In December of last year we told you about the sale of Caye Chapel to a Mexican group - which already has resorts in Northern San Pedro, Playa Del Carmen And Acapulco. That's a good resume, but it hasn't translated into very much on the ground in Caye Chapel where things seem to be at a standstill.
But today, those developers got a shot in the arm from the visit of pro golf hall of famer Greg Norman. Norman won 20- PGA Tour Titles in his career and is now one of the most sought after golf course designers in the world. And that's what Caye Chapel is all about. It already has an 18 hole golf course - albeit a very run down one - and today Norman visited to sign unto the project: he says he will build a world class golf course on Caye Chapel.
7News was in Caye Chapel for his arrival:...
Jules Vasquez reporting
Golfer Greg Norman - seen here with the sling - and his entourage arrived on Caye Chapel this morning. After a quick flyover and meeting the ministers of Tourism and Trade, It was over to the clubhouse where a gaggle of newly minted ministers of state were waiting as well as the Michael Ashcroft's son, Andrew and the Prime Minister's wife, Kim Barrow.
As close as you will get to an A-list event on a Thursday morning. After niceties and well wishing's about the recent election. Norman, the developers and government glitterati took the head table to talk about the development of a luxury resort:
Jaime Fasja, Developer
"One step closer to materialize a luxury resort. Thanks to the collaboration of Greg Norman in the design in which undoubtedly be one of the striking gold course in the world. Caye Chapel will have one of the most important gold courses in the continent. Thanks to Greg Norman's collaboration. It will undoubtedly be a mandatory destination for the most important and renowned golfers in the world. With an investment with over 250 million dollars on the first phase, the project is being developed by three top Mexican groups."
Those names, like Thor Urbana may sound foreign but they have millions to invest - and while this is still just a concept, the one thing that everyone is waiting for is a luxury brand name:
Jaime Fasja, Developer
"The remaining of 2015 and most of 2016 will be a year dedicated to completing the design for the gold course for completing the master plan. Selecting the hotel plan we have more than 9 different luxury brands interested in being part of this project. So we will be selecting which brand we think suits better this development. 2016 is a planning year and we are aiming to begin construction towards the end of the year."
Jules Vasquez
"Probably for 15 years we've been hearing that a luxury brand will arrived. Tracey knows it well. The minister knows it well, but again they somehow never reached fruition. Are you confident that these luxury brands that you are engaged with will finally come to Belize?"
Jaime Fasja, Developer
"Yes. We are really confident. We have great relationship with luxury brands. We are engaged with them in 4 different project today and we brought many of them and the decision making people of those brands to the island already. For confidentiality reasons I can't share which ones yet. But there is a lot of appetite for this type of product."
Hon. Manuel "Juniour" Heredia, Minister of Tourism
"I believe that the Caye Chapel project will be a reality. I believe it will one a first class that will really open the doors for the tourism industry."
Hon. Tracey Taegar-Panton, Min. of State Investment
"We are confident that as partners, you will be able to see a meaningful return on your investment. But also that we will be able to create opportunities for many Belizeans."
Luxury brands and big jobs, but what about the environment? The putting greens of Caye Chapel are within sight of the reef:
Greg Norman, Golf Course Designer
"The priority here is basically is to protect what Mother Nature have given us. Mother Nature given this place Caye Chapel a beautiful place to be and you only have to fly in here to look at it. Belize is the benefactor of that because it's the country's beautiful assets out there. So their responsibility is to protect that."
Hon. Manuel "junior" Heredia, Minister of Tourism
"We support your project and I am sure that after your EIA is completed, we will be able to give it final blessing."
Greg Norman, Golf Course Designer
"We are extremely environmentally sensitive. I said I was a chairman of the board for the environmental institute for golf and one of the key issues that I focused in on was the sensitivity of golf courses. So I am completely aware of that. Another issue that I am very aware of is prepping the run-off of golf courses and where do that run-off go? Can you contain that? If you can contain it and you can filter it up, then all the impurities which are very few nowadays compare to back in the 90s from fertilizers added on the golf course - it's basically minimized. So we do that today."
Sounds good, but it's a looong ways off - this one is surely a fixer upper and Isiah Mortar's old coconuts know about fortunes lost on this island and the investors can only hope that their big plan is a hole in one.
Norman says he has visited Belize for diving and tourism many times over the last 27 years. Again, the timeline says that work on the project will actually start in late 2016.
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