A company led by a Constable who previously expressed hopes of turning the Lido into a resort similar to Benidorm has been officially handed the keys to the iconic swim spot.
First Point Property Services – which goes by the trading name Lido Jersey, and whose director is St Clement Connétable Marcus Troy – will be taking over the Havre des Pas site on 1 April.
“An exciting new chapter”
Constable Troy said agreeing the lease “marks the beginning of an exciting new chapter for the Lido”, adding that his vision for the venue was “community-focused”.
Mr Troy, who is also Constable of St Clement, told the BBC last year that he aimed to transform the site into “a resort like Benidorm” – but yesterday he teased that First Point’s plans wouldn’t be revealed for another few weeks.
It marks the conclusion of a difficult saga over how and by whom the Lido should be run.
Last year, an initial tender process failed and an independent report found enough issues for it to be run again.
If at first you don’t succeed…
For the second attempt, Jersey Business was put in charge of overseeing the tender process.
Negotiations with the other bidder – community group Love Our Lido – were due to complete in January, but after Love Our Lido pulled out of the process, runners-up First Point Property Services were brought in to agree a lease.
When they backed out, Love Our Lido claimed the £66,000 annual grant that came with the site – as well as a rent-free lease – would not be enough to cover the bills.
Without more money, they said, the site risked “falling into disrepair and becoming a danger to the public”.
“Nine years of hell”
Marcus Calvani, who ran the venue until the end of last year, said he wished the new operators “every success in their future endeavours”.
During his tenure, Mr Calvani was a strong critic of Jersey Property Holdings – the government body which looks after all public-owned property – having said in the past few months that it had made his tenure into “nine years of hell”.
At one point in 2023, Graeme Smith, the former CEO of Jersey Business, had to be called in to act as an independent mediator between the tenants and government.
After an eviction dispute in January saw question marks placed over whether Mr Calvani’s furnishings and equipment would need to be removed, Jersey Business has now said there was an “agreed transition between the parties that included assets, licenses and branding”.
This process was now complete, they said.
