While the Welcome Center in Nassau still needs work, the Ministry of Tourism plans to renovate a nearby warehouse to create a new mall with a cultural focus. Obie Wilchcombe, the minister of tourism, said the government has an approximate $1.5 million budget in mind for the new tourism development. He considered the warehouse renovations to be a big step in getting more people off the ships and increasing tourism spend. The current facilities by the water have been long out-grown, he explained, and expansion is needed to keep up with the numbers. "There is another building out there, the warehouse, and we need to turn it into a mall," he told Guardian Business.
"Some of the designs have been completed. That's the best way to make the area serviceable for the long term." When asked about financing for the new mall, he said the bulk must come from the Ministry of Tourism, although it could be paid off overtime from the fees charged to merchants. He said that an expansion of the waterfront should have happened several years ago in tandem with the cruise lines. In past years, the Ingraham administration had considered a similar development that failed to materialize. Nassau currently welcomes more than four million people each year from cruise ships. "We are behind and we're concerned that visitors are not feeling us as they should be feeling us.
We have a great opportunity and we need to increase these numbers and tourism spend," Wilchcombe added. The government official said his ministry is also seeking to add more live entertainment on the waterfront. An overall strategy for enhancing the area has been communicated to cruise lines for their input and consideration, he explained. The news on a welcome center revamp comes shortly after Monty Knowles, head of Monarch Architects in Nassau, noted how the new plans have been designed with a Junkanoo theme. He called the current welcome center a "dark hole" that must be opened up and given space to breathe.
The introduction of more culture and entertainment is crucial to attracting a new kind of tourist, like those from Europe, Latin America or beyond. Turning to the industry in general, Wilchcombe is projecting an eight percent rise in arrivals for this year. He called the preliminary statistics "comfortable", but the country can do much better. According to Don Robison, the former CEO of Baha Mar, The Bahamas won't have much of a choice. He told Guardian Business earlier this year that a 30 percent increase in airlift is needed to sustain the new mega resort and its stakeholders.
Wilchcombe said the country is hoping for a consistent five percent growth per year going into 2013. A steady rise in arrivals should lead to more foreign direct investment, he argued, and eventually more job creation. By 2014, the year Baha Mar opens, the minister said The Bahamas must be "ahead of the game" through the tapping of new markets, such as Latin America and the Far East. "We are working on it right now. I am meeting with many different people to get the numbers up. It is a priority for me," he said.
Click here to read more at The Nassau Guardian
