SOME eight months after the government announced plans to dispose of the Casique Palace, Suites and Banqueting Halls Inc. to liquidate debts, the hotel, which was meant to be completed in time for Cricket World Cup in 2007, has been advertised for sale by Lifetime Realty and Construction.
Interested parties have until Tuesday (June 15, 2010) to submit tenders.
According to the advertisement, which appeared in the Chronicle esterday, the property features a modern five-storey hotel and entertainment complex, with land measuring approximately 226,512 square feet. The main building features very modern aesthetics with over 100,000 square feet of color space comprising three blocks.
The Casique Palace, Suites and Banqueting Halls were taken over by the government for completion, according to Head of the Presidential Secretariat, Dr. Roger Luncheon at a press conference in October last year.
At the time, Dr. Luncheon had said that a broad agreement had been reached between the stakeholders of the hotel, including Beverley Arthur, one of the project’s principal financiers, and the government to allow the latter to finance the completion of the project.
It was agreed between the two parties that upon completion of the project, it would be disposed by way of sale, and that the proceeds from the sale would be used to liquidate whatever debts the stakeholders had incurred.
The facility was estimated to cost in the vicinity of US$4M, and was meant to have 40 of the 49 suites its boasts being apartments and smaller suites, split-level kitchen, rotunda linked to the hotel block by way of connecting bridges and a swimming pool on the second floor. The advertisement said that the pool has not been constructed.
The Government of Guyana had provided the principals of the investment with a $35 million advance as bridge financing to aid in the completion of the project.
On June 15, 2008, a local bank that sought to recover funds loaned to the investors had advertised the property for sale.