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The
Straits Times, 28 Nov 04
Atlantis S'pore style?
By Glenys Sim
Resort's CEO Butch Kerzner, who has made the 276ha Bahamas resort
a huge success, talks about his interest in setting up one in Singapore
THERE is a 40ha plot of land set aside on Sentosa which has had tongues
wagging. Is that where the high-class resort-cum-casino will be?
The Government has yet to decide where to site the development - with
or without the casino - but ask executives of Kerzner International,
famed for creating a playground for the rich in the Bahamas, and they'll
say it's the perfect spot. Kerzner, owners of the Atlantis resort
in the Bahamas, which counts Michael Jordan among its regulars, is
interested in putting up money for a concept that will meet the Government's
approval. Chief executive officer Butch Kerzner said the company will
do 'what is needed to do the right project and respond to what the
Singapore Government requires'. It will mean sinking in big money
- probably in excess of US$1 billion (S$1.64 billion).
'Currently, Sentosa is a hodgepodge of little attractions. You want
to develop something more than just a casino because it needs to be
a different place from Macau, which you can't compete with,' he told
The Sunday Times. 'We don't want the kind of people that just spend
seven hours a day in the casino and do nothing else. It's about getting
the right kind of people...' That should hearten the authorities,
who are looking not for a 'pokey little gambling den' but an icon
on the tourist road map, as Senior Minister of State (Trade and Industry)
Vivian Balakrishnan put it. The 276ha Atlantis is one of the successful
models MTI is examining as it weighs potential social costs against
probable economic benefits. Facilities-wise, it is impressive. It
has 2,300 rooms, an 86,000 sq ft conference centre with ballrooms
and meeting rooms, 20 retail outlets, 35 restaurants, bars and lounges,
11 swimming areas complete with water slides and man-made waterfalls,
a giant tank housing more than 50,000 marine animals, a nightclub,
a spa, 10 tennis courts, a 63-slip marina and an 18-hole golf course.
Yes, there is a casino - occupying less than half a hectare, which
is less than half the size of gaming rooms in two Las Vegas models
also under consideration: the Bellagio Hotel and the Venetian.
Since the Atlantis came to life in 1994, the government of the 31-year-old
country has been laughing all the way to the bank. Bahamas Tourism
Minister Obediah H. Wilchcombe estimates that the Atlantis contributes
as much as 40 per cent of the country's total tourism revenue. The
industry itself has been growing 3 to 4 per cent a year for the past
10 years and now accounts for 70 per cent of the country's gross domestic
product (GDP) of US$5.2 billion. Nearly 4.6 million people visited
the Bahamas last year, up from 3.6 million in 1993. They spent US$1.8
billion, up from US$1.3 billion in 1993. Last year, US$23 million
in gaming taxes from the four casinos in the country went to the government
coffers.
Kerzner International has contributed much more than just dollars
and cents, Mr Wilchcombe said. The resort provides jobs for 6,000
people whose main economic activity in the past was agriculture and
fishing. More money and jobs are to come. By 2007, Kerzner will add
a new hotel, water theme park and golf course, which will create another
3,000 jobs.
The project was not without critics, particularly the church, but
Mr Wilchcombe claimed that the people were soon won over by the economic
benefits and the accompanying slide in the unemployment rate. As for
social costs, the government came up with a quick, no-nonsense solution.
Residents are barred from the casino and anyone caught there faces
a fine of US$500, or six months' jail, or both. 'It would be sad to
generate economic activity for Bahamians to earn money, only for them
to give it all up to the casino,' said Mr Wilchcombe.
Though the casino contributes a quarter of Atlantis' US$497 million
revenue and 35 per cent of its profits, it is not marketed as a major
attraction. You won't see adverts for the casinos in the Bahamas.
Visitors, asked in a survey what attracted them to the country, ranked
the casino only in eighth place. Yet the gross profits from gaming
(US$75.3 million) are nearly double those from food and beverage (US$39.2
million), and Mr Kerzner admitted that he's 'not sure we can invest
in other attractions without the gaming component'.
'Without gaming, no investor can bring in that amount of money unless
there is a huge government subsidy.' He has properties in South Africa,
the Middle East and the United States, and with his sights set on
South-east Asia, he thinks Singapore is the ideal location for the
company's next investment. 'It has air links, infrastructure and a
transparent, safe environment. It could potentially be the most successful
total integrated centre in Asia,' he said.
Kerzner's executive vice-president of design, Mr Sorin Zdrahal, said
Atlantis' success depends on a great deal on theming. So what would
work in Singapore? 'If we build it on Sentosa, we can draw on its
great topography, lush vegetation and proximity to the sea to create
something that will fit Singapore,' Mr Zdrahal said.
This fits nicely with the recommendations made by the Singapore Tourism
Board's International Advisory Council for Tourism earlier this month.
The council suggested allocating resources to develop and market Sentosa
so that Singapore can make a competitive advantage out of its city-resort
combination, which few other Asian cities can offer.
By targeting the kind of 'high-yielding' visitors that go to the Atlantis,
spending a average of between US$800 and US$900 per room per day,
Mr Kerzner said Singapore could achieve its long-term tourism goals.
But what of Singaporeans who want to gamble? The resort on Sentosa
cannot be as self-contained as the Atlantis, because the mainland
is just next door. That, Mr Kerzner said, is a question for Singaporeans
to settle on their own. 'It would be incorrect to say there is no
social cost in gaming, but there are many ways to mitigate it. Singapore
has to figure out where along the spectrum it wants to be. 'If it
goes into pure gaming, social costs will be higher. That said, if
you bring it out into the open, you can have it regulated and dealt
with. Since regulatory structures like gaming boards are funded out
of gaming revenues, Singapore shouldn't need to burden itself with
it,' he said.
BARRED FROM CASINOS BUT GAMBLING STILL GOES ON IN BAHAMAS
WHILE Bahamians are barred from gambling at high-profile casinos like
the Atlantis, they still spend close to US$100 million (S$164 million)
a year on illegal lotteries. Of course, the Bahamas government does
not get a cent, which is why it is now considering the introduction
of a national lottery.
Gaming Board chairman Kenyatta Gibson was quoted in a Bahamas daily,
The Nassau Guardian, as saying that the national lottery would 'allow
the government to receive its fair tax from the proceeds of lotteries
(that)...will be used to benefit the society'.
Its Tourism Minister, Mr Obediah H. Wilchcombe, said his government
is considering one of two options: legalising lotteries or implementing
stiffer penalties. Now, a person found operating an illegal lottery,
or 'number house', can be fined up to US$1,000. There is no penalty
for those caught betting. However, anyone found gambling in one of
the four casinos can be fined a maximum of US$500 and jailed for six
months. The country's per capita income is about US$17,000.
The church opposes the idea of legalising gambling, but some Bahamians
think they should be allowed to do what they want. Mr Rory Knowles,
33, an electronic security technician, said: 'I don't care about the
casino itself, though it'd be nice to be able to go in once in a while
and throw a quarter in the machines. It's just that there are...number
shops...and everyone knows where they are. All of that money could
be going to help clean up our country and help the poor.' |
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