By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

A US developer is pledging to “create a life-altering, forever game changing experience” for visitors and Governor’s Harbour residents alike via a resort, marina and boutique casino destination featuring a combined $650m in investment and real estate sales.

Jeff Jacobs, chairman and chief executive of Jacobs Investments, in a December 2025 presentation setting out “our Eleuthera vacation vision” for the J Resort Eleuthera, disclosed more details on his plans by revealing that it will cover 600 acres in central Eleuthera “stretching from the Atlantic Ocean to the Caribbean Sea”. And, apart from the resort itself, the development will feature “five resort-related neighbourhoods” containing more than 350 total vacation residential properties.

These residences, according to the presentation obtained by Tribune Business, are forecast to generate more than $450m in combined real estate sales - a sum equivalent to 69 percent of the total $650m financing package. Mr Jacobs, in a signed statement, said he has already invested some $40m in real estate purchases to assemble land required for his vision, and more acquisitions are set to follow.

“Our current $40m in acquisitions, combined with our proposed future acquisitions, will take us to approximately 600 acres stretching from the Atlantic Ocean to the Caribbean Sea in and around the town of Governor’s Harbour, Eleuthera, Bahamas,” Mr Jacobs wrote.

“Our vision includes a phased hospitality investment of over $200m, as well as third party residential real estate sales exceeding $450m. This combined $650m-plus investment and real estate sales effort will result in the largest tourist-oriented development in the history of central Eleuthera.

He added: “The major components of J Resort Eleuthera include five resort-related neighbourhoods with over 350 vacation residences, each oriented to the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea. Also included are a public outdoor sculpture garden focusing on artists of the region, a boutique hotel and a mega yacht marina providing dockage for the largest yachts cruising off Florida and the Bahamas.

“The development will also include several waterfront restaurants, a boutique casino, an 18-hole sea-to-sea golf course, and a dedicated community pathway providing continuous circulation throughout Governor’s Harbour, accessing the world-famous French Leave Beach via walking, bicycling and golf carting. Beach access for Bahamians, and the development of community pathways on Queens Highway, Alexander Boulevard and Banks Road were also described as central to the J Resort destination.

While Tribune Business exclusively disclosed the existence of Mr Jacobs’ proposal for Governor’s Harbour in February this year, this is the first time details of the planned investment, including the scale of land development and real estate sales, have been revealed. 

However, Mr Jacobs, in an e-mailed response to Tribune Business inquiries, told this newspaper that thinking behind the proposed Governor’s Harbour development has “evolved” since the December 2025 presentation was crafted. In particular, he revealed that plans for an 18-hole golf course on a 177-acre site located near the settlement’s airport have been “put on hold for a variety of economic, environmental and competitive reasons”.

And Mr Jacobs, who has a track record in real estate development related to the hospitality, gaming and resort industries in the US, said he also plans on adopting “a master developer approach” to Governor’s Harbour by setting aside three to four sites within the 600 acres for other investors/developers to create their own boutique resorts - the type of hotel development that has proven most successful in the Family Islands.

Asserting that he is a long-term investor, not one seeking to make a quick buck by swiftly entering and then exiting a project, Mr Jacobs also voiced interest in partnering with others to deliver “consistent, reliable power” to central Eleuthera. He added that he was already in talks with Kimley Horn, a US-based utility and engineering company with global reach, on developing “a self-contained power solution” for the island.

And, seeking to reassure Governor’s Harbour residents over the scale and density of his proposal, Mr Jacobs said the proposed casino will be “the size of a restaurant” and far smaller than those at Atlantis and Baha Mar. The US gaming developer added that the J Resort casino will be modelled as “a James Bond-style gaming salon” to give wealthy, high-spending visitors an extra incentive to visit Governor’s Harbour and give the destination a “must see” vibe.

Mr Jacobs disclosed that the proposal “still has some wood to chop” before starting the process of applying for, and obtaining, the necessary government and regulatory approvals for the project to move forward. However, Janeen Bullard, principal of JSS Consulting, has been hired and started the work required to prepare an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), and consultation with the Governor’s Harbour community over the development is set to begin this summer.

Through Jacobs Investments, and its Jacobs Entertainment subsidiary, Mr Jacobs owns and operates resorts and casinos in US destinations such as Reno and other Nevada cities, plus Colorado and Louisiana. While Governor’s Harbour and Eleuthera will seemingly be their first major investment outside the US, the developer said planning studies had begun from five years ago and are constantly being updated.

“Large scale, complex projects, evolve and have a life of their own,” Mr Jacobs told Tribune Business. “For example, in reviewing our December 2025 development slides that you sent me, I see where our thought process has evolved a bit in several areas.

