The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

Ex-February Point employees received an early Christmas present after its prospective new owner paid off $380,000 worth of debts, with the property’s sale projected to complete early in the New Year.

Multiple sources close to John McGarvey, the US investor who is leading February Point’s purchase, confirmed his group had advanced monies to pay some 27 former staff due back pay and severance pay, plus outstanding National Insurance Board (NIB) contributions.

“The February Point deal is moving ahead,” one source involved with the McGarvey group confirmed to Tribune Business. “All severance pay and monies owed to NIB have been paid in full.

“The McGarvey Group, the soon-to-be owners of February Point, are moving ahead. It is moving towards a closing in the New Year, January some time.”

Another source with intimate knowledge of the February Point situation disclosed to Tribune Business that the collective $380,000 debts, which had been accumulated under the existing ownership, had been paid “two to three weeks ago”.

“We’re going to close early in the New Year,” the source affirmed. “They’re pushing to close it between now and the New Year, but there’s no time left.”

Tribune Business revealed the plight of February Point’s former employees earlier this year, several of them alleging that they had been ‘kept in the dark’ over when the sums due to them would be paid following their summer terminations.

The unpaid NIB contributions alone were said to total $30,000-$40,000, and Exuma’s MP, Anthony Moss, told Tribune Business at the time he was “very concerned” about the impact this was having both for the individuals affected and the island’s small community.

The $380,000 payment by Mr McGarvey is likely to have been one condition of the deal’s closing with the vendor, the Hart family. It is unclear, though, whether this sum includes compensation for the existing February Point homeowners, who have used their own monies to keep the property open by covering expenses such as common area maintenance and security, while waiting for the deal to close.

Tribune Business also exclusively revealed that the Government had in early November given full approval for February Point’s purchase and redevelopment, with Mr McGarvey given everything he was seeking.

Pedro Rolle, Exuma’s Chamber of Commerce president, in a recent interview told Tribune Business that the McGarvey group’s plans for February Point would help revitalise the island’s capital, Georgetown, due to its close proximity.

“Based on the plans they have for Exuma, it’s going to have a wide-ranging impact,” Mr Rolle said of the McGarvey group. “It’s going to affect us in a couple of ways.

“The development’s location is going to have a positive impact on George Town, which needs some significant revitalisation. This will bring some life and energy to George Town because it is so close.

“The initial plans, we think, if followed through, offer significant benefits to Exuma. I think we’re excited about the project, and it really will make a difference to the local economy.”

Mr Rolle said February Point’s planned development would also boost real estate values on Exuma, especially in the George Town area, acting as a potential stimulus to the real estate and construction sectors.

“The spin-offs will be significant; at least that’s what we hope,” the Chamber president added. “From the Chamber’s point of view, we were advocates and supporters, despite the naysayers and negatives people have been putting on it.

“We’ve had no one locally come up and raise concerns about this development and Mr McGarvey. The only negative things coming from Nassau have been said in the press.”

Mr Rolle said his only concern, not just with February Point but all foreign investor-led developments, was to ensure native Exumians and their businesses benefited first and maximised the opportunity.

Emphasising that his concerns went beyond just the construction aspect, the Exuma Chamber chief said he wanted the island’s realtors to be involved in the marketing, promotion and sales for such projects.

Also calling for foreign investor-led projects to be given specific development targets and timescales, Mr Rolle added of February Point: “The greater impact will be if we ensure they have a real partnership with local entrepreneurs.

“When you look at the mini hospital that was built here, that’s a good thing, but you have the contractor coming in from outside Exuma.

“He’s still a Bahamian, but they have families, homes and interests elsewhere in the Bahamas, so money gets repatriated and that minimises the impact, as those monies do not get recycled in the Exuma economy.”

Willing to put in place training programmes if these were required by developers, Mr Rolle described Exuma’s economy as being poised “on the cusp” of growth.

“Before this year is over, you will see some of the things we’re putting in place. We have made significant progress,” the Chamber chief added.

However, George Smith, the former Cabinet Minister and Exuma MP, told Tribune Business he remained opposed to Mr McGarvey’s February Point purchase, adding that he was “amazed” the Government had not confirmed full approval had been given.

Mr Smith, in a recent interview with Tribune Business, said his main complaint was that the McGarvey deal appeared to rely on real estate sales for its success.

Suggesting this raised questions about the sustainability of its financing structure, Mr Smith said: “There’s no evidence it was well

thought-out in the first place.

“I just don’t like deals where the person tells you the development hinges on selling property. That’s always a bad deal.”

Questioning the obligations Mr McGarvey would inherit, and the project’s supposed reliance on real estate sales to finance upgrades to February Point, Mr Smith said this was a model “any number of Bahamians” could have followed.

Calling on Mr McGarvey to disclose the identities of the other investors in his purchasing group, Mr Smith said other Exuma developers - the Aga Khan, and Sandals’ Gordon ‘Butch’ Stewart - were all known commodities with the means to do what they promised.

“We know those persons have means,” he added. “Can anyone say they know McGarvey has the means to do that development without having to depend on selling land?

“This area is so vital to the economic vitality of that part of Exuma, George Town, so you don’t give permission in hope.”

Mr McGarvey is already something of a ‘known commodity’ to the Government, having been approved for the purchase and redevelopment of the island’s former Coconut Cove hotel.

Mr Smith expressed confidence that the Government knew what it was doing in approving the February Point acquisition, and said he would reserve “final judgment” until he saw what the McGarvey group was permitted to do.

“There’s a bit of uneasiness, and it’s not just me,” he added. “It’s some very insightful people on Exuma.”

Tribune Business previously revealed that Mr McGarvey was contemplating an ultimate $40 million investment at February Point, creating over 130 construction jobs.

Once the deal closes, it is thought the new owners will develop a 25-unit complex of condominiums, which will be placed in a hotel rental pool and also offer the potential for fractional ownership.

And, slightly further out, a boutique five-star resort has also been earmarked for February Point, together with an expansion of the existing marina.

Mr McGarvey and his group are seeking to attract the mega yacht market, and sources said they are proposing a ‘Georgetown Marina Village’ that would be similar in style, and size, to the existing Atlantis Marina Village and Freeport’s Port Lucaya.

The February Point purchasers are also acquiring, and seeking to revive, the closed concrete plant opposite the main development site, plus establish a community sports complex.

Upgrades to the existing community and beach areas at February Point are also planned.