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Bimini
to re-establish itself as "gateway" to The
Bahamas
By KEVA
LIGHTBOURNE, Guardian Staff Reporter
Bimini is
once again poised to re-establish itself as the
"gateway" to The Bahamas.
With the
construction of the controversial upscale Bimini Bay
Resort, project developer Geraldo Capo, is looking to
attract high-end visitors to the island famous for its
big game fishing and known as the "bone-fishing
capital of the world".
Already,
well over $25 million has been spent on the
development, and when completed no less than $75
million dollars would have been pumped into the
project.
In June
last year, the government gave its seal of approval to
the project after having scaled back by as much as 50
per cent from its original proposal, which was agreed
to in July 1997 under the Free National Movement
administration. The original agreement called for the
construction of a 930-room hotel, 3,500 condos and 611
single-family homes, among other amenities. However,
that sparked an island-wide controversy with residents
and environmental groups calling for the project to be
shelved.
They
claimed the project caused serious environmental and
ecological damage to the island, and fishermen
believed that dredging for the project resulted in
serious decline in conch, lobster and crawfish.
However, Government officials say the scaled-back
700-acre development has been deemed
"economically viable and environmentally
sustainable" and it is in keeping with the
government's commitment to protecting the island's
environs and natural resources.
The new
five-year agreement will see the construction of a
410-hotel room, 1,080 condos and 440 single-family
homes, 200 time-share units, a casino, restaurants,
fitness centre, 18-hole Links golf course and first
class marina.
The
Guardian has been informed that the first 323 units
should be completed by late this year or early in
2006.
A 1.5-mile
channel has already been built to gain access to the
property.
Presently
under construction are 175 residential units of which
75 have been completed and another 100 are in
different stages of construction and they should be
completed in the next six months. By the end of March
2006, it is hoped that another 100 units will be under
construction and completed by the end of that year.
The first
140 slips of the marina are under construction, of
which 60 have been completed and the other 80 should
be completed by May this year. To accommodate yachts
from 100-feet and up, construction will commence by
mid- summer on the Mega Yacht marina.
Attorney
for the project, Valentine Grimes confirmed to The
Guardian that the commercial site for the restaurants,
and different types of shops are about to begin.
"We
are also in the designing process of our five-star
hotel and casino association with a large well known
international first class hotel chain, which we intend
to start probably late this year," he said.
Mr Grimes
said the hotel would take approximately 18 months to
build from the starting date.
"When
completed, Bahamians can expect to have something they
can be proud of since Bimini is the gateway to The
Bahamas. Bahamians can expect a great deal of
employment in different fields. The first to benefit
will be the people of Bimini who will have priority on
employment training for those who would want a career
in the field. The same opportunities will be available
for Bahamians from other islands and especially
Biminites who would want to return to the island to
reunite with their families," Mr Grimes said.
The
developer is also proposing to construct a primary
school on the island, whose facilities will be used at
night to train adults in the various job disciplines
that will come on stream.
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