ANGUILLA--A billion-dollar development is planned for Scrub Island, and on Tuesday evening the Anguilla Government signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Brent Woodson of Florida, who leads the development team.
The development will include an inland marina, a world-class golf course, condominiums, homes and a hotel.
Chief Minister Hubert Hughes said he was very pleased that a meaningful project is being planned for the eastern part of the island. He noted that the project met with many objections within his government and from outside during the negotiations, but contended that it will do a lot for the people of Anguilla, and also for St Maarten/St. Martin as Anguilla's offshore cays add diversity to the tourism product of the two islands.
He said that Scrub Island is unique and the development will be a great benefit to the region.
The development company, Puerto Sagrado, is registered in Anguilla with the Hodge family of Anguilla, owners of Scrub Island, holding 50 per cent ownership of the company.
Woodson thanked the Chief Minister and his government for their cooperation and for the welcome he has received on the island. He said there will be two boutique resorts on the 870 acres; one in the east and one in the west. There will also be a world-class golf course, 150 hotel rooms and 190 residential units that will include condominiums and very exclusive estate homes that will sell for between US$20 million and $30 million each. There will also be 50 boutique shops near the marina and a Fijian style development in the eastern section that will be very romantic.
The project aims to maintain the pristine environment of the island and to enhance it.
Woodson said that the initial cost for the two boutique resorts will be US$250 million that will be funded by a syndicate of banks, while the second phase and completion will be financed by the sale of estate homes and condominiums.
He expects the first phase to start at the beginning of 2012 and to be completed in two years. The estates and other aspects of the project should be completed in seven years, and the project should generate 1,000 jobs for Anguillans.
Jerome Roberts, adviser to the Chief Minister, commended Woodson and his team and the partnership with the Hodge family. He said that Anguilla stands to benefit greatly and he is particularly pleased to have a project in the east of the island.
Parliamentary Secretary with responsibility for Tourism, Haydn Hughes said he was proud to have been part of the project and commended the ministers for standing up "against the forces who tried to derail the project." He said there was still a lot of work to be done before the project can start, including engineering and environmental work, and he urged the people to be patient.
Speaking for the Hodge family, Timothy Hodge acknowledged the presence of his mother Olive and aunt Molly whose husbands were the original family. He said the family had received a number of proposals over the years for the development of Scrub Island and he appreciates the work of the chief minister and his government in allowing the current project to be approved.
Kennedy Hodge recognised the effort by his brother Timothy who has been working on the project for the past four years. He said that Anguilla needs a project right now and the family always wanted to do its part in uplifting the island.
The chief minister pledged his government's full support for the project saying, "This government will walk hand-in-hand with you."
