After much talk and negotiation, the Anguilla Government and Chairman and CEO of Cap Juluca Properties Ltd, Adam Aron, have signed a new Memorandum of Understanding, paving the way for the further development of the property.
The signing ceremony took place at the hotel on Friday, August 13, in the presence of many staff members, some of whom had been involved in the negotiations.

L-R: Ministers Walcott Richardson, Evan Gumbs, Edison Baird, CM Hughes, Adam Aron, Governor Harrison, Haydn Hughes, Jerome Roberts and Violet Gumbs

The signing followed the approval of the MOU by the Anguilla House of Assembly which met on Wednesday and Thursday, August 11 and 12, to debate and approve the document with amendments. It was approved by both sides of the House.

Mr. Aron told the gathering at the signing ceremony: “This is a very exciting day for Cap Juluca. We have been talking with our employees and the Government of Anguilla on the future of our resort and, as the headline of this week’s [Anguillian] newspaper states, ‘a new Memorandum of Understanding has been agreed between Cap Juluca and the Government of Anguilla’, which guarantees our future for many years to come. It is my distinguished honour and pleasure to thank the entire senior leadership of the Government of Anguilla for being here on this very important occasion…”

Chief Minister Hughes and Adam Aron signing MOU

Chief Minister, Hubert Hughes, said it was a most gruelling period in his life, to do what he thought was right for Cap Juluca, right for the employees, and right for the Government of Anguilla. “This was a very difficult balancing act,” he went on. “We were working from a very awkward disadvantageous position in that we had a Memorandum of Agreement which we felt was unusual and which we knew that Mr. Aron himself did not write…, and that memorandum was influenced by what the previous administration was giving to Gencom (a previous proposed developer).”

Mr. Hughes said the Government undertook to do as much as it could to make Mr. Aron and the workers of Cap Juluca comfortable.
“We sat with Mr. Aron and found him quite easy to deal with in that he never really gave us a tough time. He realised that we were willing to do a proper job,” the Chief Minister stated. He stressed that the Government had acted in the best interest of the people of Anguilla and had set a precedent by taking the MOU to the House of Assembly for the people to know about its contents. He added that even members of the Opposition had an opportunity to voice their opinion on the matter for the first time in ten years. Mr. Hughes said some amendments were made to the MOU and that everybody, including Mr. Aron and the Government, was happy.

Management and Staff personnel observing signing ceremony

Following the Chief Minister’s remarks, the MOU was signed by Mr. Hughes, his Deputy, Edison Baird; Mr. Aron; and Violet Gumbs, Secretary to the General Manager and representative of the employees.
Mr. Aron said he had been extraordinarily impressed by the hard work, diligence and dedication of Parliamentary Secretary for Tourism, Haydn Hughes, who led the negotiating team for the Government and who he invited to speak.

He reported that as part of the agreement, Mr. Aron had undertaken, at his own expense, to restore the old Cap Juluca road and that there were various significant changes in the new MOU as opposed to the old MOA. It was also agreed that Mr. Aron would develop and maintain the National Park, at the development site, with various amenities for public relaxation; that the developer would be prohibited from bringing in his own concrete plant as well as importing materials without consultation with local providers; and that the view of the nearby Sheriva Boutique Hotel would not be blocked by Cap Juluca’s development. He described the MOU as “a great win for the people of Anguilla.”

Cap Juluca's staff members at signing ceremony

Deputy Chief Minister, Edison Baird, said in part: “I am very proud to be part of a Government that has shown the flexibility and the practicality to reach agreement with Mr. Adam Aron, but the agreement is with the wider Cap Juluca community. No responsible Government could have stood by and allow Cap Juluca to capsize and sink to the bottom of the ocean. Too many jobs would have been lost and too many lives would have been financially destroyed.”

Mr. Baird said that the most controversial issue which, if not resolved, could have precluded Mr. Aron and the Government from reaching agreement, was the sale of the beachfront villas. “What we have to concentrate on is not the nature of the ownership of the villas, but rather the use of the villas,” he stressed. “True, the villas will be sold, but it is also correct to point out that each villa owner will only be allowed to live in his villa for a specified period during the year. When he is not in his villa, it will have to go back in the rental pool so the villas will operate as a hotel. They will generate service charge and accommodation tax and this is a situation that puts Mr. Aron in a position where he can generate the necessary funds to take care of the Hickcox case. That case has been strangling this property for too many years and we are glad we are getting that albatross off the neck of Cap Juluca.”
Governor Alistair Harrison congratulated all who worked with the Government of Anguilla's negotiating team, including the Ministers, Parliamentary Secretary and Jerome Roberts, to bring to fruition the MOU with Mr. Adam Aron.

“I think the Memorandum of Understanding clearly represents something that is in the very best interest of the people of Anguilla, the Government, Cap Juluca and of its workers and that is an excellent achievement,” he stated. He commended representatives of the staff of Cap Juluca who made a very important contribution to the negotiations. He also praised the Attorney General and his Chambers for the role they played in ensuring that the agreement legally reflected the policies the Government of Anguilla wanted to pursue.

Other speakers were Ministers Walcott Richardson and Evan Gumbs, as well as Jerome Roberts who is attached to the Ministry of Finance. They all expressed their pleasure with the agreed MOU and its positive effect on the development of Anguilla. They observed that it was in the best interest of the people of the island, including the employees of Cap Juluca.

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