The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

Albany is set to invest up to $100 million in a property that will be “the highest end product of its type in the Caribbean”, its managing partner yesterday saying its plans to create another Monaco were “not idle rhetoric”.

Christopher Anand told Tribune Business that the Honeycomb, the latest product in Albany’s Marina Residences offering would be “the new quality and standard” for luxury real estate in the region.

He added that this, together with the Lantern, another high-end property so-called because it will glow in the dark, forms another part of Albany’s planned $150 million expansion that is set to break ground by summer 2014.

Disclosing to Tribune Business that the collective value of real estate sold, and constructed, at Albany over the past seven years “exceeds $500 million”, Mr Anand said the developers’ vision for the property had since evolved.

Likening the high-end southwestern New Providence property to “an ecosystem”, Mr Anand said value-added projects, such as Albany’s Financial Centre, Wellness Centre and Health Centre were intended to create a location where persons could live, work and play.

He added that Albany was now moving to build on the infrastructure and platform already put in place, and said: “Most developers build the iphone and sell the phone. We build the iphone and sell the apps on top of that.

“The value of what we have sold, plus the value of what has been constructed by third party contractors to-date, that would exceed $500 million.”

Mr Anand said the strong sales performance of Albany’s first three Marina Residences buildings, which cover a collective 275,000 square feet, had prompted the developers to move on the latest expansion phase.

“That is something we’ve been working on for quite a while,” he told Tribune Business, estimating that between 700 to 1,000 construction jobs will be created.

“You don’t just put a design out into the marketplace within 10 minutes. We’ve been planning this for six months.”

Albany is partnering with international architecture firm, Bjarke Ingels Group (also known as BIG), on the Honeycomb, which will sit in front of the lifestyle plaza and offer buyers 34 units featuring from two-bedroom residences to seven-bedroom penthouses.

Estimating that the Honeycomb’s construction costs would range from $75 million to $100 million, Mr Anand told Tribune Business: “It will be the highest end product of its type developed in the Caribbean.

“The first three [Marina Residences] buildings are going to set the benchmark in the Caribbean. This is going to be the new quality and standard for the Caribbean as a whole”.

Mr Anand added that Albany wanted to “celebrate unique architecture and design”, and its planned Lantern property is intended to do exactly that.

He said this building would feature six units, all occupying the full floor, with “select service providers and retail outlets on the ground floor”.

“The strategy is to create an environment like the Monaco of the Caribbean,” Mr Anand told Tribune Business, adding that units in the Honeycomb and Lantern would sell for between $3-$12 million.

“It’s not idle rhetoric. We’re looking to create a Monaco here. Monaco is 400 acres, Albany is 600 acres. We can do this, and that’s what we’re embarking on.”

Mr Anand was reluctant to place a figure on the full-time, permanent jobs that will be created by Albany’s latest expansion phase, as these will be split between the Residences and various health, wellness, education, sports and financial activities that will be stimulated.

He emphasised, though, that negotiations between the developers and the Government over a supplemental Heads of Agreement for the expansion were “on track”.

And groundbreaking is scheduled for this year, with the Financial Centre and Lantern anticipated to lead the way, and the Honeycomb set to follow. Completion is estimated for late 2015/early 2016.

All this is planned to happen by summer, and Mr Anand said Albany had also been encouraged by the improving global economy.

“It’s important it stays healthy. If it does, we’ll be rocking and rolling,” he told Tribune Business. “We can only worry about what we can control.

“But I don’t think there’s any doubt the macroeconomic factors have got better for people trying to buy property in the Bahamas.”

Mr Anand said much of this had been fuelled by recent global stock market highs, which had increased investor wealth and confidence.

“Certainly, it seems like that’s come back, but equally people’s memories - while they do have amnesia - are not immune to what happened in 2008, 2009 and 2010,” he added.

“Confidence is fragile, but it’s there....... Albany has done a good job of weathering the good and bad times. It’s nice to have a positive macroeconomic outlook..

“It’s been a journey, and I’m hoping this is just the next step on a successful journey. Like any journey it’s not a straight line, and we’ve done well to get this far this quickly.”

Albany’s ability to weather the recession, and still develop and attract buyers, has much to do with the deep pockets and reputations of its shareholders, who include the Tavistock Group, the investment vehicle for Lyford Cay billionaire Joe Lewis, and golfers Ernie Els and Tiger Woods.

Mr Anand, meanwhile, said Albany’s expansion plans were intended to get persons “thinking differently about how they spend their time here” - going beyond just seeing it as a place to own a home or stay at.

“Albany is like an ecosystem,” he explained. “There are a lot of pieces to it, and we’re broadening it beyond property owners, guests and people working here to coming here for wellness, using it for health care and seeking education. That starts to change how those first three owner groups look at it.”

Emphasising that “the vision for Albany has evolved”, Mr Anand said the development was never intended to solely be about building homes or filling hotel rooms.

With its shareholders in for the long-term, he told Tribune Business: “It was about building something special, and that’s absolutely the goal. It’s just getting more deeper, more sophisticated and more complex in many ways....

“The platform is in place, and we’re building on the infrastructure to create something that’s unique and has long-term benefits and value for all involved.”

Albany currently features 150 families from 17 countries, and it has now partnered with US firms, New Valley and Douglas Elliman Real Estate, to build and market the Marina Residences.