“They include the initial 177-acre parcel that we acquired near the Governor's Harbour airport, [which] was intended to be developed as a golf course. I have put the golf course on hold for a variety of economic, environmental and competitive reasons.”

Mr Jacobs, affirming that he intends to be involved for the long haul, said his ambitions also extend to facilitating investments by others. “Additionally, I now believe that the visitation future in Governor's Harbour is greater than a development effort resulting in one boutique resort hotel and associated neighbourhoods,” he said.

“I am taking more of a master developer approach. That is, I believe that we will be able to create sites for three to four boutique resort/residential projects that can be developed by others in addition to our J Resort development project. This effectively provides Governor's Harbour a pipeline of boutique resort properties with associated construction and full-time operational jobs over the next 20-30 years.”

The December 2025 presentation shows J Resort and its marina will be located immediately adjacent to the existing French Leave hotel on the latter’s northern/eastern side. Mr Jacobs’ 600-acre site does not include the former Club Med property, but within the ‘community pathway’ will be located residential real estate communities called Eleuthera Club & Estates, South Blufftop Residences, J Resort Residences and Governor’s Harbour Villas, as well as areas for potential future development.

Tribune Business reported previously how residents, as well as environmental activists, feared Mr Jacobs’ proposal - especially for a casino, regardless of its size - is simply too large for the Governor’s Harbour area while also being out of “tone” with the community’s history and character.

They are also concerned that Eleuthera’s infrastructure, especially its already-challenged electricity and water utilities, will simply be unable to cope with the additional demands exerted by such a development, while its scale will also exert undue pressure on the environment and require potentially hundreds of workers to be imported from Nassau and/or overseas because the island’s own workforce is unable to meet the labour requirements.

Mr Jacobs, though, is seeking to reassure that his proposal will be nothing like a Nassau mega resort, or so-called Family Island ‘anchor properties’ that have largely failed or proven huge loss-makers. He added that J Resort’s marina would help open up Governor’s Harbour to high net worth visitors arriving on mega yachts for the first time.

“We envision creating a world class marina for some of the largest yachts in the Caribbean to visit,” Mr Jacobs told Tribune Business. “This opens central Eleuthera up to new, high net worth visitors for the first time. Governor's Harbour obviously has access to deep water, and this asset can now once again be used to the advantage of central Eleuthera.

“It is my hope that the marina, J Resort, gaming salon, beach club and residences will all help to give Governor's Harbour a ‘must see’ vibe. Regarding our gaming component, it is designed as a resort amenity the size of a restaurant. We are not building a casino resort like Atlantis or Baha Mar. We are building a boutique resort with a James Bond-style gaming salon as an amenity, giving folks with a lot of dollars another reason to visit Governor's Harbour.

“Regarding permitting efforts, we still have some wood to chop before that effort is underway. I anticipate that I will meet with the local community this summer for what may be the first of several public meetings. We welcome community feedback and often pick up great ideas in these sessions,” he added. 

“Our EIA work is ongoing and headed up locally by Janeen Bullard. Our current priorities now are to figure out how to help the community down the road to energy and water generation and distribution reliability, as well as first-class circulation for cars, pedestrians, bicyclists and golf carts. 

“When all is said and done, we do not want to ‘do a project’ in Governor's Harbour. We want to carefully create a life altering, forever game changing experience for the residents of, and visitors to, Governor's Harbour.”

Emphasising his credentials as a long-term investor, Mr Jacobs highlighted his companies’ redevelopment of Cleveland’s riverfront as well as their latest efforts aimed at “the rebirth of downtown Reno” in Nevada.

“As a former elected official I am drawn to projects that, while very long-term in nature, have the greatest potential to bring positive/life altering change to the communities within which they are located,” he explained. “Our first development project started 40 years ago, when I decided to recreate the riverfront of my hometown of Cleveland, Ohio, into a wonderful live,work,play destination.

“It took 25 years to turn a former area of industrial wasteland into a national destination, attracting over two million visitors per year…. My current development effort is the rebirth of downtown Reno, Nevada. Next month marks our tenth anniversary of working on this development effort. It will also be a time of celebration, as we open the front doors of our 720-room J Resort.

“We spent ten years and $500m master planning, designing, building and acquiring 81 parcels of land for phase one of this project. When completed in another ten years we will have invested over $1bn, with third party developers on our perimeter investing another $1bn,” Mr Jacobs added.

“I share this background with you to give you a glimpse into our development DNA. We make long-term development commitments to communities with projects that have the potential to contribute to their economic and social fabric for hundreds of years.”