With an official groundbreaking on the horizon, Aristo’s president and the company’s director of sales and marketing reported “unprecedented interest” this week in its newest development, the $100 million, 11-story beachfront tower called Aqualina on Cable Beach.

Aristo President Jason Kinsale and Director of Sales and Marketing Matthew Marco met for a site inspection and review with Island Site Design infrastructure field manager Maria Guiterriz, the engineer supervising auger drilling of 168 pilings being sunk 42 feet below ground for structural strength.

“We are four months away from coming out of the ground for vertical construction and interest in the development has been incredible,” said Kinsale who strolled the 3-acre parcel that runs from West Bay Street to the ocean with ONE Cable Beach to its adjacent west and the full Baha Mar Resort within a few minutes’ walk. Residences range in size from 2,600 square feet to more than 7,500 with pre-construction prices starting at $2.6 million.

Marco dubbed that interest shown so early in development “unprecedented,” noting that 11 of the 27 units including the 8,000 square foot, 5-bedroom penthouse that features a sweeping 1,900 square foot balcony have been sold.

“The Bahamas has never been hotter,” said Marco. “Some of the interest in high-end real estate is driven by COVID with The Bahamas being recognized as one of the safest places on the planet to live. But there is more to it than that. The pandemic has made people stop and think about the quality of their lives and I think a lot of the relocation we are seeing is the result of a re-awakening desire to live the best life possible.”

For the well-heeled, that movement drove Aristo, known for successful, sellout projects like Balmoral and ONE Cable Beach, to create a residential community that “resonated luxury and pampering”, Marco said. Design includes an infinity pool, beach club, cabana and resident lounge, covered parking with electric car charging station, yoga and fitness centre, tennis court, over-the-top lobby with 24-hour concierge service and an Aristo first of its kind feature – a boat club.

“Aqualina will have the first boat club that we have offered. It’s a really unique opportunity exclusively for residents who will be picked up right here at a dock on their doorstep on whatever day they choose and enjoy the day on the water aboard a beautiful boat and zip to a beach of their choice or even go to Exuma or the Berry Islands if they wish,” he said.

Back on land, it was all about the details.

“Every residence will feature the finest craftsmanship with expansive glass overlooking ocean vistas, sunrises and sunsets that take your breath away and remind you every day of why you chose to live in The Bahamas.”

All the units feature hurricane-rated floor to ceiling patio doors and windows, solid core interior doors, 9’6” ceilings, porcelain flooring, reverse osmosis water filtration and softener throughout the building, custom closets, European custom kitchens and bathrooms plus Wolf and Sub Zero appliances.

For Marco, one of the biggest surprises has been where the market is coming from.

“For the first time, the majority of our market is North American,” he said. “In past developments we have seen a lot of interest from Europe and the UK, but this time, there is strong demand from the U.S. and Canada.

“These are extraordinary times and we are really excited to be bringing this development to reality,” said Marco. “We think it will become one of the iconic buildings along the Cable Beach strip and representative of the good life in The Bahamas, right in Nassau, close to airport, shopping, dining, world-famous resorts but in a world of your own with all the amenities and views you have ever imagined.”