included in the real estate register system.

The Mayor explained to the VON that in the next few days they will be notifying Mel Gibson's legal representatives, requesting an explanation in regards to the lack of permits, as well as to inform them of the measures being taken by the Municipalidad.

"We are conducting an appraisal of these buildings to determine whether a fine should be imposed or if the buildings should be demolished, (since) the town council (by not having an adequate register of these buildings) has not collected property taxes during all these years", added Mayor Jiménez.

Gibson purchased the property for $25.8 million back in 2007 and now, according to the Hollywood Reporter, four years later the property is listed for sale at $35 million.

Paying taxes. Last week one of Mel Gibson's representatives visited the Municipalidad in order to pay ¢8.5 million colones (about $17,000) in property taxes, which corresponded to the first quarter of 2011.

"When this payment was received, a stamp that read "Subject to revision" was placed on the receipt, since we are currently in the process of assessing the property's real value", mentioned Jiménez.

In addition, the Mayor explained that the town council is working to prove that of the 163-hectare (500-acre) property, 39-hectares correspond to the Maritime Terrestrial Zone, which belongs to the State and thereby, as a public resource, should not be seized by anyone.

Lady Gaga could be the new owner. On Friday, March 25th, Costa Rican newspaper Al Día reported that word has spread indicating that Mel Gibson may have sold his ranch to singer Lady Gaga. The VON has also heard speculation that Lady Gaga has reached out to construction professionals in the area in order to have several renovations made to the houses. However, these rumors have not been confirmed.

According to newspaper reports, Gaga could be visiting Costa Rica soon in order see the estate and experience the area's natural beauty first-hand.

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