By RASHAD ROLLE

Tribune Senior Reporter

rrolle@tribunemedia.net

EZRA Russell is ready to close up shop three years after opening the largest hotel on Cat Island, the Fountain Bay Resort and Marina.

The 49-year-old put his resort up for sale three weeks ago, a move cemented by Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis’ announcement that the borders will be closed to commercial flights from the United States starting at midnight tomorrow.

“There ain’t no coming back,” he said. “This reopening then shutting down, reopening then shutting down, it ain’t make no sense because all we are doing is wasting our money. You can’t borrow because the banks aren’t lending any money and I don’t want any debt. I’ve talked to a lot of hoteliers here and they have the same feeling. I think this is the end of tourism for us, we have to look to do something else. It’s sad that I opened this three years ago, invested all this money, and I’m here now wondering, what’s next?”

Before COVID-19, Mr Russell could depend on at least breaking even. His $6.7 million hotel investment created a product featuring 21 hotel rooms, a clubhouse and opportunities to snorkel, visit pigs and deep drop fishing. During a brief reopening earlier this month, business was only 20 percent of its prior level. Now he says the immediate future of his twelve employees appears bleak.

“What happens to all the food and monies we used up to reopen our resorts?” he said. “We were getting a little people in and out and it cost me like $10,000 to get back open.”

Nearly 60 miles away on Exuma, Richard Lightbourn, operator of the popular Exuma Water Sports company, planned to host a family meeting to discuss the way forward for the family-ran business.

“It could wipe us out for all I know,” he said of Dr Minnis’ decision. “It’s devastating.”

To prepare for the reopening of the country and to prevent spread of COVID-19, Mr Lightbourn said the company spent at least $20,000 on disposable masks, disinfectants, hand sanitizers and products to ready its seven boats. 

“Sandals just told us that all guests have to be out of the hotel by Wednesday, and that is our main hotel,” he said. “Air Canada isn’t scheduled to fly here until October so Canadians can’t really come and we have not had flights coming here from Europe. Even if we did, there’s no sense coming if there is nowhere to stay since hotels won’t stay open if there is no money. When we reopened last week we were breathing a sigh of relief. Right now we’re still just dealing with the knockout blow of it all. I have a family meeting tonight to see if we could come up with some plan but we really don’t see much hope.

“They allowed us to operate at only 50 percent of boat capacity, so with that we hoped to at least break even to pay the staff, but this is now going on to five months of a shutdown. We have to pay for dockage and insurance and what’s frustrating is they’re letting the big mega yachts come in that are doing the exact same tours we’re doing and it’s kinda unfair to us because we have to pay all these business license fees and other things and the big boats don’t have to.”

Some swimming pigs, a popular attraction for guests, might have to be relocated as companies process budget cuts, Mr Lightbourn said.

“There are 17 swimming pigs, we call them bachelors pigs because they were on the TV show in 2017, we may have to take them off the island and put them in a big pen here somewhere where we can feed them,” he said. “It costs $50 to $60 in gas every day to go out and feed them by boat and because Sandals doesn’t always have enough food right now, we have to buy extra food. It’s not easy.”

With the borders partially closed to people from their biggest market, some tourism-related businesses are eyeing domestic opportunities.

Mr Lightbourn said he attracted about 30 customers from New Providence when his business restarted this month, far more than the usual four-per-week that he typically sees in normal times.

But a domestic tourism focus has limits and will not help all, according to Mr Russell.

“Bahamians don’t have the money to travel and pay,” he said. “Most guests from Nassau are looking for rooms around $75 to $80 a night and we couldn’t run our business on that. The cheapest room we have is $190 a night, all the rest are like $250 to $300. Bahamians are not working either. Things are bad with them too. For me to cut my rate to pay electricity and helpers and gardeners, that $75 and $80 wouldn’t work for me, my property is too big for that.”