Highway Project Sparks Major Resort-Style Housing Development in St. Thomas

Real estate developments are on the rise in Jamaica’s new frontier for development – St. Thomas.

Among them is a major resort-style gated community that is poised to elevate the eastern parish’s profile.

The multibillion-dollar Sun Coast Beach Club will span 90 acres of beachfront property in Twelve Miles, Bull Bay, with a mix of residential options comprising townhouses, villas, duplexes and luxury condominiums.

If one were to ask conceptualiser TCF Holding Limited’s Kevin Frith what attracted this massive development to the parish, his answer would be quite simple – the Government’s larger-than-life Southern Coastal Highway Improvement Project (SCHIP).

“Roads bring development, and without the road it would be a difficult sell, as nice as it is,” Mr. Frith, who is Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for the Beach Club, tells JIS News.

Notably, the project lies on both sides of a section of the Harbour View to Yallahs bridge portion of the SCHIP. This means that both sections of the property are connected by an underpass that runs directly beneath the highway.

Mr. Frith says that with the SCHIP, St. Thomas “is the next emerging [destination]… . It’s like an untapped community”.

“So, when we realised that the highway was coming in, we saw it as an opportunity to immediately try and locate a property, which we did about two and a half years ago, and this is the result of it,” he explains.

The project will be developed over three phases and will comprise 396 units.

Mr. Frith says the feedback from persons, so far, has been overwhelming.

“As it is now, we have 133 units in phase one and we have over 500 applications,” he points out.

Work is currently being done on a model unit, which is slated to be launched in October, and will give persons an even greater opportunity to see the vision of the property.

Phase one of the development is set for completion in December 2024.

If the name Sun Coast sounds familiar, that’s because part of the property was formerly operated as the Sun Coast Adventure Park, which was a popular attraction offering activities such as paintball and hiking.

Now transformed into a housing development, the project continues to attract investors such as renowned entertainer, Gramps Morgan, who has acquired lands for the construction of a house.

The entertainer and other future residents can look forward to an exciting array of amenities for comfort, recreation and convenience at the Beach Club.

These include a mini golf course, swimming pool, tennis court, badminton court, basketball court, football field, jogging trail and water sporting activities.

There will also be areas for residents to dock their jet skis or yachts as well as camping grounds, a barbecue area, farmers’ market, event hall, homeowner’s office and free community Wi-Fi.

“Basically, we wanted to bring something different, so that homeowners will feel like they’re checking into a resort each time they get home. There is no resort without access to a beach, so it was like a perfect match in heaven,” Mr. Frith says.