Tuckers Point SDO Is Tabled
Tucker’s Point Hotel is planning a new phase of development which is contingent upon the support of a Special Development Order [SDO] tabled in Parliament today [Feb 4].
The SDO, sponsored by Environment Minister Walter Roban,and supported by Minister Patrice Minors, Minister of Business Development and Tourism, comes on the heels of more than a year of discussions between Tucker’s Point and Government.
Vetted by both the Planning Department and Department of Conservation Services, Tucker’s Point said “the SDO carries with it strict environmental and planning requirements, including detailed environmental studies of woodland and geophysical conditions.”
“As part of the SDO agreement, Tucker’s Point will deed 7.5 acres of land zoned as Woodland and Nature Reserve, as well as Mangrove Lake, to Government or a designated land preservation entity,” said the statement.
The SDO and other Government concessions would allow Tucker’s Point to build additional residences and expand its hotel.
In the near-term, Tucker’s Point would develop and sell single units as part of a three-lot subdivision on Glebe Hill in Hamilton Parish and seven single family home sites on Paynter’s Road, South Road and Harrington Sound Road. Tucker’s Point also seeks approval to develop nine sites of single and attached housing on Paynter’s Hill.
The SDO will likewise enable Rosewood Tucker’s Point Resort & Spa to expand its current 100 guest room inventory [configured as 88 rooms and suites] by 50-70 guest rooms and suites on the adjacent Quarry Hill site. The actual number of additional rooms will depend on geophysical studies of the site and tourism market conditions as the expansion gets under way.
Finally, the SDO provides for rebuilding the historic Tucker’sPoint Stables building, converting it into a community center for residents and guests, and adding in the future a townhouse community.
Tucker’s Point’s long-term plan aims to redevelop Whitecrest Hill, which has to date served as the water catchment for the resort, as a Rosewood residential community. It presently has in principle Planning approval to build 42 sites on Whitecrest Hill; the SDO would add to that number by 15 home sites.
The statement said that: “Not only is approval of the SDO critical to the financial viability of Tucker’s Point, it is a condition for finalizing the agreement with Rosewood Hotels & Resorts.”
In October of last year the Bermuda Environmental Sustainability Taskforce [BEST] said they were concerned that a “major development is being negotiated in secret,” saying that there is a “proposal is for a large-scale residential development at Tucker’s Point on lands protected by Nature Conserve, Woodland Reserve and Coastal Conserve designations.”
BEST said they were concerned that proposals for major housing development on lands zoned for recreation and tourism as well as woodlands, nature and cave conservation lands in Tucker’s Town were being negotiated without public scrutiny and that the “issuance of an SDO may be imminent.”
The full 3-page statement from Tucker’s Point is below, click ‘Full Screen’ for greater clarity:
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Category: All, Environment, News
This is nonsense More beautiful land GONE to greedy fractional units. I wonder how many units are still left empty @ Tuckers? The land is the people’s and it has been stolen from them. Bermuda is a concrete jungle and I truly hope that this is taken before the courts.
Well done Government and Tucker’s Point, I hope that the SDO is granted. A development this sive will sureley provide a welcomed boost to the economy.
Sara,
what is it that you guys want? you either want top class resorts and investment in Bermuda, or you don’t? it really appears that the PLP government is damned if they do and damned if they don’t.
Tourists aren’t coming to Bermuda because “THEY PAVED PARADISE TO PUT UP A PARKING LOT!!!
Excuse me, isn’t Tuckers ALREADY a top class resort???? I know how much it costs to stay there! This is NOTHING but building MORE fractional units!! Greed
Also, Sara if you want to be clear,
this land was stolen from the people a LONG time ago…and not by the current government…
The land wasn’t ‘stolen’ it was bought under a government compulsory purchase order in the name of building our budding tourism industry being fueled by cruise liners coming on line specifically for the Bermuda run.
Compulsory purchase orders still exist today and I can think of many who have had property ‘stolen’ from them by Gov’t for ‘community improvement projects’.
It seems there’s still plenty of people who for their own personal reasons like to use the most inflammatory and inaccurate language as possible when describing the Tucker’s Town situation.
In case you ,or others, don’t know , many , many more people than those involved at Tucker’s Town also had their land ‘stolen’ when Devonshire was carved up for Military purposes way back when. Same thing for all the people who lived north of Watford Bridge for the ‘militarisation’ of Dockyard and Boaz Island/Ireland Island.
Why don’t we hear them whinging and carping on and on today ?
It wasn’t clear on the press statement above but does anyone know if the Harrington sound water catchments near Mangrove Lake is included in the 7.5 acre deed?
This is crap, 7.5 acres?? So basically, this is the governments way of BAILING OUT THE HOTELS!! Give the land cause we don’t have the money. The people’s LAND!!
I hate to see this land developed as it is some of the last large expanse of un-broken soil, however, I fully understand the need to help the investment in Bermuda continue along, I just hope we don’t sell our souls in the name of progress!
Let’s give Sara a break. Sara isn’t to far off with her assessment of the SDO. Let’s consider the facts in the Tuckers Point case:
1.The acquisition of the land is well documented and if one accepts that it was in the best interest of the country to do so in order to jump start our tourism ECONOMY than the following will surely hold true.
2.After many years operating as a hotel product the owners petitoned the government/ PLP for permission to redevelop the land as a mixed use product (residential units /fractional units/traditional hotel units). Not a new concept at the time–Bermuda was late to enter the game.
3.Surprisingly the PLP supported this rqeuest in more than a few ways.
4.The original development agreement (which is in the public domain–so read it if your uncertain of the facts)called for a 240 room hotel (maybe off a by a few units here–it changed so often), free standing multi million dollar residential units and fractional units.
5.The Hotel was to be built in lock-step with the building of the first residential units. That was subsequently amended allowing the developers to start the devlopment by buidling multi million dollar homes for sale. The argument was that it would allow for the proceeeds from the sales of the multi million dollar homes to make the venture more financially viable and win the solid backing of lenders.
6.NOW I ASK YOU TO REMEMBER THAT THE LAND WAS ACQUIRED FROM LOCALS under the guise of jump starting our tourism industry. So one could have expected the locals to cry foul now that the land would be returned in part to a RESIDENTIAL COMMUNITY…A GATED RESIDENTIAL COMMUNITY….WITH HOUSES FETCHING MILLIONS for the owners….
7.The fact that the PLP government allowed the developer to build fractional units and sell them for a tidy sum, before, you guessed it, the hotel was built. suggest LOCKSTEP has amore than one meaning.
8.Still no sight of that TRADITIONAL hotel segment! But it gets better. THE PLP amend the meaning of traditonal hotel to allow fractional (residential sales) to fall under that banner.Of course the Minister will support the position taken by the Minsister of the day but no matter how you look at it’s wrong!
9. OK–fast forward to now and the BEAT GOES ON!!