Development of St Lucia Jalousie Enclave to commence

Kennedy Funding, a New Jersey-based commercial real estate lender, announced this week that it has closed a multi-million dollar luxury residential development loan to finance the construction of the Jalousie Enclave, that will be an extension of the famo

CASTRIES, St Lucia, April 8, 2010 – After more than 20 years in planning, exclusive St Lucian luxury residential community the Jalousie Enclave looks set to receive the much needed funding to bring the project to completion.

Kennedy Funding, a New Jersey-based commercial real estate lender, announced this week that it has closed a multi-million dollar luxury residential development loan to finance the construction of the Jalousie Enclave, that will be an extension of the famous US$40 million Jalousie Plantation built by the M Group in St. Lucia in 1988. Financed by direct private lender Kennedy Funding, the loan will provide working capital to complete the Jalousie Enclave and to commence construction of infrastructure improvements.

"We dreamed up the idea for the Jalousie Enclave back in 1989, so we are very excited to get the capital we needed to get this project underway," said Pascal Mahvi, President of M Group Resorts S.A. "Thanks to the loan that Kennedy Funding provided, we are able to make this dream a reality and also help support the St. Lucia community by creating nearly 300 jobs and generating more revenue for the local businesses," he said. "The Jalousie Enclave will be the only gated luxury residential community in a World Heritage Site."

Nested in the Pitons valley extending 200 acres, the Jalousie Enclave was publicly launched in July 2008 as the first “green” residential community in the world. The value of the Kennedy loan remains undisclosed, but in November 2009 Mahvi and CFMB Cedar Falls Municipal Band announced the execution of a commitment letter, formalizing CFMB's intention to provide construction financing totaling US$75 million for the development of The Jalousie Enclave. That financing was arranged-by Shane A. Swetel, owner of Las Vegas-based consulting firm Selective Development. 

"This type of project is very ambitious in the current environment when so many traditional lenders will not provide developers with desperately needed luxury residential development loans," said Jeffrey Wolfer, President and Co-CEO of Kennedy Funding. "As a direct private lender, we are able to look at the potential of the land to close the loan quickly, helping to complete projects and create jobs."

In addition to building the Jalousie Enclave, the Jalousie Plantation is undergoing a $150 million renovation and will soon be renamed the Tides at Sugar Beach – operated by the Viceroy Hotel Group. The Jalousie Plantation – home to ABC's recent The Bachelor: On the Wings of Love finale – is a first-class resort, located on 129 acres of beach front property, and is listed as one of UNESCO's 820 "World Heritage Sites."