Brenda Visser

Scottsdale, AZ (BLZ)
Role(s):
Associate/Staff

The Plantation Club

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Location: Belize
Industry: Real Estate
Year Founded: 2017
Number Employees: 1-10 people
Business Stage: Growth (profitable)
Entity Type: Sole Proprietorship
Description: James Parker has been developing real estate both for his own account and for the account of others since 1980. Perhaps his most notable work prior to settling in Belize, was a 6-year (1987-1992) assignment as Vice President Real Estate Division for American Continental Corp, an $8.4 Billion N.Y.S.E. Fortune 100 diversified real estate conglomerate, developers of the world-famous Phoenician Resort in Scottsdale Arizona. Jim’s primary responsibility was the promotion and marketing of its largest mixed-use real estate project, Estrella, a 22,000-acre residential golf community located in West Phoenix. Estrella was featured in Newsweek magazine as the largest mixed-use real estate project under development in the United States at that time. Jim, first discovered Belize while vacationing through Central America with his young family in their RV in 1978. He was immediately impressed by the significant value that was offered by Belize beachfront land when compared to the more mature Caribbean destinations. From 1980 through 1994 Jim acquired and developed several parcels of beachfront land in Dangriga to the north of the Placencia Peninsula and Punta Gorda to the south. In 1995, he discovered a major 3,500-acre estate owned block on the Placencia Peninsula. At that time, this estate was the most significant and promising large parcel of beach frontage in the country of Belize comprising 7.3 miles of contiguous beach frontage and occupying nearly one half of the Placencia Peninsula. Jim wasted no time and soon put together a joint venture, MacKinnon Belize Land & Development, LTD, a Belize Chapter 250 company, in which he retained a 70% interest as Managing Director. This new joint venture under Jim’s direction developed the estate into a new Caribbean resort destination now known as The Plantation. Working with his architects & engineers, Jim developed The Plantation Master Plan (Exhibit A) consisting of 4 stages of development; Stage I, with 350 acres and 3 miles of beachfront, Stage II with 800 acres and 2 miles of beachfront, Stage III, with 966 acres and 2.3 miles of beachfront and Stage IV with 1,200 acres and 2.3 miles of water frontage along the west side of the Placencia Lagoon. He simultaneously started a rigorous government mandated Environmental Impact Assessment and in 1997, The Plantation Master Plan was approved by the Belize Department of the Environment, which enabled the development and buildout of Stage I. The development of The Plantation Stages I & II, stretching from Maya Beach northward to Riversdale would unfold over the next 20 years. These stages were either developed by Parker or subdivided and sold by Parker under the auspices of his joint venture development company. To date, Stage I has been developed into approximately 400 single family home sites, three commercial properties consisting of a projected total of 300 condominium and beach cabana units and a large lagoon side high end residential marina In Stage II, 616 acres has been sold to a third-party developer, and has received governmental approval to be developed into a high-density mixed use residential and commercial marina community and the remaining 184 acres has been developed and sold as 175 single family home sites. Jim’s success with Plantation Stages I & II, has served as a beacon for many others to follow in their quest for Caribbean beachfront development. Jim has netted in excess of $25 Million from Plantation Stages I & II, for both himself and his joint venture partners. Suffice to say, James Parker is arguably the most successful land developer in Belize and was likely the singular catalyst that promoted the Placencia Peninsula from a primitive jungle outback without roads or power to one of the most important new resort destinations in the Caribbean today.