Prime Minister Ingraham (right) with Papote Varet at the opening gala of the new US Terminal at the Lynden Pindling International Airport in Nassau Photo: Azaleta Ishmael-Newry for The Bahamas Weekly

Remarks by  

Rt. Hon. Hubert A. Ingraham

Prime Minister  

at  

Grand Opening  

of  

US Departure Terminal

Lynden Pindling International Airport

Ladies and Gentlemen:  

       My Government is delighted by the successful conclusion of this first phase of the redevelopment of the Lynden Pindling International Airport.  

       Many congratulations are in order: to the Airport Authority and its Chairman Hon. Frank Watson and all Board members; to the Nassau Airport Development Company, its former President and CEO, Craig Richmond, and its current President and CEO Stewart Steeves, to their executive and support staff; and to Vancouver Airport Services, the project manager for the redevelopment.  

       I am happy to recognize the following companies associated with this spectacular building, namely: Ledcor Construction Limited of Canada, the principal general contractor in joint venture with Woslee Construction, a Bahamian company, for the terminal building; Ranger Construction, an American Company, the principal general contractor for the site civil works (utilities, roads, parking lots, aircraft apron, and landscape); and Stantec, another Canadian Company, the principal design and architectural firm in partnership with the Bahamian firm of Alexiou and Associates. All have performed admirably.   

The Prime Minister and his wife arrive at the terminal. Photo: Azaleta Ishmael-Newry for The Bahamas Weekly

 

     I am equally happy to name 15 other Bahamian contractors who have left their mark on various aspects of this terminal and associated works including:  

• George V. Cox & Company
• Graphite Engineering
• Engineering Solutions & Consulting
• Caribbean Civil Group
• Engineering & Technical Services
• Construction Cost Engineering
• DHP Associates
• Certified Testing Laboratories International
• SEV Group
• Pinder’s Customs Brokerage
• Reliable Fencing
• Bahamas Hot Mix
• Basden Elevators
• Sentinel Drilling and Water Works
• TMC Engineering Ltd.

       The Nassau Airport Development Company (NAD), I am advised, also contracted directly with the following 18 additional Bahamian consultants and contractors:

• Farr Construction
• Gold Rock Corporation
• Compass Solutions
• Hanna Mayson
• Terrain Design and Management
• Bahama Rock
• Thermoset Roofing
• Caribbean Landscape
• NP Building Supplies
• Carpet World
• Colco Electric
• Bahama Marine Company
• Stubbs Equipment
• Davis Landscape
• Allied Electrical
• Donald E. Thomson Surveying
• Caribbean Concrete, and
• BGC Limited

       All are deserving of thanks and recognition for a job well done. Enormous pride can be taken in the role which so many Bahamians played in the planning, design and execution of the project.   

       Now we are definitely on our way to realizing a long deferred national aspiration for an attractive, modern and efficient principal air gateway to The Bahamas.  

       This is befitting of our status as the premier destination in our region. We are home to Atlantis, a veritable paradise with unparalleled amenities including world-class accommodation, cuisine, gaming, upscale retail, and a full spectrum of sporting facilities and entertainment.   

       And, this week, ground was broken on Baha Mar’s redevelopment project which promises to transform Cable Beach into a first class multi-hotel, casino and golf resort.   

       This terminal will be unique in the region, being of a size, scale and scope, and having amenities and features unlike others in our region and incorporating state-of-the-art baggage systems, environmentally-friendly cooling systems and al fresco dining facilities not typically available in airports near or far.  

       Historically, when we have sought to improve our airport, we have begun with the US Departure Terminal -- a simple recognition of the importance of the American market to the success of our tourism sector and indeed, of our economy.   

The Prime Minister and his wife greet Lady Foulkes Photo: Azaleta Ishmael-Newry for The Bahamas Weekly

  

    When I first came to office in 1992, my Government inherited a responsibility for securing additional financing required to complete and open what was to be our new US Terminal at the then Nassau International Airport.  Construction had come to a standstill as the funding was exhausted.  

