The government is into the final stages of negotiating a management deal for the 250-room hotel it plans to construct in the Mt Wynne-Peter’s Hope area.
Minister of Finance, Camillo Gonsalves, told a signing ceremony on Tuesday, that he was not in a position to say which of the following chains will manage the state-owned hotel: Hilton, Hyatt, Marriott or IHG.
“Negotiations are very, very far advanced. We are down to two clauses essentially that we are finalising some information on and once we have that finalised, that company, its board will meet, and, hopefully, approve the decision to come to St. Vincent and the Grenadines,” Gonsalves told reporters.
He added: “There are all indications to announce that they will and then we will be in a position to announce the brand of the hotel.”
The finance minister said his government intends to break ground this year on the hotel at Mt Wynne-Peter’s Hope, on St. Vincent’s western coast, as well as a 93-room hotel at Diamond, in eastern St. Vincent.
“And we think it will be a two-year construction process from start to finish. So we are looking to open this hotel in 2021.”
The minister’s comments came at a ceremony at which he signed a loan agreement with the Export-Import Bank of the Republic of China (Eximbank) for US$50 million, for the construction of the hotel.
Speaking at the ceremony in Kingstown, Taiwan Ambassador to St. Vincent, Calvin Ho, said:
“I do believe this visionary project is very meaningful because it might open a new chapter, start a new phase of the economic development of this country, also will make this country become one of the most attractive tourist places in the Caribbean, together with the opening of the Argyle international airport. So, I am so excited that my colleague and I can be involved in this signing ceremony…”
In response, Gonsalves said:
“This is a very happy day in the development of St. Vincent and the
Grenadines. A day when we have to put some money where our mouth has been in
terms of the construction of hotel stock, if additions of high quality hotel
rooms to the Vincentian tourism stock are to play a major role in ensuring growth
and development in that sector and St. Vincent and the Grenadines more
broadly.”
Gonsalves told reporters and media audiences that Mexican architect Enrique Norten of TEN Arquitectos is making final adjustments to the design of the Mt Wynne-Peter’s Hope hotel.
He said Norten has developed what the government considers a very exciting and unique concept design for the hotel that will achieve what the government wanted: “to set a particular standard for the tourism product in St. Vincent and the Grenadines and to distinguish us from other locations in the region.”
The hotel will be about three floors high in most blocks of rooms, except for some cabanas that will be VIP accommodation.
It will have a restaurant over the water and a second one closer to the entrance, near the road, three pools, and conference room facilities. There will be a family pool and a separate adult pool.
What is envisaged is “something that blends into the very beautiful natural environment of Mt Wynne and Peters’ Hope,” Gonsalves said.
“We weren’t trying to construct a massive concrete structure that sort of imposes itself on the environment but something, instead, that blends itself into the natural environment.”
The concept involves a lot of use of wood “and something that is natural in its design”.
When the design is complete, the construction will be put out to tender, Gonsalves said.
“There are very few entities here that we feel that can manage work of this size but we are going to put it out to tender and hope that we get an entity with experience both in St. Vincent and the Grenadines and in construction in the region to assist us in the construction.”
The architects have been meeting with the hotel managers to ensure that the construction of the hotel and the design of the rooms, the amenities will be in keeping with the standard of this particular hotel brand.
“We have gone as far as we can go without money and that is why it is important now that we have the support of the government and people of Taiwan and the Taiwan Eximbank,” Gonsalves said.
He said the Taipei financial institution has been very helpful and extremely accommodating to his government.
“The initial conversations that we had about interest rates and the like, we had to go back an forth to get terms that were favourable to both sides, and we want to thank the Eximbank and the government or Taiwan and Ambassador Ho, in particular, for facilitating this process in a quick manner and a complete manner and we are at the point now, where, having signed this, we can accelerate the process of the construction of this hotel,” Gonsalves said.
The only two questions that need answering about this undertaking is why no international hotel/resort company with a brand name has been willing to finance, build, and manage a facility such as this? The only answer is no such entity believed that it was not viable to do so from business point of view.
The second question is that given this observation, why is the government so reckessly proceeding with a project the private sector has rejected using borrowed money to do so?
The same holds for the Holiday Inn Express-managed hotel at Diamond that the government will also build with borrowed funds.
