DECEMBER 2011 |
www.opp.org.uk
OPP INTERVIEW Developer profi le
Q&A SPECIAL | 59
Caribbean hotels and resorts, providing island-hopping transport for transfers to and from transatlantic or US fl ights, excursions, and visits to our other hotels and resorts when they become available. The Government of St Lucia and other offi cial bodies have been very supportive in providing concessions and a home for the newest part of our business.
Everything in place | A view of the lounge in a villa at Buccament Bay Resort
has started a lot later than I’d hoped, but this is due to delays in receiving the planning permission. The Merricks Show Homes will be completed in 2012; then we plan to move forward into the fi rst phase. In order for us to meet that deadline, the Harlequin Developments team and our local consultants are currently satisfying a number of criteria raised by the Town & Country Planning Department. Harlequin aims to be as open and accessible as possible, and we often arrange guided tours of the site for agents and investors because we know it’s important for people to have that kind of reassurance. We’ve also recently created a Communications Team, which is tasked with providing regular updates to members of the extended Harlequin family, including agents and investors. You can fi nd out more by going to: www.harlequinhotelsandresorts. com/news and http://blog.
harlequinhotelsandresorts.com
Q. In the current global fi nancial situation, I understand you are having severe diffi culties in raising mortgage funds to complete on Buccament Bay contracts. What are your plans to ensure the availability of the necessary funds? A. As we all know, the world economy hasn’t been the same since the start of the fi nancial crisis in 2008. Whilst many of the world’s economies shrunk, caution grew and it became much harder to raise funds from the banks. As a result, it became clear to us that we couldn’t raise funding until we had opened Buccament Bay Resort and proven it to be the success we knew it
would be. Since the offi cial opening on 1st April of this year, we’ve done just that and now many fi nancial institutions are ready to invest with us. In early 2012 we expect to be able to announce some signifi cant steps forward in terms of funding.
“We couldn’t raise funding until we had opened Buccament Bay and proven it to be a success”
Q. The St Lucian Government’s economic release is available on the internet and it lists signifi cant developments in the planning stages – as The Marquis Estate has not been mentioned in the last few years is it safe to assume it is at least a few years before construction can start? A. No, not at all. In anticipation of the
General Election in St Lucia, myself and representatives of Harlequin Hotels & Resorts spoke with both the Government and the opposition party to ensure the development wouldn’t be affected, whatever the outcome. We will be commencing phase one of the Marquis Estate next year and this has been factored into future economic planning for St Lucia by both political parties. As we move forward, we will create many jobs and opportunities for the people of St Lucia; we’re also looking forward to developing corporate social responsibility programmes to engage the local people, particularly children. Our relationship with the people of St Lucia is already very strong and we look forward to fortifying it with our initiatives. St Lucia will also be the home of Harlequin Air – our fl eet of planes for the exclusive use of guests at our
Q. How will property purchased from Harlequin using pension funds provide realistic returns for the client in the future given the current state of the property and rental markets? A. Firstly, it’s important to state that Harlequin does not give fi nancial advice in relation to pensions or otherwise. The current state of property in rental markets is in fl ux around the world to differing degrees. It must be remembered that we work on islands that are 20 miles long and 10 miles wide with only so much beach land available. This in itself creates a premium in a market that is a highly established and well known region of the world for tourists of all kinds (e.g. luxury holidays, family holidays, sun- seekers, divers, nature/activity holidays, etc). However, this is a different model to that of a straightforward property rental. Prices have fl uctuated in the rest of the world, whereas land values and property prices in the Caribbean have been far more consistent. Purchasers of a Harlequin property are not simply buying a property; they are buying into the luxury leisure industry. All Harlequin properties are of the
Inside view | The main bedroom in a villa at Buccament Bay Resort
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