Premier’s Office relocating | Paying $1.2M over 5 years to rent spaces at Cutlass Tower
Government has entered into a five-year lease agreement valued a little more than $1.2 million for rental accommodation for the Office of the Premier.
According to a report on Cabinet’s October 2 meeting, government decided to enter into the lease agreement with Lake Development Co. Ltd who is the owner of the Cutlass Tower on Waterfront Drive in Road Town.
The post Cabinet statement said the lease covers two floors of the building. The Premier’s Office will rent one floor for three years and the other for five years.
The three-year lease is for an office space measuring 3,067 square feet while the five-year lease if for another space measuring 932 square feet.
Based on the said Cabinet statement and on additional information from Premier Andrew Fahie, the agreed yearly rate to lease each office space is $38 per square foot. In addition to that annual rate, the government is also required to pay a “monthly service fee” of $4.25 per square foot, per floor.
By BVI News’ tally, government is projected to pay an annual sum of $272,963 and $82,948 for Office-space #1 and Office-space #2, respectively.
Over three years, government will pay a total of $818,889 for Office-space #1. Over the five years that Office-space #2 will be rented, government is projected to pay $414,740. The total accumulated cost that government will pay for the rented period amounts to $1,233,629.
‘Cost was not determined by Premier’s Office’
According to Premier Fahie, the spaces have been temporarily leased to facilitate repairs to the Central Administration Complex in Road Town.
While answering questions from BVI News on Sunday, November 3, Fahie made it clear that his government was not responsible for negotiating the cost of the rental accommodation
“The Deputy Governor’s Office, through its Housing Accommodation Committee, has been working on securing appropriate accommodation for the Public Officers and staff who have been based at the [Central Administration Complex] building since the hurricanes. The temporary accommodations were approved by this established committee that is independent of political interference,” Fahie said.
“In addition, one cannot tell owners of building and space how much they should charge. Either the best is done to negotiate and take it, or if not, move on. In this case where so many government offices are looking spaces and the spaces are limited then there poses the challenges,” he further explained.
Premier Fahie told BVI News the public will “find out shortly where the other government offices that are now in the building (Central Administration Complex) will be temporarily housed.”
Below is the full decision on the lease agreement
as published by Cabinet:
Decided that the Government of the Virgin Islands enter into a lease agreement with Lake Development Co. Ltd. for two floors for a period of three (3) years for office space measuring three thousand and sixty-seven (3,067) square feet and for five (5) years for office space measuring nine hundred and thirty-two (932) square feet in the Cutlass Tower to accommodate the Office of the Premier at the rate of thirty-eight dollars ($38) per square foot, plus a monthly service fee of four dollars and twenty-five cents ($4.25) per square foot, per floor.
Copyright 2024 BVI News, Media Expressions Limited. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or distributed.
It appears that BVI News cannot do math. Writer went to school in the BVI? 3067 sq ft x $42.50 = $130,347 per year. The smaller space is 932 x $42.5 = $39,610. How are you people supposed to operate a country when you can’t operate a simple calculator. You should all be ashamed of yourselves.
Reading is key. Can any say ‘decimal point’? ? smh
No financial services company or law form would go into that building – the Govt is the tenant of last resort for any empty locally owned building. Watch for news of a lease of the eyesore on the Francis Drake Highway (with no parking) next.
but it done lease. They just aint put it out yet. wait for it.
BVI Ports Authority already lease space in the building on the highway. BVIPA is a statutory body so I assume they don’t have to put their decisions for public view like central government. The Premier making sure his cousin eating good. Wasteful spending if you ask me.
The Minister of a certain Works is benefiting here too. Don’t forget him in the mix, his mother-in-law. Its sick what goes on around here, this govt is more bold than the NDP. That’s for sure.
Your all so stupid to let this crap go unchecked. Nowhere on the planet is a service charge more than the rent. Is this building in NY, Paris or Tokyo. It’s in a s**thole island where the building isn’t worth the amount of rent going to be paid by the government. This is right up there with BVI Airways
You tell me Andrew Altirow Fahie can’t lease from anyone else other than his auntie and minister of government mothering law?
I am not sure if you’re deliberately trying to mislead people or if your comprehension skillS are really this poor. It is $4.25 per month NOT PER YEAR.
It says $4.50 per sq ft per month for the service charge but I suspect that is the annual charge.
Anybody who wants to pay me $1.2 million dollars for a 5 year lease on 4000 square feet ,please be aware that it will include gold plated toilets, a holiday in Las Vegas and a night with the film star of your choice.
Doing a Jig over this news from her nephew
For 3067 sq ft
Rent = $116,546 per year
plus
Service fee = $156,417 per year
Total $272,963 per year
The way it was written must be a mistake. What is in that service fee that it is more than the basic rent?! Building maint, elevator maint or something else. Something is not right here. $38 per sq ft for rent plus $51 per sq ft for service fee? The Govt is paying a whopping $89 per sq ft for office space?? I guess there will be a correction shortly.
You are as ignorant as the one who wrote the article. The rent is $38 sq ft per year. The service charge is $4.50 per year for a total of $42.50 per year. You people need to upgrade your schools so that you can learn how to read and do math. It doesn’t get any more basic than this.
And you add to the ignorance with your own special touch of ignorance eeh!! Send HELP.
You more foolish than the person you criticizing cause you can’t tell the difference between monthly and yearly. The rent for the first lease is calculated at 3,067 sq ft x $38 per annum = $116,546.
However, the service charge is calculated at $4.50 per month per sq ft: In other words the service charge is $4.25 x 12 x 3,067 sq ft = $156,417.
