Business

Dionne Rose, Business Reporter

The Betting, Gaming and Lotteries Commission (BGLC) is finalising with Tanny Shirley a deal to purchase the Shirlhome building on Hagley Park Road in Kingston, which it will outfit as its permanent headquarters and centralise operations of the gaming regulator which has five offices spread across Kingston.

Derrick Peart, executive director of the BGLC, whose income comes from gambling revenue, told the Financial Gleaner that the commission has been seeking a permanent home for the past five years.

"The commissioner has been on a long search. We have looked at several premises ... over several years," he said.

Peart said that the commission, which is the regulating agency for the gaming industry, including wagering on horses, lottery and gaming lounges, would be acquiring the 61,000-square foot property - on which a 37,000-square foot building currently sits - for $240 million.

Shirley, up to press time, had not responded to requests for comment on why he was selling, and where the business would be relocated.

The BGLC operates from Ruthven Road, where it owns 6,500 square feet of space, but also rents two other premises there, as well as nearby Winchester Road and at Shalimar Avenue - some of which is used for storage of confiscated equipment.

But BGLC apparently sees the need for larger operating space for staff in an industry about to become more complex, given recent adjustments to laws that allow gaming and betting companies to expand into new income streams, including sports wagers.

"The lack of accommodation is a factor," said Peart, adding that the commission needed adequate space to accommodate its more than 50 staff complement, and to serve the public efficiently.

"Where we are located is completely inadequate; parking is a huge problem and when people come from all over to do business," there is no room on the compound to facilitate them.

The BGLC, he added, has also been forced to scale back on aspect of its operations, including seizures of assets due to lack of space to store equipment.

Pressed on the commission did why not seek space in the downtown area where the state-run Urban Development Corporation has office space available, Peart said this was done, but no suitable accommo-dations were found of the size needed by the commission.

"We intend to serve from one location; we do not intend to set up branches," he said.

He insists that the 20-year-old Shirlhome complex was acquired at a good price.

"We got three independent valuations and negotiated from there," he said, noting that valuations ranged from a low of $180 million to a high of $320 million.

"We negotiated aggressively," he said, to secure as part of the deal a standby generator, air-conditioning unit and water tank.

He also insists that the acquisition was above board. "All the require-ments of the Government of Jamaica's procurement guidelines have been followed exactly," he said, in light of the aggressive stance by the contractor general to ensure that state agencies conform to legal rules on the expenditure of state resources.

Meanwhile, Peart said the commission would partly fund the cost of the property from its budget, and partly through a vendor's mortgage.

"The commission had wanted to purchase it in cash, but we had to contribute $600 million to the Consolidated Fund," he said.

"The mortgage is manageable. There is no expectation that we will call on the ministry or the Conso-lidated Fund for any financing of the property. It will be serviced from the cash flow of the commission," he added.

BGLC has already made a downpayment on the property, with Peart describing the acquisition as far advanced.

Shirlhome Chemical Corporation Limited will vacate the building after the deal is closed. The commission plans to move in by yearend.

dionne.rose@gleanerjm.com