Land earmarked for Qatari hotel belongs to Govt – City Engineer confirms

…admits to cease order inadvertently posted at construction site

City Engineer Colvern Venture has confirmed that the plot of land which was earmarked for the new Qatari hotel belongs to the Guyana Government.
“My research also revealed that the plot of land to which the Mayor referred, at the Statutory Meeting, held on February 26, 2024, is owned by the Government of Guyana under Transport # 235 of 1863,” he informed in a statement on Tuesday.
His position was in response to a cease order notice which was inadvertently posted at the plot of land on Carifesta Avenue – where the $64.5 billion Georgetown Seafront Resort and Convention Center is slated to be completed by March 2026.

Moreover, this revelation comes in light of the Georgetown Mayor and City Council (M&CC) claiming ownership of the land – something which the Government has debunked. At a statutory meeting last Tuesday, Georgetown Mayor Alfred Mentore presented a transport purporting to show ownership for the lands in question.
Venture outlined that thorough research was conducted into the matter after a decision was taken at a Statutory Meeting on February 26 for the City Engineer to issue a cease order notice to the developers or persons carrying out works on the portion of land.
“First, the notice that was posted on the fence of the plot of land was not addressed to an individual of the above-mentioned hotel as certain reports seem to want to suggest. In fact, the notice was inadvertently posted on the fence, by my department,” Venture pointed out.
“I hasten to emphasise that as City Engineer of the City of Georgetown, it has never been my practice or intention to derail any company or foreign investors from investing in the city or the country as a whole. I am always ready and willing to work with all stakeholders…,” he concluded.
Attorney General and Legal Affairs Minister Anil Nandlall, SC, had long maintained that the two plots of land, previous known as the NIS and GNS Grounds, are owned by the State. In fact, he noted that City Hall’s property is a separate plot of land that remains untouched.

This was backed by the City Engineer, who revealed that the annotations on that Transport, #337 of 1887, has indicated that the Council, over the years, issued several leases for portions of its land to various Non-Governmental Organisations such as Critchlow Labour College, Muslim Youth Organisation, and Guyana Industrial Training Centre (GITC).
The Guyana Office for Investment (GO-Invest) has disclosed that the Qatari investors who are undertaking the construction of the Georgetown Seafront Resort and Convention Center will pay some $2 billion for the two plots of land that are currently under contention.
The facility will feature 260 luxurious rooms and suites, alongside 150 serviced apartments, which include branded residences and premium villas. The resort will also feature a world-class 30,000 square-foot convention centre outfitted with all modern amenities to cater for international conferences and events of diverse scales, thereby increasing Guyana’s competitiveness as a MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions) tourism destination.
The company spearheading this project, Assets Group is a subsidiary of Power International Holding (PIH), which is a Qatar-based conglomerate that has a diverse portfolio spanning various sectors such as real estate, hospitality, construction, manufacturing, and services. PIH has established itself as a prominent player in the Qatari business landscape, and has expanded its operations internationally in 19 different countries.
Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo has contended that with the rapid growth Guyana is undergoing, there is need for facilities like the Georgetown Seafront Resort and Convention Center.
“Anyone who visited the Marriott Hotel would have seen how we’ve outgrown that hotel. There is no space in the hotel to host any conference or anything anymore…This country is changing and you have to cater for all sorts of activities that bring benefits to the people of this country… This hotel will cost over US$300 million of private money. It will be a five-star hotel – the only one in the country and one of the few in the Region. It shall have convention space five times that of the Marriott ballroom… At the end of the construction, you’d have at least 500 Guyanese who would have permanent jobs there,” VP Jagdeo stated. (G12)