The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

Property owners at Oceania Heights are hoping to raise $1.5 million to finance the construction of long-promised amenities and “recover some of our investment”, after the controversial project was finally transferred to their control.

Chris Fleming, who has led the homeowners in their long-running dispute with Oceania Heights’ original developers, yesterday told Tribune Business that all the paperwork allowing a Homeowners Association to take over the development’s maintenance and operations had finally been completed.

Confirming that Pedro Rolle, the Exuma Chamber of Commerce’s president, will take over as Oceania Heights’ chief executive, Mr Fleming said that among his first goals was to liquidate 10 unsold lots that were not tied-up in a recent Privy Council ruling.

The funds generated, together with an estimated $100,000 in maintenance fees that the Homeowners Association hopes to raise from existing owners, will provide “the seed capital” to start turning Oceania Heights’ fortunes around.

Mr Fleming also revealed that Bahamian attorney Anthony Thompson, one of Oceania Heights’ original developers, has promised to use legal fees due to him from an unrelated project to compensate clients from who he received a collective $400,000 to pay Stamp Duties on their behalf.

Those funds, intended to pay taxes on real estate purchases at Oceania Heights, were never received by the Public Treasury, with Mr Thompson admitting they were instead used to finance work at the Exuma development.

The homeowners also appear to have wrung something of an apology from Mr Thompson, who in a statement issued yesterday said he “deeply regrets that many foreign investors have been financially disadvantaged”.

But in so doing, Mr Thompson also appeared to effectively throw his erstwhile partners at Oceania Heights, Howard and Donna Obront, ‘under the bus’ by blaming the homeowners’ suffering on “practices of the former management and marketing agents of the resort”.

That is a direct reference to the Canadian duo, who appear to have been sidelined - and effectively shut out - from talks between the homeowners and Mr Thompson to resolve the dispute.

Michael Scott, the attorney representing the Obronts’ interests in the Bahamas, scoffed when told by Tribune Business about the contents of Mr Thompson’s statement. He promised a reply on his client’s behalf, but none was received before press time.

Mr Fleming, though, was simply glad that the long-running dispute, which has cost him much money and anxiety, and inflicted potential damage on the Bahamas’ sound investment reputation, appears to be coming to an end.

“We’re at the point where we have all the official paperwork and stamps, and can move forward and take over as a Homeowners Association,” Mr Fleming told Tribune Business.

“That’s a very important step. It gives us the opportunity to send out an invoice for maintenance fees, which will be the seed capital that will allow us to modernise, clean up and move the resort forward.

“We will be asking for, and have already written to everybody, $1,000 per lot. With roughly 100 lots sold, we will get approximately $100,000, and that’s what we will start with.”

He added that Mr Rolle, a realtor by profession, “has some marketing ideas” to help sell the remaining lots of Oceania Heights.

Around 21 of the original 124 lots remain unsold, but of those, 11 remain tied-up in the aftermath of a Privy Council ruling, which requires Oceania Heights to compensate their original buyers and deal with legal costs.

Emphasising that Mr Rolle and the Homeowners Association would be targeting the 10 unencumbered lots first, Mr Fleming said: “We have a plan.

“We have this additional land we’re hoping to be able to liquidate, and are going to use those funds and put that into amenities to raise everybody’s value.

“If we can sell those 10 lots, and Pedro thinks they can go for $200,000 apiece, that works out to roughly $150,000 net. So we will be investing $1.5 million into a state-of-the-art workout centre, other amenities that raise the value, and give people the opportunity to recover some of their investment.”

Emphasising that he wanted to put the past behind him, in common with other Oceania Heights homeowners, Mr Fleming praised Mr Thompson’s co-operation in working with them to resolve the dispute.

He added that the Bahamian attorney had promised to use legal fees due to him from another investment project he was working on, not related to Oceania Heights, to compensate those who had paid him Stamp Duty once the Government approved it.

“If it receives its approval, Mr Thompson has indicated he will do that and use those funds to take care of obligations he has,” Mr Fleming told Tribune Business.

“We just need to move forward and not look backward. We’re delighted that at least we will see the resort move forward.”

Mr Fleming said Oceania Heights’ water supply remained cut-off, again blaming this on an unpaid bill owed by Mr Obront.

And he revealed that of the nine homes already constructed at the development, six - or two-thirds - were now owned by banks, who had taken possession via their mortgage power of sale or foreclosure.

Mr Fleming said three of these properties were on FirstCaribbean International Bank (Bahamas) books, while Ansbacher and Butterfield Bank had one each.

“They’ve all defaulted on their mortgages,” he added. “All those folks, rightly or wrongly, were convinced by the Obronts they would be able to those out.

“That was never going to happen, and they defaulted on their loans. We need to build up the confidence with the banks, work with them, and have got to move this forward.

“It has been a lot of my time, a lot of my money. It’s unfortunate we had to go through this process.”

And Mr Fleming praised Tribune Business’s exclusive reporting on Oceania Heights over the past two years for helping to resolve the long-running, damaging dispute, saying yesterday: “We would be nowhere without you.”

Deputy Prime Minister Philip Davis has helped, with Mr Rolle, to mediate a solution to the dispute, their efforts having started in January last year.

Mr Rolle, in a brief interview with Tribune Business yesterday, confirmed that the ownership transfer to the Homeowners Association was now complete.

“What remains to be done now is how quickly this group can mobilise and speak to other property owners, engage them and let them know they’re going to be doing things to make Oceania Heights what it was intended to be,” he told Tribune Business.

“We have the assets, the parties have the authority to sell the remaining properties. If we can get the funds from it, we can make the development better than it is.”

Mr Rolle said Mr Thompson had provided “whatever support is needed” on the ownership transfer, ensuring there was no longer any dispute with the homeowners.

“At least we have a position where we can improve the place, make it marketable and people who have bought property have an opportunity to see their investment appreciate from where it is today,” he added.