30 luxury eco-lodges fully booked for CPL – Pres Ali

The 30 eco-lodges that are being constructed at Diamond on the East Bank of Demerara (ECD), have already been fully booked for the Guyana leg of the Republic Bank’s Caribbean Premier League (CPL).
President Dr Irfaan Ali inspected ongoing works on the eco-lodges on Friday. The project is being undertaken by DuraVilla Homes and seeks to merge luxury with nature and sustainability.
Built with 100 per cent local wood, the first-of-its-kind urban eco-lodges will be complemented by a pool, a 100 per cent local restaurant, and parking among other facilities. Upon the completion of the CPL, the units will be available to anyone interested.

“As it is, it is pre-rented already for nine days for CPL. All 30 units are completely rented out. Of course, it is less than four minutes to the National Stadium so it makes a lot of sense to rent the facility here,” President Ali noted.
Occupying two acres of land, it presents the opportunity for a new style of urban living, with coconut trees and water lilies on the premises to create an ‘oasis’ feel.
“It’s a luxury facility at an affordable cost. Facilities like this with this type of ecosystem are top-end luxury facilities. This would be similar but at an affordable cost,” the Head of State added.
He posited that staying in these homes comes with the assurance of supporting sustainability and a business that involves over 120 women. The women would have invested together, about $400 million in this project, but the value has since increased significantly.
“When they collectively came together, we had about maybe $400 million. From what we’re hearing from the valuation officers, this project has almost increased the net worth by three times already. This is what these projects do.”
The spinoff intention of this project was to showcase the potential of Guyanese wood and the fast rate of completion. Between two to three months, the eco-homes were completed.
Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of DuraVilla Homes, Rafeek Khan underscored that every component of the project is “innovative” and made locally.
“We’re going to be taking waste wood and creating live edge tables, countertops, beds. When I say live edge, you’re seeing the raw natural wood in play. Many times, the recovery of wood is about 40 per cent. We want to show when this project is done, we will have perhaps 75 per cent recovery from that log to his home; floor to roof, wall to wall.”

Additionally, uncommonly used timber species have been used in the construction of homes to promote sustainable living.
“We used Mora in the flooring system. We know Mora has been used to build bridges in Guyana in our jungles and it lasts a lifetime. We know Wallaba has been used elsewhere but not inside a home. We’re trying to bring nature into the home and create an element of sustainability, not just the feel of sustainability but economic sustainability.”
Construction, inclusive of landscaping, sewage and internals, will be in place by the end of the new week. The lodges sit at a prime location, with a new ecosystem of a regional hospital and new highways coming on stream.
Bookings can be made at Stabroek Online marketplace. There are already takes to establish a similar eco-lodge facility on Leguan Island. The Guyana leg of the CPL gets underway on September 13.