The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

Rock Sound airport represents a “void” that needs to be filled given that “90 percent” of major investment projects are happening in Eleuthera’s south, the island’s Chamber of Commerce president warned yesterday.

Thomas Sands told Tribune Business that, with both the North Eleuthera and Governor’s Harbour airports receiving the Government’s attention and much-needed upgrades, there appears to be a “gap” in the aviation network coverage when it comes to the island’s south.

Besides Disney’s new cruise port destination on south Eleuthera’s tip, he pointed out that the area is also home to the planned $200m Ritz-Carlton resort project at Cotton Bay, the Cape Eleuthera property and potential investment on Windermere Island.

“I think Rock Sound is a gap,” Mr Sands told this newspaper. “Ninety percent of foreign direct investment is south of Rock Sound. You have the Ritz-Carlton going in at Cotton Bay, the De Vos family south of the Cape, You have something going on at Windermere Island.

“We have argued that there is one airport [international port of entry] for one island. The dynamics of this island are very unique. One of the voids that a lot of my developers are harping on is the Rock Sound airport needs to be a priority.”

Speaking after several Eleuthera communities were forced to endure more than 24-hour power outages over the weekend, Mr Sands said the challenges were worsened by the high winds and inclement weather that impacted the island. Prior to the weekend, he added that both Bahamas Power & Light (BPL) and the Water & Sewerage Corporation had made “some improvements on a regular basis” to service reliability.

The Glass Window Bridge’s closure, due to the high winds and waves, made power restoration in the island’s north especially challenging because all BPL’s repair trucks and linesmen were caught south of the bridge and were unable to cross. 

“Again, the reality, the impact is that if you don’t have a back-up generator, if you don’t have back-up water, it’s across the board,” the Eleuthera Chamber chief said. “It’s your power, your water, phone and Internet. All these things are critical. The impact is still the same; if you’re out of business, you’re out of business.

“The telephone was still kind of on and off on the BTC side until yesterday [Monday], and the Internet was down in some areas. It’s amazing how reliant we are on power and water. What we are having to do with the Internet is going to Starlink as redundancy between the two telecommunications companies [BTC and Cable Bahamas]. It’s crazy.”

Eleuthera’s frequent infrastructure challenges, especially with electricity and water, are the culmination of years of neglect by successive administrations when it comes to replacing and upgrading key components such as generation/reverse osmosis plants and distribution systems. And the rapid growth of the island’s economy has outpaced existing capacity.

Mr Sands yesterday acknowledged that Eleuthera was starting to receive some of the required attention, with its road infrastructure set for a significant improvement via the Government’s partnership with the Bahamas Striping Group of Companies and local contractors, and both BPL and Water & Sewerage Corporation each investing in their own upgrades.

However, he also urged the Government to revive its focus on supporting domestic, Bahamian-owned businesses in the Family Islands through targeted tax incentives and other concessions to lessen the cost and improve the ease of doing business in these locations.

Companies that have “stayed the course” deserve greater backing, Mr Sands said, explaining they do not have access to the same support and spare parts networks that firms in Nassau and Grand Bahama enjoy. “The reality of doing business in these islands, there are just so many factors that are significantly different from doing business in Nassau or Grand Bahama where you have access to more alternatives and solutions,” he said.

“I think there’s a big promise that we, as a Chamber, want to see back with this domestic investment priority and support for businesses that are domiciled in these islands trying to make a go of it given all these circumstances. The cost of doing business when you operate here is so drastically different and the costs are so significant.

“There needs to be the realisation of a local, domestic investment programme; incentives, concessions, broad attention to reduce the costs of doing business in the islands and creating that environment that is conducive for us to maintain the product offering we have,” Mr Sands continued.

“This is the greatest period of investment in the Family Islands, Abaco, Exuma and Eleuthera, that we have seen in a lifetime and it’s important to maintain that investment and return that investment. We believe it’s through the empowerment of businesses that are domiciled here, and have stayed the course, trying to upgrade, be energy efficient and climate resilient.

“The environment of doing business is actually much more difficult than being in a city environment. I cannot explain how totally different it is trying to operate. You take each business, a resort, a grocery store.... any business. It’s just a different type of ecosystem. It’s the equivalent of being in the wilderness so the support ecosystem must be unique if we want the country to succeed, the islands to succeed.”

Mr Sands told Tribune Business that he has to fill multiple roles to ensure the smooth functioning of his business, including acting as plumber, AC repair man and refrigeration specialist, given that there are so few on Eleuthera. This, he added, is critical to his companies’ survival.

“I’ll give you a prime example of my experience,” the Eleuthera Chamber chief said. “I have a business degree and finished at the University of Miami. My family’s business has existed for 48 years, and I grew up in the supermarket business. My father grew up here, and taught me that in the supermarket business I have to be the plumber, AC repair man and refrigeration specialist in order to survive.

“On top of that I have to maintain an inventory of compressor parts, refrigerator parts, tools. I have to be first call when something goes wrong in my business. I have to learn every system. Otherwise, I’m in the perishables business, and I may have lost a couple hundred thousand dollars of business.

“You take a construction or heavy equipment business. The level of knowledge required is so much more significant because you don’t have the reserve. That’s our reality. That’s the reality. But it’s still a good place to live with all the challenges. I wouldn’t go anywhere else.”