Controversy Surrounds Jorge Quiroz’s Brother as Audit Requests Filed Over Illegal Construction and Urban Modifications

Original article: Proyecto de hermano del ministro Jorge Quiroz llega a Contraloría por denuncias de obras ilegales y modificaciones urbanísticas

The General Comptroller of the Republic has accepted the petition submitted by the Foundation Defend the City to investigate permits, final reception, and modifications of the Boulevard Montemar de Concón condominium, linked to architect Víctor Quiroz, brother of Finance Minister Jorge Quiroz.

This request was submitted on September 18 and also seeks to review complaints regarding the urban development project and responses from competent agencies. As confirmed by Aquí Valparaíso, the oversight entity accepted the petition last week.

The complaint points out “serious urban and administrative irregularities” in a complex featuring residential buildings, offices, and a strip center. Concerns have been raised regarding changes to common assets and the allocation of “sectors and polygons to private units” through plans by architects Víctor Quiroz and Raúl Puelma, “despite evidence that these plans were not approved by the DOM (Municipal Works Directorate)”.

In statements to the cited media outlet, the brother of the Secretary of State admitted that he “indeed” was the architect of the project, along with his partner, “the Quiroz and Puelma Architecture firm”. He noted that “like every project, there were modifications to permits –some changes occur during the construction phase– and all those modifications were approved and received.

According to the complaint filed with the Comptroller’s Office, these modifications “affected visitor parking, parking for people with disabilities, loading and unloading areas, circulation areas, terraces, roofs, rooftops, stairs, and other common properties”. Members of the Foundation Defend the City indicated that the parking lots, gardens, and front yards “would be designated for commercial parking linked to the strip center”.

Quiroz responded that “everything received is in order” and that “all the plans we made for co-ownership are correct.”

He argued that the real estate co-ownership law “allows for polygons or units to be designated as parking spaces”, insisting that “none of this contravenes the regulations.”

“All the approved plans, with my stamp at the Real Estate Registrar and at the Municipality, I take 100% responsibility for them”.

In the architect’s opinion, the irregularities reported to the oversight body are related to a “functionality issue”.

If the plan designates a space for a delivery truck to park and today that space is occupied by something else, it is not my responsibility. I cannot be supervising what happens with the practical uses. I am responsible for what is approved, and it is correctly approved,” he stated.

He believes that any investigation will conclude that any irregularities in the project are “issues of coexistence”.

Pending Demolition

According to the complaint filed with the oversight entity, the Municipal Works Directorate “confirmed illegal construction on the 17th and 18th floors” and while this year, by mayoral decree, demolition was ordered, it has yet to be carried out, prompting Aquí Valparaíso to consult the Municipality without receiving a response.

The situation on the 18th floor is reportedly particularly complex, as complainants warn that “there is evidence relating to the installation of technological infrastructure associated with a Data Center”. At the same time, the Superintendence of Electricity and Fuels “has noted electrical irregularities, including tampered seals, modifications to connections,” but “the irregularities have not been remedied.”

“We are being affected in our use and availability of assets that we consider part of the common heritage,” stated attorney and representative of co-owners, Susan Escobar, to the cited media.

She indicated that with the filed petition, they seek to “recover for the community the terraces and visitor parking, loading and unloading areas” and that there is also a demand to enforce the demolition order and ensure that any installations observed by regulatory bodies are regularized or cease in accordance with the determinations of the authority.”

Finance Ministry Unlocked Brother’s Project Despite Sernageomin’s Objections

This is not the first time the brother of the Secretary of State has been embroiled in controversy. It is noteworthy that in mid-August, it was revealed that the mechanism for accelerating environmental permits initiated by the Ministry of Finance enabled the approval of the real estate project Alto Santorini in Concón, a project in which Víctor Quiroz is a partner.

However, the measure was adopted despite the fact that the National Geology and Mining Service (Sernageomin) maintained its technical objection due to the risk of “mass removals” in the area, raising questions about potential conflicts of interest and lack of transparency in the process.

The environmental processing of this project has been marked by various suspensions and delays. In 2023, following a sinkhole that affected a building in the dune area of Reñaca, the evaluation process was halted, resuming in July 2024 when the company presented new data to the Valparaíso Environmental Assessment Service (SEA). Eleven institutions raised observations on its Environmental Impact Study, and project representatives requested extensions twice to respond to these concerns, extending the process until March 31 of this year, twenty days after Jorge Quiroz assumed office as finance minister following Kast’s ascension to the presidency.

According to a report by CIPER, with his brother in the cabinet, Víctor Quiroz intensified his lobbying efforts, meeting in June with Manuel Millones, the presidential delegate of Valparaíso and president of the Evaluation Commission that approved the project. The businessman registered ten meetings with regional authorities in the months leading up to the favorable SEA resolution.