Chairman of Sandals Resorts International Gordon "Butch" Stewart. Below, one of the pools at Sandals Barbados. (Pictures by Lennox Devonish.)

SANDALS RESORTS INTERNATIONALS proposed Beaches hotel in St Peter will not be starting this year.

Fresh from opening the new Sandals Barbados Resort & Spa, hotel magnate Gordon "Butch" Stewart said the "complex project" was still at the design stage. This means work is likely to start next year.

But speaking to the media following a tour of the refurbished property at Dover, Christ Church, Stewart said planning for the northern property was proceeding "at great speed" and that the new Sandals would be a major boost for Barbados, especially in the traditionally slow summer months.

At the same time, the veteran hotelier called suggestions that his company wanted a private beach in Barbados was "the most unfair accusation I have ever had".

Stewart said Sandals was now 80 per cent occupied, and that "if we end up at 80 per cent for the rest of the year I would be very unhappy"".

He also praised the quality of staff the company recruited in Barbados, and thanked residents in districts neighbouring Sandals for the patience and understanding while the hotel was being refurbished. (SC)

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Beaches resort start delayed