By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

Royal Caribbean’s top Bahamian executive was tight-lipped yesterday over the cruise line’s likely use of downtown’s Union Wharf property as a hub for servicing its Paradise Island Beach Club.

Philip Simon, president of Royal Caribbean (Bahamas) and its Royal Beach Club project, in response to Tribune Business inquiries neither confirmed nor denied that the cruise line plans to use the waterfront site - which was once linked to jailed Canadian fashion tycoon Peter Nygard - as a logistics, supply and administrative location to support its multi-million dollar Paradise Island investment.

“I cannot speak to that, whether or not it is or if it becomes a reality, if that is indeed the case,” he replied when questioned on Union Wharf. “We’re still right in the throes of a fast-paced effort to get to a December opening, so contracts are still being awarded and being negotiated for everything from musicians, logistics, transportation - for everything right now.

“I can’t really speak to any particular item until it becomes finalised and becomes contracted, and then we are ready to make a public announcement.” However, multiple contacts with knowledge of developments on Nassau’s waterfront - all speaking on condition of anonymity - confirmed Royal Caribbean’s involvement and presence at Union Wharf as it upgrades the location for its needs.

This newspaper was also told that Titan Hospitality, the catering operator said to have won the food and beverage services contract for the Royal Beach Club, will operate from Union Wharf. The site, located almost directly across the harbour from Royal Caribbean’s western Paradise Island investment, is ideal as a support hub for a development that is set to open in December 2025.

And Tribune Business also yesterday confirmed that an ex-Cabinet minister has been awarded the contract to ferry Royal Caribbean’s passengers between Nassau Cruise Port and the Royal Beach Club.

Khaalis Rolle, former minister of state for investments in the last Christie administration, could not be reached for comment but a video sent to this newspaper showed the water taxis docked at the Paradise Landing (former Hurricane Hole) marina on Paradise Island where he is based as a senior executive with Sterling Global Financial, the location’s developer.

As for Union Wharf, one source told Tribune Business: “I visited Bay Street today and learned that Royal Caribbean is actively working at Union Wharf, renovating the remaining structures to be used as logistics, storage and administrative offices for their Paradise Island Beach Club development.

“Current work at Union Wharf is drawing attention, but there are no verified public details on the scope of this activity. Royal Caribbean has not announced any official use of Union Wharf.... Union Wharf is within Nassau’s waterfront area, which continues to be a focus of public and private redevelopment discussions.” Royal Caribbean’s current downtown Nassau office is based at The Pointe resort.

Union Wharf has long been viewed as a key property to the long sought-after revival of downtown Nassau, representing a prime waterfront site to be transformed via a mixed-use development featuring condo, retail, restaurant and other entertainment options. Tribune Business confirmed that the property’s sale has closed - but the buyer is not Royal Caribbean, signalling it is leasing part of the site.

“Union Wharf has been sold. I don’t know anything about Royal Caribbean,” one contact with knowledge of the deal said. “The purchaser has nothing to do with Royal Caribbean. It was an entity; not Royal Caribbean or an entity that has anything to with Royal Caribbean.”

Union Wharf’s new owner was said to have “very substantial means” but the contact declined to identify them. However, several sources suggested that the buyer’s ultimate beneficial owner is a foreign investor with other property investments in The Bahamas and who earned their wealth from the 2023 initial public offering (IPO) of the German shoe brand, Birkenstock.

Other contacts, meanwhile, said Titan Hospitality will also be based at the Union Wharf property to support its Royal Beach Club contract. “They’re going to operate out of there,” one source said of Titan and Royal Caribbean. “They’re building right now and adding on some office space. I know they were putting in power. I saw Bahamas Power & Light there and all of that.

“There was originally a lot of power on that property when [it was used by a shipping company]. It makes sense for a commercial kitchen to go in there. They’re going to need a lot of power for that and the freezers that go in there. It’s a good location. They can go straight to Paradise Island from there with meals and everything else. It’s as close a location as you can get.:

Others added that Union Wharf is the perfect site for supporting the Royal Beach Club. “That’s probably the ideal spot to be honest,” one source said. “They’ve been tight-lipped about it, but that’s [Union Wharf] been discussed. At some point they were having discussions. They were talking to two parties.”

