A master-planned resort and residential community is taking shape on a 483-acre former coconut plantation in Rio Grande, Puerto Rico, just six traffic lights and 16 miles from San Juan Airport. And when the new Route 66 is completed in March, only one traffic light will interfere with the airport-to-resort transfer. Components of the project include the 139-suite St. Regis Resort, Bahia Beach, which will include hotel suites and condo-hotel units, opening in April 2010; the 18-hole Robert Trent Jones golf course, which opened last fall; and the Bahia Beach Golf Clubhouse, set to open in November. Also on tap: a variety of residences, estate homes, villas and townhouses; a two-mile-long beach; 80 acres of saltwater lakes and lagoons; a boathouse offering kayak rentals; miles of nature trails; and Bahia Village, offering a Remede Spa and Fitness Center, restaurants and swimming pools. The 90 Las Verandahs villas were unveiled in April following December’s delivery of the first of the 25 St. Regis Residences, Las Estancias estate homes. Real estate sales have exceeded $100 million since the offerings went on the market last summer. Bahia Village, adjacent to the hotel, will form the heart of the project with boutiques, stores, restaurants, the spa and fitness center. The St. Regis will not offer an all-inclusive plan, but instead will focus on high-end dining in its Jean-Georges signature restaurant and the St. Regis Resort restaurant in Bahia Village. |