By Ben Blaschke
The Vice President of Baha Mar – the US$3.5 billion Caribbean resort recently purchased by Hong Kong’s Chow Tai Fook Enterprises (CTFE) – has denied claims the property is struggling to meet its 21 April opening date, insisting, “all of the dominoes are falling into place” for the long-awaited event.
More than six years since ground was first broken on the project and two years after construction was halted due to bankruptcy, Baha Mar’s new owner was last week granted its long-awaited casino license with only a hotel license still to be granted before operation can officially begin.
Given the resort’s calamitous past and the speed with which CTFE has reached opening, coming just four months after taking ownership in December, some have questioned the validity of the 21 April launch date. But speaking to The Bahama Journal, Robert Sands said Baha Mar’s Grand Hyatt hotel would be ready for inspection in the coming days ahead of welcoming its first guests next week.
“Basically it’s a written application and submission of certain documentation,” Sands said of the remaining hotel license. “There is an inspection of the facilities, because you can’t get your hotel license until other licenses have been satisfied. All of the dominoes are falling in place.
“Guests will be in the hotels from 12:01am on 21 April. We are marketing already, a lot on social media. A lot of our brands are doing the marketing as well.”
The Grand Hyatt will in fact open only a fraction of their 1,800 rooms next week, with the rest to open in phases. Another of Baha Mar’s hotels, SLS Lux, will start opening from September and a third, Rosewood, in December.
Sands’ comments come after one of the project’s former board members, Dionisio D’Aguilar, suggested the government had rushed through CTFE’s license approvals to ensure the 21 April “soft opening”, which comes just three weeks out from the general elections.
D’Aguilar pointed to the casino license being granted just four days after a mandatory public hearing as evidence that proper process was not being followed.
“I’m delighted they’re moving forward with the opening of Baha Mar,” he told The Tribune. “However, the approval of the gaming license was already pre-determined and it was inevitable it would happen because they’ve already imported the machines and hired the staff.”
“They have a deadline of April 21. They must show progress by April 21. Whatever needs to be done by that date, all the persons that need to approve the documents are holding the pens ready.”
Despite D’Aguilar’s objections, no opposition to Baha Mar’s casino license application was raised at the public hearing. When fully operational, the Baha Mar gaming floor will boast around 1,100 slot machines and 125 gaming tables.
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