CAY HILL–Ongoing restoration and development works being carried out at Mary’s Fancy Estate will take into consideration the Estate’s heritage and ecological significance. General Pension Fund St. Maarten APS Director Nadya van Putten has been developing and restoring the Estate since its acquisition in 2014.
Several major developments are taking place at Mary’s Fancy Estate as part of plans being formulated for its future use.
“APS envisions the preserving of the ecological system and surrounding green areas of the Estate as well as the heritage and historic value of the property itself. Once completely restored, the property will still be a place of peace and tranquillity, with the creation of a botanical garden,” said Van Putten.
Plans for the estate include a two-story high-end eco-boutique hotel with elevated pavilion-style suites for guests’ accommodation. Customers of the nearby Rainforest Adventures St. Maarten and day visitors will be welcome to visit the restaurant or garden area.
The rehabilitation envisioned is to make improvements to the characteristic structures of Mary’s Fancy Estate, including the plantation house, the sugar mill (which is actually a boiling house and chimney), the Estate grounds and the rock wall.
The restoration of the Estate includes not only work on the plantation house, but also on remains of other structures considered monuments at the site.
The plantation house will become a multi-functional area and could boast a lobby and an art gallery in the future. On occasion, it may even serve as a venue for wedding ceremonies.
The boiling house could function as a restaurant while the brick oven is to be incorporated in the development plans.
With the first phase of the restoration works now completed, lights on walls at the entrance of the Estate have been turned on. Works forming part of the first phase of the restoration covered the adjacent trench as well as a new entrance and exit path to and from the Estate.
The process for each APS real estate development project consists of development, engineering, advising, tendering, evaluation of bids, contracting out, outsourcing of the supervision of construction, monitoring of the budget and expenditures, and progress reporting. The overall projects include a pre-development phase, the (conceptual) design and engineering phase, followed by construction and after-care.
Source: The Daily Herald https://www.thedailyherald.sx/islands/67747-aps-on-schedule-with-mary-s-fancy-project
No history in that wall – RFA walls looking much better