BY DENISE MAYCOCK

Tribune Freeport Reporter

dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

FREEPORT – Investors are considering buying the International Bazaar, which continues to face serious economic challenges here on Grand Bahama.

The once bustling tourist attraction, with its iconic red Japanese Tori gate, is now a ghost town of shops in the heart of the city.

The Bazaar has suffered greatly since the closure of the Royal Oasis Resort eight years ago. Many storeowners are experiencing hardship.

Marco City MP Gregory Moss said the Bazaar Owners’ Association faced significant challenges and storeowners were barely able to pay the rent.

“There is not sufficient traffic passing through that area to sustain the stores there which are having challenges paying rent,” he said.

“They have reached out for help and we are going to have a discussion with them. They have indicated that they are open to a purchaser, and any myriad of possibilities.”

Mr Moss said as the Bazaar is situated in Marco City he simply ‘would not stand by’ and watch it close.

He said a number of investors had started speaking to him about the possibility of buying the Bazaar.

The group, he said, consists of a combination of people ‘with very interesting and exciting ideas of what could be done with the Bazaar.’

“That is why I am confident in saying the Bazaar would not close down,” said Mr Moss.

When the hotel was open, tourists frequented the Bazaar and business there was booming. It was the main shopping centre on the island.

The Grand Bahama Port Authority has offered incentives to attract more businesses in the Bazaar area, such as waiving the licence fee for one year for new businesses.

Mr Moss believes that allowing the Bazaar to close would be a huge mistake.

“When you think about it, the Bazaar is in the heart of Freeport and the reality is if it was to close, the place would be vandalised within weeks and would become a ghetto, and that could not be allowed to happen.”

MP Moss said the PLP had made a commitment in its charter of governance to reopen the portion of road between East and West Sunrise Highway so that traffic could flow once again through the Bazaar.

“That has to happen, we are committed to it,” he said. I have no doubt we will live up to our commitment.

“That is something we have to work towards with relevant agencies to reacquire that land and moved toward paving and reopening that highway.”

Mr Moss said reopening the road would allow tourist traffic in the Bazaar.

“Now they just bypass it, but if the road was reopened it would be the first stopping point for visitors.”

MP Moss added: “I mentioned to them (Bazaar owners) that I have initiated questions with the hotel corporation chairman Senator Julian Russell.

“I indicated to the chairman that a properly structured thought out plan would support an application to the NIB Board, which I would anticipate would be favourably looked upon.”

Mr Moss, who serves as chairman of NIB and the Investment Committee, said there were other approvals that would need to be obtained at different levels, but he anticipated a properly structured application would be looked upon favourably.