"I didn't put this together to get a pat on the back, but to show the world it can be done rather quickly, and with limited funds," said Michael Capponi, a noteworthy South Beach promoter turned property developer told the Associated Press.
After volunteering with the University of Miami's Project Medishare he was frustrated with how difficult it seemed to be to secure tents for earthquake victims. When learning that tents supplied by ShelterBoxUSA cost $1,000, he flew back to Miami and found a bunch of tents for less than $5,000 for a few hundred.
He flew to Haiti to set up a makeshift community of tents to house 1,500 of people on the soccer field of a luxury community.
Though, a representative for ShelterBoxUSA says that their tents are meant to last for years, and cheaper tents can only hold up for a few months.
"I respect and appreciate people's passion and enthusiasm and energy," GuideStar President Bob Ottenhoff tells the AP. "But this is one of those moments where, in order to do this on a massive scale, I think we have to rely on the experts."
"I have seen too many big NGOs waste too much money and I am fed up," the developer said in his defense.
