A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed on Monday 22nd January, 2024, between the Government of Anguilla and the Savannah Bay/Sile Bay Development LLC for the touristic development of the Savannah Bay Resort on Anguilla’s eastern sea coast.
Officially witnessing the signing on behalf of the Government was Permanent Secretary of Economic Development, Mrs. Chanelle Petty-Barrett, while Attorney Thomas Astaphan witnessed on behalf of the Principals of Savannah Bay/Sile Bay Development LLC, Mr. Philip McCabe, Mr. Joseph McCabe and Mr. Kevin Stoneburner.
“It is my pleasure to welcome you to this milestone occasion,” Mrs. Petty-Barrett said, “where we will be signing an MOU between the Government of Anguilla and the Savannah Bay/Sile Bay Development LLC for the development of a major tourism property on the eastern end of the island.
“We are thrilled to be able to have this official ceremony to mark the beginning of this partnership between the Government of Anguilla and the Savannah Bay/Sile Bay Development LLC.,” she continued. “We know that for many years we had desired to have a major tourism investment in the eastern part of the island, and we are happy to have come to this point.”
The Honourable Premier and Minister of Economic Development, Dr. Ellis Webster, who is the Representative of the east constituency, District 1, said that a tourism resort in the east had been a long time coming. He deemed the Savannah Bay/Sile Bay property to be a perfect location for tourism development.
“When I first met Philip McCabe and Kevin Stoneburner, after they had acquired the 215 acres of land up there,” the Premier said, “I thought that it was a perfect opportunity for them to develop Anguilla’s eastern coastline.”
He said that in order to get an insight into what they do, he met with them in Maples, Florida. “It was great just to see how they had committed to the community in developing projects in Maples, and I knew then that we had found a right mix of persons to develop the eastern end of Anguilla.”
They have the community at heart,” the Premier said. “They develop with an intention to not only be investors but also to be partners and to become a part of the community.”
Principal of the project, Mr. Philip McCabe, lauded the development of the Savannah Bay as a significant opportunity for Anguilla’s tourism product: “We discovered this piece of land about three years ago, and after studying it we came to the conclusion that there is good opportunity for the development of this site. I think the future opportunity of this project is very significant for this location.”
“We are sensitive to the needs of the island,” he said, “and we are understanding the island’s culture. The way we have laid out this plan is one based upon tourism and it is driven by tourism.”
The Savannah Bay Marina and Resort will be built on 215 acres of land at the cost of US$150 Million. The project will feature a luxury hotel, luxury residences, villas, townhouses, condominiums, a marina, a yacht club, port facility, a shopping arcade and commercial vending areas.
As a social contribution to the development of Savannah Bay, a modern state-of-the-art Board Walk is planned by the developers for the Island Harbour area, for some distance east of the Island Harbour pier.