The Government of St. Vincent and the Grenadines is moving forward with its plan to build a hotel in St. Vincent.
Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves told Parliament this month that the government has taken “an initial step to elaborate a plan to build a 250-room hotel in St. Vincent, through the instrumentality of at least two State agencies, and to engage a company with a global brand to market and manage it.”
In his Budget Address, Gonsalves said that on Jan. 18, Cabinet set up a Committee under the chairmanship of the Minister of Economic Planning, Camillo Gonsalves, to proceed with this venture.
“Recently, on my travels overseas, I held fruitful discussions with an international hotel group on this very matter in London,” Gonsalves said, but did not elaborate.
He said his government is again appealing to the Vincentian private sector to join with it to facilitate the expansion of the number of hotel rooms available in St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
“This is vital in light of the impending operation of the AIA (Argyle International Airport),” which began operating on Tuesday.
“I am pleased that at a recent budget consultation with the business community, three potential investors locally expressed a strong interest in partnering with the government to invest in hotels,” Gonsalves said.
….God help us all!
“build it and they will come” or is it “build it and build it and they will come”
A cry of desperation, if there ever was one, proving how little interest international hoteliers are in investing their own money here.
Ask yourself which governments, except the most isolationist and socialist ones, would do this in 2017? Even Cuba is promoting public-private and soley private enterprises.
When Michael Manley socialized the hotel industry in Jamaica many years ago, the industry collapsed and his government was thrown out of office.
If nobody wants to build hotels here, the government should ask why (hint: the mainland had no mass tourism potential), and then move on to encourage more credible industries.
The fact that there is a dearth of Hotels in mainland St. Vincent , is the lack of an International Airport , Let me state again for the umpteenth time , Hoteliers are
loathe to build Hotels in Countries that have no International Airport . The reason why that is the case is obvious to all sensible persons .
Idiots complain about the size of the Airport , which is asinine , Sensible Persons build Airports etc , so that they will not become obsolete , say ten years hence . JFK in New York has always been making additions . On one occasion it was stated , that before it was finished building it was obsolete .
The fact is that buildings that are built without thinking about the Future , always end up costing more , because the cost of Labour & Building Materials
are not static , they increase all the time .
On the mainland WE have one of the Oldest Botanical Gardens in the Western
Hemisphere , my understanding is that there is a Botanical Garden in Pennsylvania , that is supposed to be older than ours . The reason why the Breadfruits etc were brought first to St. Vincent , was due to the fact that the second in command at Kew Garden in England was in St. Vincent at the time .
Now YOU can do a service to the Nation by focusing on the benefits of the
AIA , instead you have chosen to badmouth not only the Airport , but the lack of Hotels in mainland St. Vincent .
Then you are critical about Airlines , bluntly refusing to acknowledge the fact that one , the Airport was only opened last week , and potential Airlines & Travel Agents abroad are not yet up to speed . Neither has the Tourist Authority ramped up its Ad Blitz Regionally & Internationally . Obviously all this will take time .
The important thing however is that despite the unceasing criticisms of the
Airport , it is a reality , and is the vital building platform that is needed to get
to get Hoteliers ; Airlines ; Overseas Travel Agents etc , on board . Rome was not built in a Day , and it will take time for the many benefits of the AIA to become a serious Player in the Economy of SVG via Tourists and Shipping
SVG Goods Overseas , and thereby boost the Economy .
You & other Critics know this , but apparently this has not dissuaded you & others from continuously being critical . The Airport is a reality , so now you and those of your ilk have moved on to Tourist Attractions on the mainland . There are Beaches , some with Black Sand & some with white sand , I have already mentioned the Botanical Gardens , There is Young Island , there is the Rain Forest with our beautiful distinguished Parrot ; The Montreal Gardens . the Waterfalls ; Climbing the volcano ; Black Point ; Marriaqua Valley , the view from Mt. Eyrie looking down at the Marriaqua Valley etc . Fort Charlotte ; etc .
So when You and others state that the mainland is devoid of Tourists attractions that aint true . You & Others are only attempting to buttress your
dire perspective . Frankly the Airport is a reality , and most if not all Vincentians are aware of the fact that the current Government built it , and is very likely to benefit politically from building the AIA , that no doubt angers you & Others , Those of us who live in the Diaspora are thrilled with the AIA , because WE no longer have to put up with the uncouth People in Barbados ; where at times the LIAT Personnel will state that the plane going to St. Vincent is full , when in fact that was a Lie .
So let me once again state the fact that the NDP was in Office for 17 years ,
I do not recall anyone preventing the NDP from building the Airport during its 17 years in Office . Forever etched in my mind is the comment of the woman who publicly stated that she wished a Tsunami could come and destroy the AIA . Now I certainly did not make this up . I am still appalled by her statement . I have no problem regarding people being critical of the Government , but criticisms must be valid , not figment of One’s Imagination .