Tribune Business reported in December 2024 that Union Wharf was under contract to be sold for $11.9m to an entity called Buena Vista Properties Ltd, whose beneficial owners were not disclosed. The sale’s closing was being threatened by a claim from Carlton Martin, a Bahamian attorney, for $3.185m in legal fees allegedly owed to him by disgraced former Lyford Cay resident, Peter Nygard.

However, rather than block the deal, the Supreme Court ordered that it proceed and the sum claimed by Mr Martin be withheld until his case was determined. Blocking, or delaying, Union Wharf’s acquisition by Buena Vista Properties could have resulted in its seizure by the Department of Inland Revenue and subsequent auctioning-off to cover unpaid real property tax debts owed to the Public Treasury.

Galaxy Group, the entity that sold Union Wharf, was understood to deny that Mr Nygard, now serving an 11-year sentence in a Canadian prison after being found guilty of sexually assaulting four women and currently fighting extradition to the US, was ever a beneficial owner of itself and Union Wharf. Instead, Galaxy Group asserted that the Nygard Foundation was its 100 percent beneficial owner.

Elsewhere, sources familiar with developments, speaking on condition of anonymity, said it was “far from the case” that Mr Rolle had secured the Royal Beach Club’s water taxi/ferry contract based on his past political connections and affiliations.

The former minister, prior to being elected as Pinewood’s MP and entering Cabinet, had first sought some 20 years ago to launch a western Paradise Island beach break destination of his own - in the same area as Royal Caribbean is now developing. He obtained a licence and government approvals to operate a ferry service transporting guests across Nassau harbour, which was covered by this newspaper.

As a former Bahamas Ferries executive, with knowledge of - and experience in - water taxi operations, and a Royal Caribbean shore excursion provider before and after his five years in government, contacts said Mr Rolle would have been a strong candidate to win the Royal Beach Club bid.

Tribune Business also previously reported that Nassau Water Ferries Services, Mr Rolle’s company, held an annual renewable Crown Land licence for 0.11 acres on Paradise Island. That has now been absorbed into the Royal Caribbean Beach Club, its existence making it an almost natural exchange of land for the water taxi deal.

Mr Simon, meanwhile, said the “late” 2025 fourth quarter is now the target timeline for when shares in the Royal Beach Club project will be offered to Bahamian investors. He added that the structure, valuation/share prices and business plan were still being determined and worked on.

“The target for the private placement completion is still the fourth quarter, probably the late fourth quarter,” he disclosed. “We’re pushing as hard as we can to go through all the formalities and get the process started with our fund manager. Hopefully those discussions will be this month so we can meet the target completion.

“It will be a public offering. The exact format of that is being finalised, but whether it’s an IPO or private placement which will be offered to the public, that’s being finalised - the business plan, valuation and how we’re going to structure it. The Royal Beach Club’s ownership will ultimately be 51 percent majority Royal Caribbean, with Bahamians - the Government and private investors - holding 49 percent.

The size and value of the Government’s interest will be based on the worth of the four Crown acres it is contributing to the project. It is thought likely that the offering will be structured along similar lines to that of the Nassau Cruise Port, where Bahamian investors acquired shares in an investment fund that holds their collective 49 percent stake.

As for the Royal Beach Club’s likelihood of meeting its target opening date, Mr Simon said: “At this point it has nothing to do with confidence; it’s all to do with execution. We have one goal in mind and we haven’t swerved from that timeline. We intend to keep to it.

“From where we are we can see structures are out of the ground, we can see landscaping coming together, hard scaping is occurring and structures are being built. Everything is coming together nicely and it’s a beautiful thing to watch. It comes with its pressures and stresses, but that’s what makes it even more exciting. We’re pretty steadfast with what our dates and timelines are, and making every effort to meet them.”