A lot is riding on the 219-room Four Seasons Emerald Bay Resort in Exuma that is expected to open in early 2003.
The project, though started under the Free National Movement Government, is such a valued one in the scheme of the government’s economic renaissance plan that another contingent of Cabinet ministers headed there today.
They intend to speak with residents about the project and other investments in the Exuma Cays.
“The projects in the Exumas, in particular, the Emerald Bay project are considered major investments which will not only economically advance and transform the Exumas and the Central Bahamas, but also confirm the Family Islands of the Bahamas as world class tourist destinations,” the Ministry of Financial Services and Investments noted in a press statement.
The Ministry is taking a leading role in the town meeting, slated for the St. Andrew’s Community Centre in George Town, Exuma on Thursday night. The forum will also provide another opportunity to discuss environmental concerns.
The government is viewing the meeting in Exuma as an example of its consultative governance.
With 3,575 residents, according to the results of the last census, Exuma’s population has slightly increased since 1990. For many of them, the Emerald Bay project on 500 acres of land in Ocean Bight is one of the primary sources of employment.
It is a trend that the government is hoping to change for the better with the completion of additional projects on the island and in the cays.
Earlier this week at a Cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Perry Christie said maximum efficiency and coordination between key ministries is crucial to ensure that all of the necessary infrastructural obligations are met by early next year when the project is scheduled to be complete.
“My anxiety and my concerns have been fueled by…the culture in our country that allows individual ministries, ministers and prime ministers to believe that they represent the answer and therefore there is an inherent fight for territory,” Mr. Christie explained.
“The country will not advance if we cannot find the formula to work together sufficiently,” he added.
The Emerald Bay Resort has been plagued with its fair share of problems. A few weeks ago, many of the 470 workers on the project were fired for failing drug tests.
But those who were let go were given assurances that they would be rehired if they were found “clean” in 30 days, according to Project Director Maynard Breeden.
The Minister of Labour and Immigration Vincent Peet and the Minister of Housing and National Insurance Shane Gibson conducted a fact finding mission in Exuma this summer, visiting the project site to examine the development.
Last year, developers closed a deal, making $140 million available to fund the completion of the property that will include an 18-hole golf course, casino, spa and marina.
