For people in Los Angeles who have always dreamed of experiencing more than the coffee of Costa Rica, Rubin Stahl may just be able to help out. He is building a sanctuary that will be home to a huge greenhouse for bees, hummingbirds and more than 8,000 butterflies. He is also building the country’s largest jellyfish aquarium.
Stahl was inspired by the landscape and wildlife in Costa Rica to make what this Butterfly Palladium into “one of the natural wonders of the world.” At a cost of $25 million, this Buena Park entertain attraction will measure 53,000 square feet and will open in 2017, on 7711 Beach Boulevard. Stahl was recruited by the city of Buena Park for this project and the land it was using (that in the past was home to the Movieland Wax Museum) was sold at a price of $2.5 m to him.
It is possible the LA-Costa Rica love affair goes both ways. On August 2 every year, Costa Ricans enjoy their largest religious holiday by marching on foot (or knees) toward Cartago’s Los Angeles Basilica as a homage to Le Negrita and ask for a wish to be granted to them.