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'Casino will bring billions in revenue'
published: Saturday | May 3, 2008
Celebration Jamaica, one of two entities selected to receive a casino licence, is promising that occupancy rates at hotels near the facility will increase by up to 20 per cent.
The construction of Celebration Jamaica is expected to begin once the developers receive a casino licence.
Struggling to deal with a negative backlash from persons opposed to casino gaming, the company's officials on Thursday night outlined plans for the development, which, it said, should put between $13 and $15 billion a year into the Government's coffers.
Dennis Constanzo, head of Celebration Jamaica, says tax is calculated on the direct operations of the entity, which is to be constructed on 65 acres of land in Rose Hall St. James.
Thousands of jobs
He says the development, which will be completed in three years, will provide 12,000 direct jobs and thousands more Jamaicans will be indirectly employed.
In addition, he says Celebra-tion Jamaica and its sister entity, Palmyra Resorts, with 2,200 rooms, are expected to attract an additional 500,000 visitors to Jamaica each year.
According to Constanzo, Celebration Jamaica will be spending more than the Government to market Jamaica as a tourist destination.
He says the new property will include a massive water park, a cove with a killer whale facility, shops, restaurants, a craft centre and an open theatre.
Food-processing plant
Celebration Jamaica is also to finance a food-processing plant to ensure that it gets quality local produce to feed its guests.
However, Constanzo admits that the US$1.8 billion would not take place without the promised casino licence.
"You can be simple about it and say casinos are not a panacea and I say you are darn right. We are building a different kind of facility with a 15 per cent keystone that will drive this engine," Constanzo said.
He said Celebration Jamaica would improve on the world-famous Atlantis Resort in The Bahamas and compete with "anything, anywhere else in the world".
The Atlantis is a popular Paradise Island, Nassau beach-front mega-resort and casino. "When we look at this project, we look at it as Atlantis plus," Constanzo added.
published: Saturday | May 3, 2008
Celebration Jamaica, one of two entities selected to receive a casino licence, is promising that occupancy rates at hotels near the facility will increase by up to 20 per cent.
The construction of Celebration Jamaica is expected to begin once the developers receive a casino licence.
Struggling to deal with a negative backlash from persons opposed to casino gaming, the company's officials on Thursday night outlined plans for the development, which, it said, should put between $13 and $15 billion a year into the Government's coffers.
Dennis Constanzo, head of Celebration Jamaica, says tax is calculated on the direct operations of the entity, which is to be constructed on 65 acres of land in Rose Hall St. James.
Thousands of jobs
He says the development, which will be completed in three years, will provide 12,000 direct jobs and thousands more Jamaicans will be indirectly employed.
In addition, he says Celebra-tion Jamaica and its sister entity, Palmyra Resorts, with 2,200 rooms, are expected to attract an additional 500,000 visitors to Jamaica each year.
According to Constanzo, Celebration Jamaica will be spending more than the Government to market Jamaica as a tourist destination.
He says the new property will include a massive water park, a cove with a killer whale facility, shops, restaurants, a craft centre and an open theatre.
Food-processing plant
Celebration Jamaica is also to finance a food-processing plant to ensure that it gets quality local produce to feed its guests.
However, Constanzo admits that the US$1.8 billion would not take place without the promised casino licence.
"You can be simple about it and say casinos are not a panacea and I say you are darn right. We are building a different kind of facility with a 15 per cent keystone that will drive this engine," Constanzo said.
He said Celebration Jamaica would improve on the world-famous Atlantis Resort in The Bahamas and compete with "anything, anywhere else in the world".
The Atlantis is a popular Paradise Island, Nassau beach-front mega-resort and casino. "When we look at this project, we look at it as Atlantis plus," Constanzo added.