THE DEVELOPERS for the proposed Ritz Carlton resort in Gracebay has refused to say what progress they have made, if any, with the current government regarding the new development going forward.
When this publication contacted the TCI point person for the group, real estate agent Walter Gardiner, he would only say that they have “nothing to say at this time” and that the matter is still engaging the attention of the courts.
However, Gardiner’s statement is not quite accurate as the most recent court matter in which Dessarollos was named as an interested party has since been resolved, paving the way for the planning process for the resort to be restarted.
That process had been halted since the court became involved.
Strata Corporation, under which the Venetian and Tuscany hotels fall, had started the court matter in 2015, and earlier this month the Appellate Court had pounded the proverbial nail in their coffin with a dismissal of the hotel’s last appeal.
But there is one last ditch effort the hotels can pursue, that of an appeal to Her Majesty’s Privy Council.
When contacted on Thursday, legal eagle for Strata, Conrad Griffiths indicated that his client is still awaiting the court’s written judgement, which will contain their reasons for denying the appeal.
Griffiths had previously told the media that his client will made a decision on whether they will move to the Privy Council after they have reviewed the appellate court’s reasons.
But while Dessarollos remains quiet on their progress, Premier Sharlene Cartwright told the press two weeks ago, that her government has already met with the Group’s officials to find out what direction they would like to go.
She had indicated that the developers are eager to go forward, but she had also stated that while her government is willing to go forward with any development, they are only prepared to go ahead with ones that benefit the people of the TCI.
She had also denied allegations by the Opposition that the PDM Government is not in favour of the project.
The Premier’s cautious attitude to the Ritz Carlton project has stirred speculation that the government does not intend to follow through on the project.
Her position is the polar opposite of the former government’s, which was eager to bring in the Dessarollos Group over the past four years they were in office.
The group had first proposed to construct the JW Marriot Hotel in the TCI, but shortly after announced that they would instead be switching to the Ritz-Calton brand.
The Marriot was to have been a nine-story hotel, scheduled to open in early 2016, to be built on an11-acre site along the Grace Bay beach in Providenciales.
After Dessarollos switched the brand, in April 2015, the Rufus Ewing government signed a development agreement with them to build a $224 million Ritz Carlton hotel, resort, casino and spa in the Grace Bay area.
That development is expected to consist of 124 luxury hotel guest rooms, penthouses, resort residences and associated facilities.
