Cotton Bay's Comeback -- In the heyday of Pan American Airlines and its founder, Juan Trippe, Cotton Bay Club was The Bahamas' chicest enclave. Once a household name in the U.S., Trippe was a relatively forgotten figure until his character appeared in The Aviator, Martin Scorsese's film about Howard Hughes. Cotton Bay Club was where the Who's Who of America went barefoot in the sand. But since it folded it has been a ghost of itself, despite of its picture-perfect beaches.
Change, however, is on its way. Despite a series of setbacks, the infrastructure for a radically new series of private homes and villas, Cotton Bay Estates, was being excavated at press time, and 18 out of an eventual 25 imposing poured-concrete structures were at least halfway done. And though the potential for delay is high, developers expect to open a hotel, Cotton Bay Villas, in 2009. Although the first stage of development incorporates 200 acres of isolated beachfront land, eventual plans for this place will encompass 2,000 acres and will include a golf course designed by Robert Trent Jones, Jr.
At press time, Cotton Bay Villas promised a management team directed by Starwood, a company which has imposed many of its restrictions upon the site during early development phases. For more information about the hotel development or how to buy a condo, call tel. 242/334-6520 or go to www.cottonbayeleuthera.com.
