$27m spent on 2-star Manta Lodge

The keys for the newly renovated Manta Lodge Hotel and Dive Centre in Speyside were handed over to the Tobago House of Assembly (THA) on Wednesday, and tenders for managing it will soon be put out.

THA Chief Secretary and electoral representative Farley Augustine attended the handing-over ceremony and hailed the increase in the island’s room stock.

The dive resort, which cost the THA $8 million in 2015, had been left non-operational and in a significant state of disrepair. Augustine said between 2015 and 2020 close to $3 million was spent on security, maintenance and other affiliated costs.

Udecott, he said, was contracted by the Division of Tourism on September 30, 2020 to provide project-management services for the refurbishment, noting that as far back as 2016, at the World Travel Market in London it was promised that the hotel would be ready by the spring of 2017.

“We are now in spring of 2023. I promised it at World Travel Market last year, and I am happy that we are having it in our hands on time for this year.”

In 2015, the assembly spent $32 million on Sanctuary Villas at Black Rock and Manta Lodge. Both properties were left unattended, sparking questions about THA spending going down the drain. Then chief secretary Ancil Dennis had said renovation for both properties would cost $70 million – $10 million for Manta Lodge and $60 million for Sanctuary Villas. Manta Lodge was given priority, as it was the smaller project.

Augustine said, “In 2020, the THA embarked on this hotel, which would result in a 24-room hotel and dive centre, complete with a refurbished swimming pool, parking for four, inclusive of the differently abled, and we added a variation cost of $4,904,833.56. This brings the total spend to date for Manta Lodge to $27,353,630.36 – that is, between 2015 when the hotel was purchased and 2023, when we are now receiving the keys for the refurbished hotel.”

He said the Division of Infrastructure had made a proposal for increased parking, as the parking space is inadequate, and the assembly is also in talks with private landowners neighbouring the hotel in order for development work around it to be done.

The THA is not considering running its day-to-day operations.

“Pretty soon we would put it out on the market for a request for proposals so that anybody with the best proposals for managing this hotel, and operationalising this hotel, we would welcome in the Tobago space."The proposal would be put out locally and internationally "so that we can attract the best possible managers for this space.”

He said there are benefits to the hotel, noting that even its two-star status would enhance the options in the village, and had some words of advice for the villagers.

“You are the first security for this property. I don’t expect any vandalism. I don’t expect anybody to come here and work here and be rude to the guests, because it's obvious, once this is opened and operational, they would look to those in the village and in surrounding areas for the first set of employees. They would want employees that can get to work quite easily. I expect you to be the absolute best.”

Chief Administrator Ethlyn John said the assembly is pleased, “having surmounted the many impacts of the global pandemic and the delays it has had and the negative shocks to the construction sector.”

The day's ceremony signalled the culmination of a lengthy process, she said, and also that "this present administration of the THA remains committed to the growth of tourism as well as ensuring its return on its investment. Further, it is in tandem with our mandate to transform our sector through responsible development across key sectors of the tourism industry, including the accommodation sector.”

She said although the additional rooms may seem small, it is quite timely and welcome as the Tobago Tourism Agency continues its work to strengthen niche product offerings and make the island more competitive as a destination.

She said she is looking forward to the next step as the hotel opens.

In a Facebook post on Wednesday, Dennis posted a picture of the hotel and wrote, "Great is the PNM."