The Baha Mar Casino Hotel in the Bahamas is on target to secure its full certificate of occupancy (CO) in the fall, according to the president of the .2 billion resort. The hotel opened in April under a temporary CO.
Graeme Davis, president of Baha Mar, told the Bahamas Tribune the resort already has $75 million of group business on its books. “We have our temporary certificate of occupancy (TCO), and we are just finalizing some details for our CO, but it’s on target” he said.
The TCO, issued March 21, allows visitors to occupy rooms and use other resort amenities.
The TCO gives Baha Mar owner Chow Tai Fook Enterprises (CTFE) “full rights” to use all Baha Mar amenities included in the first-phase soft opening, including the convention center, casino and casino hotel, but it remains liable for any unsafe, non-code-compliant items that need to be addressed.
“It will be a situation where Building Control will say: ‘We’ll let you use it, but you have 60 days, 90 days to take care of what’s left,” a contractor familiar with the process told Tribune Business.
Once these issues are dealt with, the Ministry of Works releases any remaining authority over the project via a full CO, with all permits and approvals granted to Baha Mar.
“Right now we are at over 50 per cent occupancy, which is excellent, and as I have said before it’s ramping quickly,” Davis told the Tribune. “We are on track with our SLS (hotel) opening. The official opening we are looking at late October or first week of November.”
According to Davis, around 800 of the 1,800 rooms at the Grand Hyatt Baha Mar are currently being rented, with the 50 percent occupancy figure based solely on that property—one of six hotels that will ultimately be operational at the sprawling resort.
Once fully operational, Baha Mar anticipates directly employing more than 7,500 Bahamians, while contributing more than $65 million in direct taxation to the Bahamas annually and over $100 million in combined direct, indirect and induced tax revenues.
:We are right on target for our ramping up,” Davis told Tribune Business. “We are at over 2,000 associates now and growing rapidly. We will be over 4,000 by year’s end. We are at 2,100 in Bahamian associates and less than 100 expatriates. The expatriates are here to make sure we deliver on some of that branded service.”
The SLS fall opening is expected to be followed by a 200-room Rosewood property in Spring 2018, when the full opening is set to occur.
