TravelTalkOnline Forums Travel and Vacation Forums St. Maarten - St. Martin New nettle bay development

Interesting development on the French side:

Article translated:

"Harmony Promotion and Marriott International, accompanied by a consortium of investors, announce the creation of a 5-star Hotel in Nettle Bay. This project has 168 rooms including 10 beach Villas, 4 island villas, 22 suites and 132 guest rooms under management contract with Marriott. It also includes a SPA wellness center, two restaurants including a gourmet restaurant, reception and seminar rooms, a convention center and a shopping area, a Marina with 8 luxury villas and finally 52 apartments, Les allées, in compacted coral sand, will fit into the natural island landscape. The site will be densely planted along the trails to ensure shaded traffic. The beach will remain a privileged place for walking and will be uninterrupted. A central service backbone hidden by dense plantations will be accessible from the road and will bring together all the constructions related to the operation of the hotel, directly linked to public spaces and restaurants. Particular attention will be given to indirect lighting at night to ensure safety while preserving the atmosphere.

The project was approved by Madame Préfète Sylvie FEUCHER, supported by the President of the Collectivity, Mr Daniel GIBBS, as well as these advisers and also Mrs Valérie Damaseau, 1st Vice-President of the Collectivité of Saint-Martin and President of the Office of Tourism. Generators of a new lease of life for the island's tourism industry wish: "To replace Saint Martin on the World Luxury Tourism Map, to innovate by offering high-end service to visitors". Marriott International, world number 1 in the hotel industry, which totals 6,200 establishments worldwide and more than 1 million rooms will also ensure a high standard of this project. Concerned about the quality of service required for an establishment of this range, Harmony Promotion and Marriott International, with the support of the Collectivité of Saint Martin, are studying the creation of a Hotel Lycée within the project. It will also make it possible to offer Saint-Martin residents excellent training in this field. The Marriott Lagoon Resort & Spa will be built around a coral pool, a key element of the project. It is a sand-bottomed lagoon, supplied with filtered water from the sea, which structures and connects the entire project, both physically and symbolically. An extraordinary experience for clients, A FIRST in the entire Caribbean!"

Not aware of this but time will tell.

So the Collective and Prefete Sylvie Feucher approve and embrace this massive, multi million Euro and highly speculative development. Yet the Collective cannot make a decision on little Club Orient. Money talks again?!?!

Would this be on the site of the of the ruins of La Belle Creole?

Have no idea.

Sounds like La Belle Creole...my home from 1988 to 1991

Maria and Steve--to my knowledge, the Club Orient situation has to do with a disagreement between the owners of the various units, and very little to do with government interference with re-building. I believe there are issues with what the Collectivite wants built within 50 meters of the water line, etc., but the real problem is that the owners are unable to agree between themselves.

According to Jeff Berger's newsletter, the development is going to be where Dreams and Le Sand were. I believe that property was owned by Luftman, so if anyone can get a new development approved, it's him.

Don't see how they'll be able to put in that Marina with the ocean exposure without a breakwater too.

Thank you for that link bobcat. At first I was thinking it incorporated the area where Dreams used to be.

I missed that link before. It appears that Berger was wrong, unless this project isn't the one that was announced.

Again? Say it ain't so!

"The Marriott Lagoon Resort & Spa will be situated where the Dreams and Le Sand Restaurants were located before Hurricane Irma destroyed them. The resort will also occupy land opposite on the Lagoon side."

As I thought....

Guess Berger was right after all.

That link was offering the Belle Creole parcel for sale; no mention was made on that site about the Marriott project being built there. Not a Berger fan, so I have no comment about that

But the project is still not fully approved by the Prefecture.