“Build it and they will come.”

- Field of Dreams

On December 1, 2014, it was announced that the America’s Cup would be coming to Bermuda and, with much fanfare, Bermudians were inundated with images of thousands of persons flocking to a magical AC Village.

Alas, those images were not of Front Street, nor were they of the traditional home of all things sailing, the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club at Albuoy’s Point. Indeed, the images were of a piece of land that did not actually yet exist.

So for the Government, Wedco and ACBDA, the organisers of the event, they had to pull off a miracle and build something out of nothing; they had to create an island.

Shortly thereafter, it was announced that Cross Island in Dockyard would be constructed and that the 11.2 acres of prime waterfront land would become the home of AC35.

However, just as Bob Richards, the Minister of Finance, loves to say, “there is no such thing as a free lunch”, a hefty price tag of $39 million was attached to this ambitious endeavour.

This would equate to $3.5 million dollars per acre. With real estate prices at $1 million per acre, this would be, by far, some of the most expensive land in Bermuda.

But, heck, anything for the AC right?

In December 2015, it was announced that Wedco had secured a loan of $39 million for six years in order to pay for one of the most expensive pieces of property in Bermuda. This was facilitated by the Bermuda Government giving an unconditional guarantee of the loan with local bank Butterfield.

However, should Wedco not be able to manage the payments, the people of Bermuda: you, your children and your grandchildren are responsible for paying back this loan.

On October 7, 2016, it was announced by Grant Gibbons, the MP and Minister for Economic Development, that the landfill for Cross Island was complete.

However, there was one significant catch. Instead of 11.2 acres for a cost of $39 million, we ended up with only 9 acres for the same cost. Breaking it down, we went from paying $3.5 million per acre to an increased cost of $4.3 million per acre. All this, without a plausible explanation as to why we have 2.2 acres less than initially promised.

Was it because we ran out of open water?

Upon reflection, some pertinent questions come to mind:

• Why was the 11.2 acres reduced to only 9 acres?

• If there was a reduction in land space, should not there have been a reduction in project costs?

• How many of the $324,000 monthly payments have Wedco actually paid?

• How many of the $324,000 monthly payments have we, the taxpayers, actually paid?

As we all know, “there is no such thing as a free lunch”, and it is our right to be provided with these answers.