Stabroek Business has been reliably informed that the assets of the Ocean View Hotel have been acquired by city businessman Jacob Rambarran.
News of the sale of the once highly-touted hotel comes amidst persistent reports that the original proprietor, George Lord, who remigrated to Guyana in the 1980’s was encountering serious financial difficulties. Stabroek Business has tried to reach Mr Lord but was told that he was out of the country.
Staff at the Ocean View remain tight-lipped about the reported sale of the property. One member of staff told Stabroek Business that she was not aware that ownership of the hotel had changed hands. However, when Stabroek Business visited the hotel on Wednesday and requested to see Rambarran – who is also the proprietor of a local television station – our reporter was told that he was “not in.”
The Ocean View Hotel had been highly favoured by evening revellers for its location at Liliendaal, close to the sea wall. Its Convention Centre is also a popular venue for conferences, weddings, receptions and other public functions and has also been used to hold sittings of the National Assembly when renovation works on Parliament Buildings were being carried out.
The previous proprietor had in the past told Stabroek Business that he was concerned about raising standards at the hotel and that those concerns centred around acquiring competent staff. During last year the hotel faced a number of criticisms associated with charges of poor service.
Over the past year and in the wake of the construction of several new hotels in Georgetown immediately prior to last year’s Cricket World Cup competition in the local accommodation industry has become stiffer and patronage of the Ocean View Hotel reportedly declined further.
This past year the hotel has been the venue for a number of popular entertainment events, an indication that the facility was experiencing a reduction in the level of conventional hotel business.