Page 21 - Sphere No.19 (Jun 2007)

SPHERE 19
HOMING INSTINCT
A S THE “BABY BOOM” generation in the United
States approaches retirement, the demand for
holiday homes in places such as the Bahamas is
increasing dramatically.
Jon Markoulis, the man who looks after Hutchison’s ex-
tensive property interests in the Bahamas, describes the
baby boomers as “the largest group of people entering
retirement age anywhere in the
world.”
He says that while there are just
10 miles of undeveloped private
beachfront on the whole coast-
line of eastern Florida, Grand Ba-
hama alone has 15 miles but adds
with caution, “We don’t want to
become too crowded,we want to
maintain a reasonable lifestyle.”
Hutchison is planning a wholly owned real estate de-
velopment at Grand Bahama’s Silver Point featuring 118
luxury condominiums, single family homes and townhouse
apartments, each able to moor a private yacht up to 75
feet in length.
The Silver Point – Our Lucaya project is just 54 miles east
of Palm Beach, Florida, and is being designed by the world-
renowned architectural firm
RTKL based in Dallas,Texas.
The 18-acre site is on the
beautiful Lucaya Beach and has
extensive ocean frontage. Ho-
meowners will have access to
services at the nearby Hutchison
property Our Lucaya Resort, in-
cluding two 18-hole champion-
ship golf courses.
HWL’s assets in the
Bahamas range from
luxury resorts and
ports to Grand Bahama
International Airport.
their own flavour and experience, has helped the Bahamas to
attract 3.5 million cruise visitors per year, accounting for two-
thirds of annual arrivals.
Freeport Container Port processed more than 1.4 million con-
tainers in 2006, enjoying double digit year-on-year growth, and
Hutchison Port Holdings (Bahamas) is in the advanced stages of
planning the next USD250million phase of its expansion, Phase V.
Mr Gray believes there is room for two or three more phases after
Phase V. “If we go ahead with Phase V, that will take us to roughly
about 40 per cent of potential
future capacity,” he says.
Mr Gray also oversees the
operations of Freeport Har-
bour Company, a cruise termi-
nal operator in which Hutchi-
son holds a 50 per cent stake. The remaining equity is held by
Port Group Ltd, an affiliate of the GBPA. The cruise ship termi-
nal attracts 300,000 round-trip passengers per year. Hutchison