Well-heeled visitors staying at an upmarket Four Seasons hotel overlooking St. George?s will play a bigger role in revitalising the town than the arrival of giant Panamax cruise ships to the harbour.

Culture will ?roll down the hill? from the endeavours of the hotel operators and permeate the town, creating an ambient, almost Bohemian feel and help to arrest the town?s current backward slide.

That?s the belief of Mayor E. Michael Jones who is in no doubt that the town needs to knuckle down and lift its game if it is to survive as a destination for visitors and residents.

While he does not want the town to become a ?boutique? destination, he sees merit in making it a more trendy and fun place to visit.

Placing Disney World at ten on a scale of one to ten, he believes that St. George?s should aim to make itself a ?five?.

And increasing the town?s sphere of influence to attract residents from the parishes of Hamilton, Smiths and Devonshire to come and shop, dine and relax should be an aim for the town.

He also believes the much talked about arrival of giant Panamax cruise ships, should they ultimately come to the town, will not be a magical panacea.

?They will certainly bring some funds, the retail shops will make a few dollars, the restaurants will make a half a dollar and life will be go on. We will go through the summer and then starve in the winter like we do,? said Mr. Jones.

?But can we get more regular folks, more Bermudians more residential folks to come on a more regular basis? That?s where I think our economics are.?

Bringing some fun to the town, creating places where young families might want to visit, and having more space for pedestrianised streets, waterfront restaurants and attracting more shops are key to the future for St. George?s.

?We are not going to take St. George?s and turn it into a Walt Disney World, St. George?s is not going to be that hectic but it needs to grow a little bit more, we need to step it up.

?If Walt Disney World is a ten on a scale of one to ten, we can become a five,? he said.

?We need something to bring some life into the town and that?s some activity so that in the evening there is more than ten people walking around the town.

?We don?t want to be all boutique and be ?Oh, let?s go down to St. George? s where the rich people are?, but we can become trendy.

?What?s wrong with getting young people. We want the guys that go to the clubs to instead think ?lets go down to St George?s because they have some nice little restaurants on the waterfront, we can sit at some tables because its pedestrianised, watch the people go by?, that?s what I think we need to get.?

The ongoing discussions between potential developers of the former Club Med resort and the Government are also key to the future. The arrival of a prestigious Four Seasons hotel would do much to put a spring back into St. George?s, according to the mayor.

?The Four Seasons people, when they come down in their Gucci shoes, with their leather handbags and their Yves Saint Lauren raincoats, are going to want to be trendy, to be able to shop and go to restaurants.

?Tuckers Point are going to want somewhere for their people to go. We say that some of those people should be able to come to St George?s.?

And looking to the future benefits of a Four Seasons hotel, he said: ?Four Seasons would drive the cultural side. The cultural side is going to roll down the hill and come into the town.

?We are going to have residents coming down to the Four Seasons. We want to have some activities in the town so that those people can also come here and have some fun.

?It is all about managing it correctly, keeping the town?s character but getting some intensity, because at the moment the place is going backwards.?