The Tribune

BY NEIL HARTNELL

TRIBUNE Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

THE US developer behind a $650m resort project for the Governor’s Harbour area has revealed “no significant discussions” have been held with the Government amid growing concern he does not own much of the large land tracts he desires.

Jeff Jacobs, chairman and chief executive of Jacobs Investments, and head of its Jacobs Entertainment affiliate, confirmed to Tribune Business that he has also yet to receive an answer from the Davis administration on his offer to team for an up to-$50m public-private partnership (PPP) that would seek to resolve Eleuthera’s affordable housing, energy and water woes.

And he also disclosed, in response to this newspaper’s questions, that no “purchase agreements” have been signed with other private land owners for acreage the project is targeting - including property needed for his 100-acre solar farm that is said to belong to the Pyfrom family.

As a result, many Governor’s Harbour and central Eleuthera residents are voicing increasing concerns and misgivings over whether Mr Jacobs and his US hospitality/gaming company can deliver on their promises if they do not own, or have access, to the necessary land. This includes the 100-acre government-owned tract at Eleuthera’s Navy Beach, which the developer is proposing to divide and sell-off as residential lots to help finance the PPP, housing and utility infrastructure upgrades.

“No significant discussions have taken place with the Government of the Bahamas yet,” Mr Jacobs said in reply to Tribune Business ahead of his Thursday, August 13 meeting with the local community. “I believe that Prime Minister Davis is wisely deferring to the wishes of the Central Eleuthera residents.

“Yes, we are engaged in conversations with property owners north and south of Governor’s Harbour regarding land for possible solar farms. While we have not entered into any purchase agreements, we are pleased that multiple parcels of land are available to be used as solar farms.

“Regarding government approvals, we will begin to pursue those when and if the Government of the Bahamas wants to join us in a public-private partnership to move this project forward,” he added. “When all permits are approved, we will start with phase one.

“Phase one includes the opening of the international terminal at the Central Eleuthera Airport, the sale of lots at the nearby Eleuthera Club and Estates, the improvement of Governor’s Harbour’s vehicle and pedestrian circulation - including phase one of the community pathway - and the opening of three access points to French Leave Beach.”

Mr Jacobs, in both his response to Tribune Business and recent July 31, 2026, message to Governor’s Harbour and Eleuthera residents also disclosed that he has modified his casino and gaming plans by shifting away from “a full-size 10,000 square foot facility” in favour of “smaller gaming salons located both at the J Resort and other properties to be created by other investors and developers he will attract to the island.

He signalled that his plans are tied to regulatory changes in Nevada, the US state where he also owns gaming interests, which will facilitate “offshore wagering” or online gaming by tourists present in The Bahamas. Mr Jacobs suggested this could generate major gaming tax revenues for The Bahamas, although he did not provide great detail, with these funds and proceeds from his residential lot sales enabling Eleuthera to “pull itself up by its bootstraps:”.

“We propose that job creation and the creation of tax revenue, as well as public and private sector development opportunities, will be maximised if Jacobs Entertainment creates several small gaming parlours in Eleuthera, including one in Governor’s Harbour,” Mr Jacobs wrote in his July 31 message to residents.

“Jacobs Entertainment also proposes the creation of pilot projects with the Government of The Bahamas dealing with the following two gaming related issues. Internet wagering has now caused the Nevada Gaming Control Board to approach offshore wagering in a new fashion, to the potential benefit of the Government of the Bahamas.

“A Jacobs Entertainment tourist route model, which can generate significant revenue to the Government of The Bahamas, leading to future Family Island resort development.” Asked by Tribune Business to explain what this involves, and means, Mr Jacobs seemed to indicate it will generate sufficient tax revenues to aid Eleuthera’s infrastructure development.

“Now that we better understand the need for significant improvements in the public infrastructure in central Eleuthera, we are proposing not only our boutique resort gaming parlour, but also an ability for other tourist resorts/facilities on the island to each have four to five games with a heavy tax staying in Eleuthera to pay for needed public improvements,” the US developer said in an e-mailed reply.

“Sort of a ‘thanks for staying with us, and we hope you had fun’ gaming tax. So, bottom line is that central Eleuthera can pull itself up by its bootstraps by leveraging off the sale of land for residences on its wonderful beaches, combined with a voluntary gaming tax paid by foreigners….

“Regarding the new Nevada approach to gaming, an operator can send an Internet signal of a table game from a Nevada property such as J Resort Reno to Eleuthera and allow the tax dollars generated in The Bahamas to stay in The Bahamas. This is basically a brick and click approach to gaming and generates additional tax revenue for Eleuthera and The Bahamas.”

However, Mr Jacobs also confirmed that he requires additional private land - as well as Government and Crown Land - to bring his $650m vision, which is promising to create 500 full-time jobs once the ten to 20-year build out is completed, to reality. While his earlier June message named the Pyfrom family as owners of the solar farm site, his subsequent one omitted their name.

The latter message said: “It is proposed that two private water/power project grids be created by Jacobs Entertainment to service current and future hospitality developments in Governor's Harbour and the proposed Eleuthera Club, Residences and Estates. The objective of generating 90 percent solar power is a priority for Jacobs Entertainment. The second solar farm is intended to serve the Eleuthera Club, Residences and Estates development.

“It is proposed that a 100-plus acre solar farm be created on the previously referenced land adjacent to the proposed Queen’s Highway/Banks Road southern loop connector [Pyfrom family land]. This project utility loop will also be designed to accommodate future resort development along Banks Road, heading south of town along the Atlantic Ocean.

“It is proposed that proceeds generated by PPP residential lot sales on the Atlantic Ocean for the Eleuthera Club, Residences and Estates be used to improve certain public rights-of-way, as well as to create circulation trenches for the placement of Jacobs Entertainment’s project power and water grids,” the US developer added.

“Most importantly, we propose we will improve the current situation by placing a second pipe dedicated to BPL customers alongside our resort property power loop. A separate solar firm will be created for BPL to serve potential power to Governor Harbour’s area customers.”

However, one Governor’s Harbour source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that - based on the maps and renderings supplied by Mr Jacobs - much of the land he needs is owned by the Crown on behalf of the Bahamian people.

“All the land he has listed for affordable housing is Crown Land. Then there is the Government land by the Navy Beach or the Pyfrom land to the south, which he doesn’t own,” they said. “The most valuable land for his project belongs to the Bahamian people, not him. Far and away the most valuable land is the Navy Beach land and that land belongs to the Bahamian people.”

Mr Jacobs has also begun to circulate flyers asserting that he has lived up to his real estate development commitments in Cleveland and Reno, Nevada, to counter and push back against rival ones suggesting he has not. Gaining community approval and acceptance, not to mention that of the Government, appears to be a major task.