The PARQ Ubud complex expanded from a cafe and bar into a 103-room complex developers called a "city". (Facebook: PARQ Ubud)
The locals dubbed it "Kampung Russia" — a village of Russians in the middle of Bali's serene inland rice terrace haven Ubud.
Some watched with concern as it expanded from a cafe and bar during the middle of the COVID pandemic, to a five-room hotel and then a 103-room hotel-residence and event space that the developers called a "city".
Now, after years of simmering tension and suspicion about permit violations, Balinese authorities have finally had enough.
This week, hundreds of police were sent in to shut down the PARQ Ubud development.
Development was temporarily suspended in November, so when police moved in to close it permanently, they were met only by staff rather than residents.
Those who have been working there weren't happy, and clashed with officers.
"The closure was carried out in accordance with the law and regional regulations … and has gone through several stages," said I Ketut Pasek Lanang Sadia, from Gianyar regency, the local government.
Before its demise, PARQ Ubud billed itself as multifunctional centre.
It had restaurants, dozens of shops, a luxury spa, event spaces, a fitness centre and an 80-metre swimming pool — the largest in Ubud.
Marketed to "entrepreneurs, young families and artists", the development was described as a 65,000 square metre "synthesis of nature, creativity and spiritual practices".
"Ready to move in" apartments were installed with chandeliers and a mix of European and Balinese decorations.
PARQ Ubud has the largest pool in the area. (Facebook: PARQ Ubud)
The company described the development along with another seven it has in Bali as "magnets for celebrities, stars, entrepreneurs, families, influencers, and investors from around the globe".
With an advertising campaign across social media, the company behind the project, PARQ Development, sought to lure investors with a promise of annual passive income, rising property values and a lifestyle unlike anywhere else.
One of the luxury villas in PARQ Ubud. (Facebook: PARQ Ubud)
The ABC tried to contact PARQ Development's CEO Andre Frey for comment.
Calls to the numbers listed online for the company's marketing office were either disconnected or went unanswered.
However, a short reply to a message sent to a guest inquiry service said the shutdown "doesn't influence our work or your stay".
"The internal issues are to be negotiated between the two bodies and [will be] solved shortly," it said.
What may have looked to investors like an international community of creatives appeared more like an ever-expanding foreign enclave to many of its Balinese neighbours.
The complex was previously the target of an immigration raid in April 2023, although officers didn't find any visa violations.
The perception of it being a Russian community was also partly dispelled by immigration police, who said only half of the 90 residents or tourists they checked were Russian citizens.
A local manager told media at the time that despite perceptions, the development's three shareholders were actually Balinese, German and American.
But amid concerns about a further planned expansion of the Ubud development, the local government of Gianyar regency sought meetings last year to check if the permits for the project matched the scale of the development.
Could 'most beautiful beach in the world' be ruined?
Photo shows A lift on a beach.
And in November, the Gianyar Regional Secretary, Dewa Alit Mudiarta, sent a team to suspend PARQ Ubud's business because "they did not have basic licenses such as PBG (building approval) and SLF (functionality certificate)," according to the Bali Sun.
A police spokesman at the time said the business owners were willing to suspend operations while they sorted out the missing permit documents.
But then Indonesian media started reporting that the development was built on what was supposed to be protected rice fields, and that under the law, if the correct permits weren't issued, then the land must be returned.
Now, two months after the temporary halt, local authorities have shut it down.
PARQ Ubud has been marketed as a place to live, work and play. (Facebook: PARQ Ubud)
Wider perceptions of overdevelopment
The focus on PARQ comes as Bali continues to go through a villa-building boom that picked up steam after the COVID pandemic.
New long-stay digital nomad visas introduced by Indonesia's government helped fuel an exodus of expats seeking to make Bali their second home.
Bali's government estimates 1,000 hectares of farmland is lost to development each year. (Foreign Correspondent: Mitchell Woolnough)
And a surge in Russian visitors as Indonesia kept out the welcome mat amid sanctions and restrictions elsewhere over the Ukraine war, led to a perception of exclusive Russian communities in hotspots like Ubud and Canggu.
Large scale developments backed by Russian investors, including the 50 hectare coastal site Nuanu in Tabanan, have also fuelled perceptions of an influx of money from Russia.
But like PARQ, many of the new developments partly marketed at Russian villa buyers aren't necessarily owned by Russians.
Foreign tourists causing trouble in paradise
Photo shows A woman in a white sheet lies in the roots of a huge tree
One of the most controversial projects due to the scale of its original design, Taryan Dragon, is being built by a Ukrainian company.
Another residential project that attracted negative attention during construction because work crews partially demolished a cliff face at Uluwatu, is Indonesian owned.
The closure of PARQ appears to signal a shift in the way Balinese authorities respond to the mounting concerns about unchecked development.
"This year is the year of how we enforce existing regulations," said the head of Bali's Provincial Tourism Office, Tjokorda Bagus Pemayun.
"We are open to anyone, as long as they follow existing regulations."
Last year, Bali recorded a record year for overseas arrivals, with more than 6.3 million people visiting.
Indonesian tourism authorities said most of them had come from Australia, India and China.
