As the president of a firm that has developed more than $1.3 billion of property on the Cayman Islands, Jackie Doak has been instrumental in the region’s progress.
By Kelly Potts
Jackie Doak traveled what she calls a “very wandering path” that led to her becoming the President of Dart Real Estate, a Cayman Islands investment, development and management company. Doak has been with the company since its flagship development, Camana Bay — a 650-acre commercial and residential master-planned New Urbanist town — and has helped the company break barriers on the island ever since.
What are some major developments you’ve worked on with Dart Real Estate?
I worked on Camana Bay from its teaser, to announcing that it was open, to now celebrating our 10-year anniversary. Building a town in itself was a great experience, but hospitality and the way people feel is part of my DNA. I was part of the creative, collaborative design team of Kimpton Seafire Resort + Spa, and I also had the benefit of working on the Cayman Islands Yacht Club, which we acquired in 2011.
What was the design process like for Kimpton Seafire Resort + Spa?
Kimpton was the first new resort in the Grand Cayman in 10 years; we’d been fairly static as a tourist destination since 2005. We acquired the land that Kimpton is on in 2011 and spent a year master-planning going up five additional stories on the existing structures and adding additional buildings on the site. Although there was value in building up, we realized that if we demolished the hotel and started fresh, we’d have a much better product. We’re very proud of the decisions we’ve made and innovation is one of our values. Interior Designer Martyn Lawrence Bullard has the perfect personality for the residences at Seafire, which will be finished later this year for occupancy.
What do you hope that guests or residents of your developments will experience during their stay?
When I travel with my family, I come back with moments that really resound with me. And that, to me, is what I would like our visitors or customers to take away — meaningful moments that impact their life. It’s great to come to Camana Bay and buy a beautiful dress, but it’s more impactful where you went in that dress and what you experienced. We also want to create and capitalize on the infrastructure of the Cayman Islands. We surprise and delight many who come here for business, and we want to supplement that.
Location photos courtesy Camana Bay
Can you tell me about the placemaking approach used in your projects?
We really say that greater than the sum of our parts is our design excellence. If you don’t think about the experience of your customers or clients as they move through a property, as they park their car or as they walk around, you can be very functional, but not successful in making an impact. We focus on places that inspire you to live your best life. We take into consideration where the breeze comes from, how the sun moves over the property and how landscaping and water and shading will cool areas. We strive to make a place as inspiring as we can to promote health, activity and wellbeing.
Does Dart Real Estate have any exciting plans or projects coming up?
We recently completed a three-day workshop for Camana Bay in regards to a new commercial office building, a supermarket and doubling the capacity of the school. We’re going to have a very busy development cycle over the next few years, as we are also working on a 5-star resort in the Cayman Islands, where we have the opportunity to create multi-generational experiences including things like a lazy river and slide, kayaking, ziplining and a museum. We’re also talking about Phase Two of the Kimpton Residences, with 17 of 62 residences already pre-sold. The sales velocity has been very rapid, so we’re looking at creating an additional tower of residences at Kimpton Seafire.
What is your favorite aspect of being President of Dart Real Estate?
It’s great being president of an amazing company, but I was also the first female president of Dart. No day is the same and that’s what thrills me about working with this company. We have a very diverse group of individuals with many different life and education experiences, and we have a visionary and amazing shareholder in Mr. Dart. Being able to be a part of this company and inspire future generations is what makes it more than a job; every day I’m given the opportunity to leave an impact in the Cayman Islands.
Photo courtesy the Residences at Seafire/Dart Real Estate
The luxury residence brings a development of this scope to the island for the first time in over 40 years.
Caroline Bay, Bermuda is a 182-acre, ultra-luxury, waterfront destination and community situated on the west end of the island in Southampton and Sandy Parishes. With its pink sand and crystal clear beaches, the destination will be home to luxury branded Ritz-Carlton Reserve Residences, a reserve hotel with restaurants, a world-class spa, high-end retail and kids club. Adjacent to the development is Caroline Bay Marina, a superyacht marina for visiting yachts and Ritz-Carlton Reserve Residences.
Once the site of a U.S. Navy annex during World War II, Caroline Bay is being developed on the site located in Southampton and Sandy Parishes approximately 40 minutes from the airport.
