Paradise postponed

It was sold as an investment in paradise. The sales pitch offered a vision of swaying palms, a heavenly beach and a private holiday residence with impeccable staff on hand to cater for the whims of even the most pampered celebrity. The prices began at $10 million but this did not stop some of London's wealthier individuals rushing to put down their money.

Andrew Lloyd Webber, Simon Cowell, Formula 1 personality Eddie Jordan and music industry mogul Lucian Grainge were among those who are said to have bought into the Black Rock development on the Platinum Coast of Barbados. All they had to do was choose the fine details of their own Caribbean dream and sit back and wait. And wait ... and wait.

Indeed, after a recent unexpected difficulty in this corner of paradise it seems they may have to wait for some time. Lord and Lady Lloyd-Webber are among a number of investors who have become impatient. Some have formed an action group to try to get things moving. They have all placed deposits on luxurious villas, costing up to $30 million, and so far there is no sign of a firm completion date.

Matters came to a head last week when workers on the site were told to pack up and leave. Today, work is at a standstill. Lord Lloyd-Webber is said to be taking legal advice.

He and X Factor judge Simon Cowell are believed to have placed deposits on two villas each at the Black Rock site. The 32-acre beachside plot was spotted several years ago by Mike Pemberton, the developer and hotelier, who built The Sanderson hotel in London and a string of five-star operations across the Caribbean. Pemberton has lived on Barbados for 20 years.

His house, Alang Alang, has long been coveted by upscale visitors to the island. Pemberton spent six years designing and building the property, fitting it out in Balinese style using native hardwoods and corals. In 2005 he and his partners bought the Black Rock site, then derelict, from the Sandals hotel chain. They paid $40 million, financed by the Bank of Scotland, and entered into a deal with the Four Seasons group.

The idea was to build a super-luxury Four Seasons hotel surrounded by 30 villas designed in the acclaimed style of Alang Alang. Some villas would have 18,000 sq ft of living space - the size of 10 average London homes - and cost $30 million. The houses were to be finished with aged teak doors from Indonesia, coral stone from the Caribbean and hardwoods from Brazil. The look was to be complemented by pieces sourced from French flea markets. Pemberton's own home has a dazzling collection of antique French glass.

Pemberton's plan for the Black Rock scheme centred on the villas being serviced by staff from the Four Seasons hotel. For an annual charge of $30,000, villa owners would received the attentions of a butler, gardener, chef and maid.

Lady Lloyd-Webber was especially enchanted by this. "The idea of being able to pitch up at 2am off a flight to find your home in immaculate condition and then be able to order room service is the ultimate luxury," she has said.

For some, an added attraction was a proposed rental pool. The plan was for the villas to be let to guests paying up to $7,000 a day, with the owners to receive 60 per cent of earnings. The Four Seasons name and the presence of Pemberton's business partner, Robin Paterson, a former leading player in the Hamptons estate agency, made this an appealing option. In 2005 the completion date was given as 2008. It is now said to be 2011.

As recently as last November, Pemberton was upbeat about the project. He told The Nation newspaper on Barbados that the financial downturn was not having a negative effect on the Black Rock development.

"There are a lot of wealthy people around the world," he said. "This week's been quite a busy week. We've had a very serious inquiry for an $18 million villa and the gentleman asked if it is possible to turn a six-bedroom into an eight-bedroom, with a huge play area for his children, a large cinema and a dining pavilion."

Pemberton went on: "They are businessmen that have sold their businesses, sitting on a lot of cash and the most important thing is that they are coming down to buy acres for two reasons. They love Barbados, where they've been coming for years, and their children encourage them to buy in Barbados because the children like coming to Barbados and the other thing is that they feel safe in Barbados."

He added that out of the original 30 villas planned, only 10 were left unsold. In January, he said the first eight would be handed over this year. The hotel would be finished in 2011, he added.

The prime minister of Barbados, David Thompson, has taken a personal interest in Pemberton's scheme and was recently photographed making a promotional visit. A source in his office told the Evening Standard that Mr Thompson believed the development was crucial to the island's expansion as a tourist destination and its economy.

Mr Thompson's spokeswoman Natasha King said: "The prime minister has had meetings with the developers and he has been assured that the project will continue." Asked about the closure of the site and laying-off of workers Ms King said: "This is temporary. It will re-start." Asked when she replied: "We don't know."

Pemberton's idea was seen by some as an attempt to capture the cachet and profit of the Sandy Lane resort. For a few weeks each year, around Christmas and New Year, this spot appears to be the epicentre of a showbusiness earth tremor.

Simon Cowell, Sir Philip Green, Jeremy Clarkson, the Beckhams, Richard E Grant, David Frost and the Lloyd Webbers are regulars, as are Hugh Grant and Jemima Khan, although not necessarily together these days. Michael Winner usually plays the dame at this celebrity pantomime. Such a concentration of well-known people attracts others who are prepared to pay a typical £42,000 for a Christmas family holiday (not including flights) at Sandy Lane.

Pemberton, often known as Mr P on the island, was anxious to attract some of this clientele and expand on it. A local real estate broker said: "The Brits have always come here. But the Americans are not quite as keen. Mr P wanted to bring in some high-rollers from the States and to do this he needed a name like the Four Seasons. The Americans want to be looked after. They want to know there is a name they recognise, making sure they get the standard they are used to."

The Four Seasons embraced the idea enthusiastically but when the Standard contacted the company at its headquarters in Canada to get the latest take on the Barbados venture, a spokesman declined to comment and referred to a statement from Pemberton's company, Cinnamon 88.

This said: "The current global crisis, coupled with uncertainty about recovery time of the world economy, has resulted in a review of, in particular, the scale and design together with timelines for the hotel development. Such a review requires consultation with numerous parties and is likely to take a few working days, so work will be suspended during this period."

The statement added that construction would resume "within the next week and the 2011 completion date was not affected".

The decision to halt work prompted some to wonder whether funding for the project had run into difficulties. The budget was set at around £280 million but the calculations were made long before the banking crisis.

The scheme has also been dogged by controversy. Pemberton enraged many on Barbados when he brought in Chinese construction workers. At one point there was anger when it was disclosed that 600 Chinese had been flown on to the island amid suspicion they did not have work permits.

There were calls for the government to intervene but a compromise was reached and the Chinese were allowed to stay. Pemberton's company said the Chinese workers had impressed them on other projects but they would try to hire as many Barbadians as possible.

One islander told the Standard: "The Chinese workers were still there when they packed up the site last week. We don't know what's going to happen to them now."

Pemberton also aroused criticism when it was suggested his resort might have a private beach. Barbados has long prided itself on the fact that its beautiful beaches are open to all and even the super rich cannot fence off their own parts of the coastline.

After the report that the Black Rock residents would have their own private seafront, tourism minister Richard Sealy moved to quell the ensuing anger. He said: "We have made it clear as a government that there should be no private beaches. I'm under no misconceptions at all. The beaches belong to the people. When we invite people here to enjoy our beaches, they must understand that they are coming to share and not to own and our policy is very, very, very clear."

The issue was a tricky one, because the Black Rock beach is famous for its turtle population and tourist boats gather there in their dozens, carrying visitors who swim with the turtles. As Michael Winner has pointed out: "You can't get near the sodding turtles because of the sodding tourists."

It seems to have been a defect the likes of Lord Lloyd-Webber and Simon Cowell were prepared to overlook. But when it comes to waiting for the fulfilment of a dream that remains, well, a dream, it may be another matter. Efforts to discover just how much they had already paid for their little piece of Caribbean heaven yielded no results.

What is certain, however, is that for the moment, paradise has been postponed.