By NEIL HARTNELL
Tribune Business Editor
nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
The Downtown Nassau Partnership's (DNP} co-chair is urging stakeholders to seize the opportunity provided by cruise tourism's absence to "reinvent the city", adding: "The door is open for change."
Charles Klonaris, warning that he expects to see plenty of empty retail and office spaces on Bay Street once the cruise lines return after a year-long COVID-induced absence, told Tribune Business that the Government and private sector needed to team with the cruise port developer to make it a "more attractive, liveable and environmentally friendly city".
He argued that the focus for downtown Nassau's near-term revival had to be placed on attracting Bahamians and residents, as well as hotel guests - whenever they emerge from their so-called "bubbles" - to shop and eat in the area.
This required improved restaurant options and parking, Mr Klonaris said, as well as a more diverse retail offering that appealed to locals' needs as he added: "There's got to be more than just t-shirts."
Downtown Nassau's redevelopment has been talked about for decades, spanning several PLP and FNM administrations, but to-date only incremental progress such as the harbourfront boardwalk and Pompey Square has been achieved.
The continued presence of multiple abandoned and dilapidated buildings 'east of East Street', and empty retail space, which existed before COVID-19 struck exposes how far the city has fallen and its long road back, but Mr Klonaris said the further "devastation" inflicted by the pandemic should provide the much-needed spark.
Speaking after Dionisio D'Aguilar, minister of tourism and aviation, disclosed that the cruise lines had informed him their return had now been pushed back further into the 2021 second quarter, the DNP co-chair told this newspaper: "It's an opportunity for the city to reinvent itself, and that's not an easy thing to do.....
"Start thinking of the opportunity created by this virus and make it more attractive. I would say we have to look at a lot of the side streets in terms of pedestrian-only, and how we attract the visitors from the hotels and Bahamians back to the city, and not rely on cruise ships.
"What we have to focus on is how we quickly reinvent the city to attract the locals as well as the tourists from the major hotels. I think that should be emphasised for quickly turning the city around. It has to be a greener, more friendly and liveable city that makes it more enjoyable."
Many observers and prior redevelopment plans have argued that making downtown Nassau a so-called "living city", by attracting professional Bahamians to live there, was critical to its turnaround but Mr Klonaris argued that this was a medium to long-term objective that would do little to ease its current plight with the cruise lines likely to be absent for over 12 months due to COVID-19.
"The door is open for this change," he added. "We have to sit down quickly with the Government and Global Ports Holding [the cruise port developer] and see how best to quickly create this enjoyable, liveable city.
"More trees, more greenery, more parking and encouraging more restaurants. The quick turnaround for locals to come downtown is restaurants and retail that invites them to shop. It's got to be more than t-shirts. There's got to be a balance. You'll always have the tourists and gift shops, but we have to upgrade and look seriously at upgrading.
"Although right now it's devastating, what it's done is that it has opened our eyes to say we've got to do a much better job to encourage locals to come downtown."
Amid predictions by Global Ports chairman and others that cruise tourism may not fully recover from COVID-19 until late 2022, Mr Klonaris said it was going to be "extremely difficult" for Bay Street merchants and others reliant on the sector - restaurants, tour operators, taxi drivers, straw vendors and hair braiders etc - to survive the longer its absence lasted.
"There have been some landlords that have co-operated with the tenants in reducing the rent and trying to maintain the rental space," he added, "and they have made projections of being able to do that through December.
"Going forward that is a difficult situation for them for another three to four months [without cruise tourism]. It would depend on how valuable the retailers are to the landlord, and so I would presume the good ones that have tried and co-operated would get an extended discount. Whether the landlords would keep them I can't answer.
"The hotels, even though they are opening up, are all in a bubble so none of their guests will be travelling downtown to help support the loss of revenue from those store.. I would say the majority of them wouldn't be able to survive."
