The Tribune

The Old Fort Bay Town Centre has now leased 85 per cent of its retail space, with its developer having negotiated an agreement with The Meridian School to build a sister institution on land just to the south.

New Providence Development Company has scheduled a family Fun Day for Easter Saturday to showcase the development, with 16 retail operators set to have their doors open for business.

A Real Estate booth will be open provide information for visitors looking to explore commercial opportunities at the Old Fort Bay Town Centre. Some second floor office units remain available for lease or purchase.

New Providence Development Company said Royal Bank of Canada was set to relocate its Lyford Cay branch to the Old Fort Bay Town Centre site later this year.

Alistair Henderson, president of New Providence Development Company, said: “NPDCo, together with its associated companies, has developed residential communities such as Lyford Cay, Old Fort Bay, Mount Pleasant Village and South Ocean Village, and has seeded other third party residential developments such as Albany, Charlotteville, Serenity and Lyford Hills.

“It has developed the shopping centres of Lyford Cay and Old Fort Bay, the western New Providence Commercial Centre, and has recently completed a state-of-the-art regional waste disposal system for the region.

“The company currently has plans for the re-development of the old Lyford Cay Shopping Centre property and for a light industrial park, and has negotiated third party land use transactions which will provide a new Grade school from pre-Kindergarten to Grade 12, and a condo/townhouse community.”

Terry White, New Providence Development Company’s chairman, and his executive team have negotiated an arrangement that will enable the operator of The Meridian School to build and operate a sister school just south of the Old Fort Bay Town Centre.

Lisa Sawyer-McCartney, director of the Meridian School, said the new school would have an opening date of September 2014. It will be located south of Solomon’s Fresh Market.

“The Meridian School has been in operation for the past 15 years, and encompasses 2 year-old nursery through grade 6 classes,” said Mrs McCartney. “Parents have for a long time requested a continuation of what we do at The Meridian School through the implementation of high school programming, but land near our current school was never available.

“The new Old Fort School will consist of Pre-Kindergarten through Grade 12, and it will be a 21st Century Flagship School”, she added.

“We will be open in September 2014 with spacious classrooms that will initially accommodate Pre-K through grade 9, and in the following years we will expand through grades 10 to 12 consecutively.

“The classrooms at the elementary level and below will be led by a duly-qualified teacher and a suitable assistant teacher. The school will be a state-of-the-art facility with interactive white boards and idea paint.

“There will be specially focused subject rooms and one science lab in the first year that will be expanded to three labs in subsequent years. The school will also create accommodations for performing, creative and culinary arts.”