       With the opening of this first phase of the LPIA redevelopment project early next month, the now 19-year-old US Departure Terminal will immediately be reconfigured to accommodate international departures as well as domestic traffic, the latter temporarily.   

       Today, Cabinet gave its approval for stages 2 and 3 of the LPIA Terminal Redevelopment Project.  

    The redevelopment of LPIA is being funded, uniquely, at a total projected cost of some $409.5 million, on the basis of passenger facility charges or user fees save and except for the provision of $50 million by the Government of The Bahamas for Phase I. The redevelopment project is benefitting from customs duty concessions which translate into additional millions of forgiven Government revenue. Phase I having been completed at an estimated cost of $$190.8 million we now expect that Phase II will cost $138.3 million and Phase III, which will commence immediately upon the completion of Phase II, some $71.98 million.  

       Essentially, we are transforming and building at LPIA a new airport with an enhanced passenger and visitor experience for Bahamians and visitors alike.  For all those who live and work here and for those who travel to and from Nassau for business or pleasure, today is a happy day.   

       Work on the modernization of this airport has been ongoing for over two decades. Notwithstanding projects to repair air conditioning, expand parking, upgrade runways, improve taxi tarmacs or construct drainage systems, we never seemed to have gotten a handle on making and keeping our principal air gateway modern, well-maintained and efficient in keeping with the best international standards.  

    The redevelopment now being undertaken at LPIA is the largest public sector project ever undertaken in the history of The Bahamas.   

    We have paid special attention to ensuring that the new facilities are appropriate to our culture and to our climate, and that the construction was done in an environmentally sustainable way, facilitating the airport’s efficient operation and maintenance.   

    I have been pleased with the success of NAD in its oversight of the construction of this first phase of the redevelopment of the LPIA and particularly satisfied by the large number of contracts awarded to qualified Bahamian consultants, sub-consultants, contractors and sub-contractors, as I previously indicated.  

    This new facility will offer world-class customer service and it will meet all international safety standards.  

    We have for too long ranked among the least efficient and least customer-friendly airports in our region.  Today’s commissioning signals a definite change and a new direction.   

    The LPIA is certainly becoming a source of national pride. We expect also, that that it will become commercially viable and a net contributor to our economy.  

    I use this occasion to again acknowledge and recognize all those persons who contributed to this day beginning with those who served on the Government’s 1999 advisory committee: Peter I. Bethel, J. Barrie Farrington, MacGregor Robertson, George Myers, Vincent Vanderpool-Wallace, Rich Ryan, Ehurd Cunningham, Robert Sands, Frank Carter, and Reginald Grant; Melanie Roach, John Rolle, Cyril Saunders, Bernard K. Bonamy, Melvin Seymour, and Idris Reid.   

    I acknowledge the Hon. Brent Symonette, my Deputy Prime Minister, the first Chairman of the Airport Authority, succeeding Chairmen A. Bismarck Coakley and Anthony Kikivarakis, and members of the Board and managers of the Airport Authority and all the persons who daily make LPIA work.   

    I acknowledge the contribution of former Prime Minister Christie and his Government in continuing the planning and redevelopment of LPIA.   

    The Ministries of Finance and Public Works and all the other government agencies concerned are to be commended for their role in bringing this project to fruition.  

    And I acknowledge the advice and assistance of the institutions that served as financial advisors, arrangers and ultimately as bankers to the project: Citigroup, First Caribbean, Royal Bank of Canada, Scotia Bank, Export Bank of Canada, the National Insurance Board and AF Holdings (Colina Group).  

       I also acknowledge the encouragement, campaign and indeed agitation by Sir Sol Kerzner of Kerzner International in support of the redevelopment of the airport - the first and last impression for our all important stop-over visitors.  
 
 
 
 

Ladies and Gentlemen:  

       The importance of this new facility to our national economy and specifically to tourism – the engine of our economy – cannot be overstated.  

