A special development order for the Fairmont Southampton will be revised in response to the latest timeline for works at the resort, the Cabinet Office said yesterday.

Walter Roban, the Minister of Home Affairs, announced almost a year ago — when he had responsibility for the planning department — his approval for an SDO that would pave the way for up to 250 tourism and residential units at the property.

The House of Assembly heard in June that the order would be brought into force upon the completion of all matters related to the overarching transaction that governed the redevelopment project.

Westend Properties Ltd, the owner of the Fairmont Southampton, announced last month that financing for renovations at the iconic resort had closed.

The Government was asked this week when the SDO was expected to be confirmed or published in the Official Gazette.

A spokeswoman for the Cabinet Office, which assumed responsibility for the planning department last November, said yesterday: “At this time, there isn’t an update to provide regarding the SDO.”

She added that “ … since the SDO was first made, and due to the passage of time, it will be revised to reflect the new timeline for the development”.

The spokeswoman said: “This is under way and will likely be before the House sometime in November.”

Westend submitted a revised request last year for in-principle approval to add up to 159 tourism and 91 residential units in buildings of two to four storeys at the resort.

Mr Roban characterised the development last October as a continuation of a longstanding trend in Bermuda tourism.

He said then: “This is not the most unique property of this type, combining a hotel with residences.”

The minister referred to developments such as Rosewood Bermuda and The Loren, adding: “This model was well established in Bermuda over the past 20 years.”

Mr Roban said then that the public would be able to see a new version of the development plan and its conditions online “once it has been drafted — and we expect that to be done in the next couple of weeks”.

The Development Applications Board earlier agreed with a recommendation from the Department of Planning that the minister should not approve an SDO based on the proposals — with the Bermuda National Trust urging Mr Roban to “do the right thing” and reject it.

A report from the planning department prepared for the DAB’s meeting in September 2023 said that the proposal was “considered to represent an unsustainable form of development which would result in several adverse environmental effects”, which Westend failed to demonstrate can or would be satisfactorily mitigated.

A spokeswoman for the company said then: “We believe that the Southampton property can easily accommodate the development of residential and tourism units as laid out in our proposal; in fact, the majority of the property will remain as green space, which includes the golf course.”

Westend has maintained that renovating and reopening the 593-room hotel was its priority, after the property closed its doors in 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic.

It noted in September this year that costs for the entire Fairmont Southampton project were estimated at more than $550 million.

The company added that about 75 shipping containers loaded with building materials, scaffolding and other construction equipment would arrive in the first half of this month and make their way to the site.

It said then: “By November, the entire hotel will be covered in scaffolding in preparation for the next steps in the renovation.”

David Burt, the Premier and Minister of Finance, confirmed to MPs last month that the Government’s $75 million sovereign guarantee backing the Fairmont Southampton project was executed with Clarien Bank.

He said the completion of the financing deal signalled “the most resounding endorsement of Bermuda as a tourist destination, of the jurisdiction as a place for sound investment, and in the Government of Bermuda as a valued partner to the private sector in support of economic growth and tourism recovery”.