Learn simple maths and stop trying to make us black people look uneducated. Hopefully no on judges a whole race based on your stupidity.
The Article states there is a “monthly service fee” of $4.25 per square foot, per floor.
You are accusing people of not being able to read, so where did you see $4.50 per year
Please read the article properly
Ndp had it rent how long as store room and did not pay rent for long they had too lock them out for there money talk that
This looks like corruption. The Premier is her nephew and the Minister responsible for the complex project is her son in law.
I could tell you.
We all knew it was coming LOL…P**s is going to make her money left,right and center
Hello Hello every body is not a fool what is going on in this place. ?
The premier take us all for fools
Plain and simple…
This Governent just makin the rich even rich I never see more none sense .
Five year lease??? Is so long it’s going to take to get the admin building repaired??
That you government of inclusion doing big things. Stop thr brawling
Will the government complex take 5 years to renovate? Isn’t this lady the premier’s first cousin? Is this nepotism? Isn’t this the second building rented from this same person? Is this the average rental rate? So far has the VIP done any thing to generate revenue?
Which commercial building will rent office space for under a 5 yr term? Show me a building where government would get a 2 year lease for all that space? Besides who really cares? The Admin complex cannot accommodate all govt offices so let the premier stay where he is and other offices can occupy the complex. Everyone seems to be pulling at straws here.
Lots of them rent for under 5 years from chatting bull shiggedy. It is our tax money being wasted here! Why is the Complex taking 5 years to rebuild anyway?? WTF they putting on it a helicopter pad, swimming pools, a track??? Yes I am being sarcastic, 2 years top this project should be done.
I bet they cant get out the building when its time, she will hold them right in there hostage.
There are 1 and 2 year Lease terms for commercial buildings.
Huh! Well sah! 1 million for bodyguards and another million for office space
The bam bam bam baam lady and her mother will do all the interior decorating
WHY DO THEY HAVE TO ABANDON THE WHOLE BUILDING WHEN THEY COULD DO ONE WING AT A TIME????????????
The whole building isn’t being “abandoned” Only the Premier’s office is relocating for now the rest of the admin will be moved at a later date. In other words they doing exactly what you are suggesting.
The rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer. Aren’t they related? Isn’t she on the Airport Authority Board? I know she is a strong supporter of the VIP. VIP and NDP are the same. No difference whatsoever. When are we going to start electing people who will do the right thing? All the money Government has paid in rental fees over the years could have build another admin complex. Hopefully some good people will step forward soon to contest the next election. We should be tired of recycling the same old deadbeat politicians.
This would be called corruption in any other country
It is corruption at it’s best. Blatant Trumpism. Auntie and Mother in law will put some of that dough in safekeeping for when the lose next election.
THE GOVERNOR AND THE GOVERNMENT ARE ALL A WASTE OF TIME…..DISAPPOINTED IN BOTH
And I can’t get my 2016 increment
Irma was 2017. We almost 2020 so to those asking if it will take 5 years to fix, it all depends on the priority level amongst other things. The people from the admin will have to be relocated in a shift system as there isn’t many options available for that many people. The Cutlass building cant hold all of them as well. They will have to repair in sections while alternating the relocation until the repairs are complete.
Lord have mercy still can’t get my increments that is due what a country keep it up fahie
To all the complainers please list the locations of all the available office spaces preferably in the Town area. There isn’t many office spaces that are available right now that can accommodate a large office. If it was another situation I would have complained as well but this is not one of the cases.
Let’s say for argument sake that supply is limited. Please justify the length of the lease? Is the government suggesting that it would take five years to fix the complex? Utter nonsense.
Another government division was using the premises sometime before Irma By the previous government. I would assume that after the Admin is fixed they may continue to use the premises to house another government department. They only moved when the building was damaged and had a dispute about money owed. I didn’t hear anybody complaining when the previous government was leasing the place. The previous government used the building to hold functions as well. Not everything is done with bad intentions. A lot of the complainers are just supporters of the previous government or haters of the current government. The only way this would be considered corruption is if there are other suitable spaces available in the town area and this is strictly about the owner.
The Government cannot tell a private building owner what terms they want, I am not sure there are many buildings that would rent their space for 2 years at a time so surely there’s a reason why they have the 5 year term.
Yes you can let a private owner know how many terms you want …please stop talking foolishness.
We do when renegotiating our lease.
Omar Hodge Building
glancina george building
The last government refused to fix the complex after being damaged from Hurricane Irma. Now the present government is moving out to fix the complex and this is a problem? This is just political mischief.
Costs to outfit the building and also ac units will also need to be added
Why is this a big deal? In the BVI dam if you do & dam if you don’t. If the Premier & his government do like the last government & do not fix the comolex then people will complain. Now everyone is moving out to fix the building & they still complaining. Better they leave the mashed up complex as is and then let’s move on as was.
P***y strike again I wonder how much it going cost port in rent for the building on the highway.. can you imagine A P*******g got demoted for speaking against such move…..
A P…….g words, I don’t care what come out of it. I wonder if he remember the world round. We don’t care, plain and simple! Today for me, tomorrow for you!!!!
Is this coming with the parking lot?
I pray to you The Most High, [not the great God of the Universe], to have mercy on us as a territory and as a people. Only you can get out us out of this hole we have been in for the last 400+ years.
There are no chains on our bodies, but out souls and spirits are totally messed up and there is absolutely no hope in sight.
Amen
What kind of faith you have praying then saying there’s no hope.
Faith is the substance of things hoped for the evidence of things not seen
And the beat goes on. We haven’t seen anything yet!