    Airports and seaports are critical to Island Nations’ economic growth and development. When coupled with good connections and communications the power of creative entrepreneurial talent can be unleashed. Joined by sound public policies and a government grounded in a belief in its people and systems, human potential can achieve its zenith. That is why we consciously and deliberately set about, during the midst of the worst recession the world has seen in 80 years, to rebuild our physical plant and prepare our people for better days ahead.  

    Indeed we have launched the most comprehensive and ambitious infrastructural investment programme in Bahamian history, which will enhance the quality of life for Bahamians and residents and the visitor experience of guests to our country.  

    Finding of the airport project primarily from user fees has permitted us to proceed with other important capital works on New Providence, site of our capital and home to more that 60% of our population, which required funding from the Government including: the dredging of Nassau Harbour to accommodate the largest cruise ships in the world, the reconstruction of the historic Nassau Straw Market destroyed by fire in 2001, and the removal of cargo shipping from downtown Nassau to a new port being constructed at Arawak Cay.  

Ladies and Gentlemen:  

    We are creating a whole new world of opportunities and amenities from a new housing development in southern New Providence to a transformed Queen Elizabeth Sports Centre that will be one of the best athletic and sporting complexes in the Caribbean.   Phase I of that Centre, the new Thomas A. Robinson Stadium, will be completed this year.  

    We are transforming New Providence and the historic City of Nassau into more than a world-class destination.  We are seeking to make our capital island an urban centre that works in terms of basic infrastructure, and that is safe and a creative home for the arts and culture with an extensive network of parks, heritage sites and windows to the sea.    

    We will do all of this and much more, as we make New Providence greener, more beautiful, cleaner, and more environmentally sustainable.  Even as we appreciate the enjoyments and advantages that city living offers, we must respond to the challenges of urbanization, inclusive of human services and well-being, infrastructure, livability and aesthetics.  

    Simple things make an enormous difference in how we feel and function on our island-home.   

    It is the intention of my Government to make New Providence the site of our nation’s capital, clean, beautiful, sustainable and functional.  The things we build are not ends in themselves.  They are the indispensable means to improve the quality of life of the Bahamian people and residents.  

    Towards this end, I look forward in the months ahead to the continued progress of the New Providence Infrastructure Improvement Project as additional segments are completed, and to the immediate commencement of the second stage – the International Terminal at LPIA.   

    LPIA will be linked to the new four-lane Gateway Highway, the ground breaking for which will take place next week, which will provide an impressive entrance to the traditional old charm of New Providence that we are conserving and the new, cosmopolitan New Providence that we are creating. Phase one of the Gateway Highway will lead from the LPIA to the six (6) way roundabout (or oval) near Farrington Road and extend on to Wulff Road and Blue Hill Road, and from JFK Drive along Harrold Road to the Milo Butler Highway.  

    Added to all of this will be even more technologically advanced and competitive telecommunications services with enhanced broadband and Wi-Fi capacity over networks with more speed, efficiency and reliability.  

         My Government will not stint in providing our citizens, residents and visitors with infrastructure and services befitting a 21st century Bahamas with a world-class tourism product and international business centre.  

    In the great enterprise of transforming our capital island, in both senses of that term, we are building on and securing the dreams of many Bahamians over many years. We are also utilizing the ideas and talent of technicians and artists, environmentalists and city planners, and of Bahamian as well as international expertise.  

    Indeed, this new terminal is an excellent demonstration of what we are doing and how we are doing it, utilizing a consortium of talents to build a common dream.    This is why I have taken the time to recognize the many individuals, agencies and businesses who have contributed to this new Bahamian gateway which will connect the world to the Islands of The Bahamas in a new global age.  

    Nineteen months ago when we officially launched this redevelopment project I said that “Upon completion this airport will be a fitting memorial to the first Prime Minister of The Bahamas – Lynden Oscar Pindling”.