Development of First Integrated Resort Begins Early 2017
By: September 29, 2016 ,The Key Point:
The Facts
- This has been disclosed by Finance and the Public Service Minister, Hon. Audley Shaw, who said the development is being carried out by one of the two investors for whom integrated resort development orders were approved by the previous administration in 2015.
The Full Story
Work to undertake Jamaica’s first integrated resort development, incorporating casino gaming, is expected to commence in early 2017.
This has been disclosed by Finance and the Public Service Minister, Hon. Audley Shaw, who said the development is being carried out by one of the two investors for whom integrated resort development orders were approved by the previous administration in 2015.
The Minister was speaking at the Betting, Gaming and Lotteries Commission’s (BGLC) annual Gaming Industry Summit, held recently at the Jamaica Conference Centre in downtown Kingston.
Mr. Shaw said the investor, who will break ground in January, “also plans to operate a temporary casino as they build out hotel rooms”.
Regarding the other investor, the Minister said “discussions continue regarding new construction timelines, among other matters”.
Integrated resorts are large-scale developments that must include a minimum of 2,000 hotel rooms with linked casinos, the Minister explained.
These, he added, may also include other facilities such as shopping malls, restaurants, water parks and golf courses.
“They are expected to strengthen the tourism industry’s competitiveness and bolster economic development through job creation, increased tax revenue and additional demand for locally produced goods and services,” Mr. Shaw said.
The Minister pointed out that those developments will incrementally increase new hotel room construction now under way.