Pointing out that landlords are having to potentially cover mortgage costs themselves, as well as expenses such as electricity, maintenance and insurance, Mr Klonaris said: "I would expect to see a lot of empty retail space downtown as well as a lot of empty office space.
"The big catalyst is Global doing the port. We can sit with Global and see how perhaps moving forward we can reinvent the city."
Comments
KapunkleUp 4 years ago
That ain't gonna happen when everyone broke.
tribanon 4 years ago
Klonaris and other downtown property owners like him continue to pine for the hay days of yore when it was all too easy for them to make loads of money from their business interests on Bay Street. Back then great fortunes were made from renting properties, operating restaurants and bars (many with bands and other live entertainment) and of course ownership of traditional retail stores selling quality merchandise to tourists and Bahamians alike, tax-free in the case of the tourists.
But that's all history now, due in large part to the failure of visionless property owners and businessmen like Klonaris who could not for the life of them read the tea leaves and adapt to the changing times. And as we all know, when you fail to adapt in business, you quickly become extinct. Just ask any dinosaur.
Even today, Klonaris and his cronies believe Bay Street can somehow be restored to what it once was. That's ridiculously wishful thinking on their part and evidences their lack of vision and inability to adapt. Retailing the world over has changed thanks to hand held devices and the likes of Amazon. And the onshore hotel operators (Atlantis, Baha Mar, etc.) and offshore floating hotel operators (the cruise ship companies) have greatly expanded their business models to capture an ever increasing lion's share of the tourist dollars spent by their patrons. The harsh reality is, nothing economically beneficial will come of Bay Street until the dinosaurs like Klonaris are removed from the picture and we have non-corrupt government leaders motivated to make the Bahamas better for all Bahamians and not just themselves.
JokeyJack 4 years ago
You make a good point, however, would it not be better overall (no matter what form it takes) to have it be clean and accessible? I like his idea of pedestrian only, but would also suggest having free trams (long golf cart like mobiles) running up and down so that tourists can get from A to B free of charge - just a tip jar near the driver (and tips not required).
Many great waitresses I have known over the years have said they have made so much more in tips in the tip not required places.
There is a lot we can do, but old lingering hatred for the white man is also a stumbling block in our path.
tribanon 4 years ago
We have laws that require properties with dilapidated buildings on them to be either adequately maintained or demolished by the owner(s), especially commercial buildings. These laws are intended to prevent properties from becoming eyesore or safety issues for surrounding properties and the public at large. The problem is, they are not being enforced. And one of the main reasons they are not being enforced is that many of these unsightly properties are beneficially owned by members of the corrupt political elite and their cronies, including many unsafe, in fact dangerous, properties in the 'over-the-hill' area. The public would be surprised to learn who among the politically elite count as some of the worst slum lords to be found in our country. Then of course the other impediment to enforcing the laws are the many government owned or leased buildings that should have been demolished long ago. A classic example is The Churchill Building bordering Rawson Square.
There are plenty of reasons why you will never hear the usual DNP mouthpieces like Charles Klonaris or Ed Fields crying out for the relevant government agencies and departments to seek court orders for the levying of fines, demolition/removal of debris and/or public auction of the most dilapidated downtown properties. Chief among them is their hope the taxpayers rather than the property owners would be made to bear a great portion of the so called "reinvention costs", even though many of the properties are beneficially owned by wealthy Bahamian families who would stand to derive most, if not all, of the economic benefits.
TalRussell 4 years ago
Apparently, there is talk amongst DNP, of mapping out some sort of reinventing of a 1960's FREEport but making it more likes a softer GatesVirtual for erecting system keep the riftraft natives off and away from Bay Street? Shakehead a quick once for upyeahvote, a slow twice for not just makin' up, Bay Street makeover gossip?
SP 4 years ago
We are also not seizing the Covid Chance to 'Reinvent our tourism front line. Now is the time to deal with disgusting jet ski operators and others that drag our tourism product into the gutter!
No way should we go back to business as usual.
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