You Could Have Bought Cuba
Dream of a Castro-free Cuba may wash away
By HANK TESTER
Updated 3:30 PM EST, Mon, Nov 30, 2009
You could have bought Cuba, and the package would come without Fidel or Raul Castro.
A real estate group in the Miami area was representing a organization that had the rights to the island and at first glance it looked like a fun project.
"There should be a lot of rich Cubans interested," one of the promoters said.
A video tape prospectus was going to be shipped any day. There was a website. But suddenly the steam behind the project dissipated. The Cuba sale had gone silent. What would have been a fun idea evaporated like spit on a griddle.
The "Island of Cuba" was part of "The World," a man-made series of islands just off the coast of Dubai. Shaped roughly like the land mass of the Earth, the various "countries" were being sold to high rollers and corporations world wide. The islands were to be laced with mansions, hotel developments, resorts, all themed to the corresponding country.
Yes, there is a small island representing Cuba within the $14 billion project, which by the way was basically the dredging costs.
How much to buy Cuba? The ultra small patch of sand would set you back about $10- to $15 million. The owner would have to create the ambiance that would replicate "Cuba."
But alas, there seems to be no chance to purchase "The Pearl of the Antilles." The World project is slowed, if not stopped altogether according to news reports. Not maintained, the sandy islands could slip back into the water. Cuba could go under quicker than most due to size and no apparent buyer on the horizon.
Now the world's financial squeeze has finally surfaced in Dubai. The go-go days have screeched to a halt. Will the financial crisis squash any chance of someone buying "Cuba?" Likely, and so a Cuba without the Castro Brothers continues to just be a dream, at least in the short term.
Hank Tester has been covering news and politics in South Florida since 1992.
First Published: Nov 30, 2009 11:18 AM EST
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