There needs to be some time before people can be critical of the AIA , when Babies are born , they do not immediately start running around the house . I am of the view that it would take about 2 or 3 years before We begin to see the benefits of the A I A .
c.ben-David ,
You really are a piece of work . It apparently has escaped your sensibilities , that it would be
the height of Stupidity for sensible persons or Hoteliers to build Hotels on the mainland , when the mainland does not have an International Airport . Now this is a fact , certainly not fiction .
I have stated this before , in this very Newspaper , yet you persist in you fantasy . BTW , I
miss reading your columns about the Airport ; I really thought that you were going for 50 ;
please do not stop now you are very near to 50 .
I have never ever heard of most Hoteliers showing a keen Interest in building Hotels in a Country that does not have an International Airport . You have blithely ignored the fact that for
many years , on the mainland successive Governments , bluntly refused to bestir themselves
regarding building an International Airport on the mainland . Now this is apart from the fact that
the NDP was in Office for 17 years , the ULP was also guilty of also ignoring building an International Airport on the mainland . In 1966 that was in the Manifesto of the Labour Party .
It was only when the ULP led by Dr. Gonsalves won the General Elections in 2001 , did Politicians in SVG finally realized that having an International Airport was a necessity not a Luxury ; because apart from bringing Tourists to SVG , Local Goods could be transported to various parts of the outside World . Obviously Exporting SVG Goods & bringing Tourists to
SVG is a Win – Win deal , this aint Rocket Science .
It would readily agree that Kingstown is a Mess , for that WE can blame the Monstrosity of
the Market , a dark ; gloomy ponderous building , with Elevators that cannot work . Worse yet
many of the persons who own stalls have taken their goods outside to sell , because many of
their Customers refuse to climb the stairs .
Kingstown is in fact an Asphalt Jungle , there is no Green Spaces , where persons can sit down on benches or Chairs , and watch the world go by for sometime . My take is that it would indeed be a Tragedy , if in the New City at Arnos Vale there are no Green Areas & or Plazas for the General Public to pause for a while .
c.ben-David ,
You really are a piece of work . It apparently has escaped your sensibilities , that it would be
the height of Stupidity for sensible persons or Hoteliers to build Hotels on the mainland , when the mainland does not have an International Airport . Now this is a fact , certainly not fiction .
I have stated this before , in this very Newspaper , yet you persist in you fantasy . BTW , I
miss reading your columns about the Airport ; I really thought that you were going for 50 ;
please do not stop now you are very near to 50 .
I have never ever heard of most Hoteliers showing a keen Interest in building Hotels in a Country that does not have an International Airport . You have blithely ignored the fact that for
many years , on the mainland successive Governments , bluntly refused to bestir themselves
regarding building an International Airport on the mainland . Now this is apart from the fact that
the NDP was in Office for 17 years , the ULP was also guilty of also ignoring building an International Airport on the mainland . In 1966 that was in the Manifesto of the Labour Party .
It was only when the ULP led by Dr. Gonsalves won the General Elections in 2001 , did Politicians in SVG finally realized that having an International Airport was a necessity not a Luxury ; because apart from bringing Tourists to SVG , Local Goods could be transported to various parts of the outside World . Obviously Exporting SVG Goods & bringing Tourists to
SVG is a Win – Win deal , this aint Rocket Science .
It would readily agree that Kingstown is a Mess , for that WE can blame the Monstrosity of
the Market , a dark ; gloomy ponderous building , with Elevators that cannot work . Worse yet
many of the persons who own stalls have taken their goods outside to sell , because many of
their Customers refuse to climb the stairs .
Kingstown is in fact an Asphalt Jungle , there is no Green Spaces , where persons can sit down on benches or Chairs , and watch the world go by for sometime . My take is that it would indeed be a Tragedy , if in the New City at Arnos Vale there are no Green Areas & or Plazas for the General Public to pause for a while . Having Fountains would also be helpful in enhancing the Areas .
You keep repeating this mantra even though I have time and again shown that many hotels and other tourist accommodation have been built all around the tropical world, including the Caribbean and our very own Grenadines, in the absence of an international airport. When I gave these many examples, why didn’t you every challenge me then?
Either you can’t read or understand what you have read or been brainwashed by the false assertions of the ULP that incorrectly asserts that building an international airport automatically brings more overseas airlines full of passengers and that this automatically brings the building of hotels.
The evidence from around the world shows that it is growing tourist demand in the absence of an international airport that creates both more hotel construction and more airline visits. In places where it is feasible to build an international airport, the growth in visitors and flights will generally lead to the expansion of an existing regional airport or the building of a new international one.
But you are too pig headed, narrow minded, or just plain doltish to believe this, so go on repeating the same nonsensical crap over and over again like some retarded invalid.