Embassy plans raise concerns in Clayton

Residents of Clayton are questioning why the U.S. Embassy has requested a new zoning law allowing the construction of three-storey buildings when the project has not yet been designed.
The Ministry of Housing on Thursday called for a public consultation to discuss the request for re-zoning of the Embassy in Panama.
The change involves modifying two lots classified as low density to high density, and a third lot currently classified as low density to Urban institutional Service), which would allow f the construction of three-storey buildings that can house between 200 and 300 persons per hectare, (low density permits buildings with an occupancy of 50-100 people).
Although the embassy has not yet defined the project to be developed representatives disclosed that it would be housing for diplomats from the U.S. said La Prensa
This land forms part of the barter agreement between the United States and Panama in exchange for the lot where the former embassy was housed, on Avenida Balboa, which is also causing controversy as engineers and architects want the old building to remain and be converted for special purposes, while the government wants to knock it down and build an office tower on the site.