Caroline Bay will offer the Ritz-Carlton Reserve Residences, which include 149 rooms, as well as the Ritz-Carlton reserve hotel, which is complete with 79 rooms and 2 restaurants. The hotel’s amenities include 2 pools, beaches and beach views, a world-class spa, retail, a kids club and watersports.
The Caroline Bay Marina will also offer transient slips for up to 30 superyachts, 80 berths exclusively for Ritz-Carlton Reserve Residence owners and access to the Caroline Bay Marina Yacht Club.
The Ritz-Carlton Reserve Residences will feature open floor plans and generous spaces for indoor and outdoor living. Every home is situated to take full advantage of the mesmerizing pink sand beaches and ocean views, while still offering a sense of privacy with retractable glass walls.
In the first phase, The Cove, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve residence, offers:
- 2-bedrooms, offering 1,938 square feet interior space with up to 707 square feet of outdoor living
- 3-bedrooms, offering 2,183 square feet with up to 971 square feet of outdoor living
- 4-bedroom penthouses, offering 3,174 square feet with up to 1,059 square feet of outdoor living and a private elevator entry
Pricing starts at $2.5 million, rising to $3.9 million for the penthouses.
The Cove, consisting of 35 residences, is the first phase to be built. The first residential buildings are slated for occupancy in the first quarter of 2018.
Also part of the first phase, the superyacht marina will accommodate visiting yachts up to 300 feet. Services will include electric power with multiple voltage options, telecommunications, Bermuda customs clearance, water, sewage pump out, trash disposal, ice and concierge services. The marina berths ranging in size from 38’ to 80’ are available for purchase exclusively by Ritz-Carlton Reserve Residence owners.
In addition to the superyacht marina and destination amenities, residence owners will receive a complimentary 1-year membership to Port Royal Golf Club, a Troon Privé club across the street from Caroline Bay.
The Ritz-Carlton Reserve Residences has recently launched a new website. More information on these stunning residences, can be found at BermudaLuxuryResidences.com.
The High End sat down with Kevin Venger to discuss his experience designing ultra-luxury buildings, working with industry greats, and meeting buyer demands.
By Hannah Fakhrzadeh
Kevin Venger, the co-developer behind Miami’s Regalia, Ten Museum Park and Paramount on the Bay has always been intrigued by the concept of developing and designing beautiful and luxurious buildings. “I have been developing, designing and building since I was a child. From my first self-performed treehouse to the art of the high-rise tower, I have always been intrigued by the concept.” To find out more about Venger’s designs and concepts, we sat down with him to see what he had to say.
What peaked your interest in building and developing in the luxury real estate market?
I am always fascinated by the near-endless possibilities of the luxury real estate market, because the buyer’s demand is not the norm. The ability to implement first-to-market materials, finishes and work with the world’s best designers affords a sense of excitement and thrill for me.
Considering the fact that expectations are high for properties in the industry, what are some of the hyper-specific design needs billionaires are asking for?
Billionaires with multiple homes around the world no longer want to invest extensive time into building out a new residence’s interior space, which often can take two years to complete and requires time involved in the selection process when working with an interior designer. Rather, they are seeking a more turnkey experience in which they can purchase a home with the millwork, finishes and often interior furnishings already in place to quickly move in.
Requests such as floating staircases and glass-faced pools are becoming more common. How do you explain the rise in the desire for such artistic elements?
Today’s home needs to equally be artistic and functional. Rare and unique elements are serving more than ever as conversation pieces, which are memorable to those who visit the residence and on a daily basis for the owner. From the floating staircase to the glass-faced pool in Regalia’s $35 million Beach House condo residences currently for sale, one cannot escape the exclusive sense of place in this home because of its one-off features. Those who purchase a residence such as this demand no less, and want to ensure their living experience cannot be easily replicated.
Can you discuss the climate of Miami’s $20 million and up real estate market?
While certain regions of the world have experienced financial woes, the ultra-luxury sector remains insulated and continues to draw interest due to its long-term value within the marketplace. As a result, the ultra-affluent market does not tend to fluctuate in the same manner.
Where do you see the market going in the future?
Miami is poised to reach a level of global attention as it continues to grow. With increased activity from China, Dubai and beyond, the next 10 to 15 years of Miami’s legacy will be defined by new foreign interest and prime investment opportunities for those who deem the city as the “new” London or New York in terms of projected future prices and its art, culture and lifestyle.