Forgot to mention that the only parties that would ever make a profit on this project would be the multi-national hotel operators who will have first contractual claim to monies coming in from room rentals and other services. These monies would be used to pay staff and otherwise fund the entire operation. The contract would specify a certain level of profit for the operator along the lines earned in similar arrangements elsewhere.
Any remaining money would go the the government which would never be sufficient to pay the interest and principal on the loans. This which would be of no concern to a government accustomed to owning money-losing operations the largest of which is Argyle airport.
Oh, the joys of Labour Love!
SO BEN THE GOV WILL COLLECT TAXES FROM EMPLOYEES AND OTHERS CORRECT ?? PLUS BENIFIT IN SO MANY OTHER WAYS …BUSINESS AND COMMERCE MAKE MONEY CIRCULATE AND CAN ENERGIZE AN ECONOMY ……WHY YOU THINK WHEN THE USA HAD THEIR 2009 FINANCIAL RECESSION THE GOV GAVE STIMULUS PACKAGES TO STATES FOR THE TAX PAYERS AND CITIZENS .
WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO CONTRIBUTE BEN ??
C-be you need to be aware that the dynasty are behaving as expected under their ALBA undertakings.
There are ALBA agreements which Saint Vincent and the Grenadines is a signatory to, that calls for all hotels to be state owned. The construction and establishment of ALBA zone Hotels in ALBA member countries (TeleSur January 30, 2010).
Is this part of our commitment to ALBA, like our commitment to support Venezuela militarily which is another ALBA agreement. Yes VINCENTIANS as a matter of solidarity must fight along side Venezuelans when the US invade.
Wow! false white beach’s, everyone knows it’s jet black sand that you cannot walk on without footwear after the sun comes up. We also know that the water is not that colour because there is black sand under it not white.
The buildings look like a series of chicken houses or even a concentration camp.
There are no golf cart roads for the elderly, scrub and bushes hiding balcony views, deciduous trees where we know it’s predominately oil palm. It’s an oil palm plantation.
A child could have done a better job of making an artists impression that reflects the truth.
This drawing is little more than a monstrous and ugly lie. If it starts of as a lie what does that say for the future.
I am surprised that such a picture of how a resort should not look is being presented to the Vincentian public. Worse still that the dastardly untruthfulness of the appearance of the site should be presented to the investors, it’s little more than misrepresentation.
I have looked at all the work of Mexican Architect Enrique Norten of TEN Arquitectos and do not believe for one moment that he would ever put his good name to the artists impression.
https://www.google.com/search?sa=X&rlz=1C1JZAP_enUS783GD783&q=Mexican+Architect+Enrique+Norten+of+TEN+Arquitectos&tbm=isch&source=univ&ved=2ahUKEwjNx6-BqL_hAhVFRKwKHaEkAswQiR56BAgOEBE&biw=1366&bih=657
I think the whole press release is loaded with untruth.
Good research work and your power of observation Jolly Green. I wonder what the tricksters think when you state the obvious to them. Too bad the entire population cannot read your comments.
I noticed the white sand beaches immediately. I was thinking the buildings look like military bunk houses used in an “Expendables” movie. The artist was certainly was in another universe. Your comments taken with those of C. Ben tell the reader far more than what the government tells us.
FOR SOME THERE IS NOTHING THE GOV CAN DO OR SAY FOR THEM TO COSIGN ON….LOL
IF THE GOV SAY THE SKY IS BLUE THEY WOULD SAY ITS A LIE SMH
@BEN …AS A GOV I WILL RATHER OWN MY RESOURCES AND PROPERTIES WHICH THEY CAN LATER SUBCONTRACT TO OTHERS RATHER THAN FOREIGN ENTITIES OWNING IT .
@JOLLY …TAKING FROM THE ARTICLE DESCRIPTION THE DESIGN SOUNDS VERY UNIQUE AND NOT THE SAME OLE USUAL CONVENTIONAL DESIGNS OF OUR NEIGHBORS AND OTHER COUNTRIES WHICH CAN BE A GREAT MARKETING TOOL TO ATTRACT TOURISTS THAT WANT SOMETHING DIFFERENT , IF MARKETED EFFECTIVELY . PLUS ITS ENVIRONMENTAL FRIENDLY WHICH IS ANOTHER GREAT MARKET QUALITY .
LASTLY WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH BORROWING MONEY …..ITS CAPITALISM 101
LOL
I asked the architects to comment and they have failed to do so. Next week I will write about this whole matter.
MR CHANCE LOL…..