By NEIL HARTNELL
Tribune Business Editor
nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
The Opposition’s deputy leader yesterday questioned why the Government kept touting a purported $110 million expansion at the Deep Water Cay resort when it had just terminated nine staff.
K Turnquest, the area MP for east Grand Bahama, said talk of investment and expansion did not fit with a downsizing exercise that was intended to ‘right size’ the workforce after expected business levels failed to materialise.
He described as
“an eye opener” the suggestion by Deep Water Cay’s general manager that “slow approvals” had impacted the timing of an expected pick-up in business.
And Mr Turnquest noted that the lay-offs had followed swiftly after a mid-year Budget presentation in which Prime Minister Perry Christie had again touted expansion and job creation at the east Grand Bahama bonefishing property.
Mr Christie had spoken of a “$110 million expansion of the Deep Water Cay Resort at the eastern end of the island, which will create over 100 construction jobs between now and 2018.
“An additional 280 permanent jobs will come on stream when the resort, to be operated by the Six Senses brand, is completed.”
Mr Turnquest, though, questioned whether the Prime Minister had been “acting on bad or premature information” when he addressed the House of Assembly, and added: “Once again, the promises have fallen through.
“It seems incongruent for expansion plans to advance in the face of downsizing due to slow business. While a larger investment may improve economies of scale, the nature of the development is eco-touristic and boutique, so we will have to see what develops.”
Mr Turnquest added that Deep Water Cay, which is based on a private island and can accommodate up to 34 guests, had received “a bucket load of tax concessions” that he hoped will encourage further investment and expansion.
He emphasised, though, that he and his constituents were “cautious in our optimism”, and called for the $65 million in tax concessions granted to the resort to “be immediately reviewed” following the downsizing.
Joe Bunton, Deep Water Cay’s general manager, in a letter released to the media yesterday, said the resort had returned to traditional staffing levels after an expected upturn in business failed to materialise.
He indicated that while the property would “continue to grow into larger resort”, the right-sizing better aligned staff and costs with demand.
“Over the past year, our team has grown in anticipation of improved Bahamian tourism and to support a larger number of guests through our efforts to generate more revenues, while not negatively impacting the fragile fisheries that surround Deep Water Cay and East End Grand Bahama,” Mr Bunton wrote.
“While we remain in the process of that development, slow approvals and the issues raised by the BFFIA (Bahamas Fly Fishing Industry Association) have affected timing. We are ensuring our associate levels are properly matched to our current guest levels.”
Deep Water Cay did not explain what the “slow approvals” and “BFFIA issues” related to, although this newspaper understands the resort was working to implement - and having some difficulty with - the Association’s new regulations.
Still, Mr Turnquest told Tribune Business via e-mail: “The fact that they claim one of the reasons for the delay in expansion is slow approvals is a disappointment and an eye opener.
“Having slipped in the ‘ease of doing business’ index to 106th, this does not say a lot about the Government’s seriousness about business in general, and Grand Bahama in particular. Another sad indictment on this Government’s inefficiency.”
Mr Bunton, meanwhile, said department managers had brought staff numbers “into an appropriate balance for now” through the nine lay-offs.
“It is our belief that Deep Water Cay will continue to grow into a larger resort. In the interim, we have taken the necessary steps to ensure that our staff is right-sized for today’s needs,” he added.
Mr Turnquest said the nine terminated workers had “very limited” prospects of finding work elsewhere, due to minimal economic activity in east Grand Bahama.
He described Deep Water Cay as the area’s only active resort, and the only “significant employer” besides the commercial fishing industry.
“Many families depend on this investment for basic wages and to be able to afford essentials,” Mr Turnquest added.
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