Photo courtesy Morris Moreno
One of your developments, Regalia, is one of Miami’s most sought-after oceanfront towers. Can you discuss the inspiration and idea behind it and what can be expected from it?
Our level of expectation exceeded the archetypal luxury condominium found in Miami, with our finishes comparable to the finest residences in New York City. For our buyers, we sought to create a curated living experience that was highly intimate in nature, with only 39 residences each residing on their own private full floor, which is very unique to the U.S., and further transcends beyond their residence into the amenity spaces in order to still feel livable and residential.
Inspiration behind Regalia’s exterior are the waves and wind; we felt it was important to have a meaning to its facade and be place-specific. The design embodies the beauty of Sunny Isles Beach and its oceanfront surroundings. Given Regalia’s location, the building marks the gateway between Sunny Isles and Golden Beach, so its design must be impactful, yet welcoming.
For the interiors of the residences, you tasked Charles Allem to design it. What made you choose Allem?
Charles Allem is a master at designing truly livable interior spaces that appeal to all tastes. Being that Regalia has many international residents, it was crucial to design for everyone, with subtle mixes of materials, color, textures and artwork that seamlessly work together. Allem created an ambience that flows to naturally unify the interior and exterior design palate.
Photo courtesy ARX Solutions
Another design you are behind is One Thousand Museum; can you discuss the idea behind that and what it offers?
One Thousand Museum celebrates an exterior facade (“exoskeleton”) design accentuated by curvaceous flow that continues elegantly into the interiors. This concept has never been seen on this side of the world. One Thousand Museum will greatly make a design impact within the downtown Miami urban setting, forever changing the skyline as a visionary masterpiece. As the only ultra-luxury building in the area with just 83 residences, it will remain a legacy project for Miami and another for Zaha Hadid.
The architect behind One Thousand Museum is Zaha Hadid. Can you describe Hadid and her legacy?
Her legacy speaks for itself already. She is one of the most fabulous individuals and unique designers that I have ever worked with. Since Miami will mark her first high-rise residential tower in the Western Hemisphere and her love of the city was well known (as she had a permanent residence here), One Thousand Museum is a really special project that adds to her worldwide legacy.
You’re behind many other luxury buildings like the Four Seasons Hotel & Residences Miami, Ten Museum Park and Paramount on the Bay. What have you learned from developing these projects that helped you with Regalia?
A residential project’s design, services, operations and use of materials all have to be in perfect harmony in order to create an ultra-luxury, five-star lifestyle experience. These elements cannot function on their own for true luxury to exist.
Top left photo courtesy Neoscape; top middle photo courtesy Ken Hayden; top right photo courtesy Catapult 13
These new residential options will bring two very different options to Pine Canyon residents.
Renderings courtesy Pine Canyon.
Pine Canyon, a private golf course and residential community in Flagstaff, Arizona, is preparing to break ground on estate homes and condos as the community experiences an increase in demand. Both Coconino Ridge and Mountain Vista will begin construction this summer.
Coconino Ridge, a moderately secluded enclave of 32 homesites nestled against the Coconino National Forest and overlooking picturesque hiking trails, will debut with a model that follows the 3-bedroom, 3.5-bath Coronado floorplan. The 2,660-square-foot model features an open floorplan, and utilizes center sliding doors to blend indoor and outdoor living.
Prices for homes in Coconino Ridge will range from $900,000 to $1.4 million, and the community began accepting reservations for in April.
“This neighborhood in particular really embraces its surroundings by offering design elements that strategically create a sense of inclusion, allowing the outdoor environment in and vice versa,” said Peter Burger, president of Symmetry Companies, which owns and manages Pine Canyon. “Coconino Ridge fosters flexibility when it comes to design, which is one of the reasons homeowners are offered unique options, from pocketing glass wall systems to bonus rooms, to customize their space at Pine Canyon.”
Mountain Vista, a village of condominiums that caters to buyers who appreciate a lock-and-leave lifestyle, will include 12 buildings with units ranging from 1,640 square feet to 1,990 square feet. Owners have the option of choosing fully-furnished units, and may also choose to have Pine Canyon manage their unit in their absence.