Developers of the former Pink Beach property are seeking permission to build further residential units on the South Shore land.

According to a planning application submitted this month, Sardis Development Ltd is seeking to erect ten residential units on the north-western corner of the Smith’s site to “support the viability” of its $51.4 million hotel project announced back in March.

Documents included in the application, viewable at the Planning Department offices, state that the units would be available for rent in the local housing market and managed by the hotel, with residents having access to the hotel’s restaurants and services.

“These residential units will help to support the hotel facilities and dilute the operating costs of the hotel,” the documents state. “Importantly, they will provide a means of overcoming the seasonality of Bermuda tourism by assisting with cash flow during the winter months.” The new units would be erected within two buildings, each of which would be partially two-storey and partially three-storey in height.

In addition to the units, the area would include a communal swimming pool and parking spaces for 13 cars.

The application states that the development would be on tourism-zoned land that has an Agricultural Reserve “overlay”, stating that the land has not been used for farming for more than a decade.

A recent Environmental Impact Assessment of the property carried out for the hotel project stated the land had become a “dumping ground” littered with an abandoned boat and vehicle parts.

The site has since been cleared and is being used to store potted plants, which will be used in the hotel’s landscaping.

In exchange for building on the land, the developers have proposed expanding the Woodlands Reserve and Coastal Reserve areas on the eastern lot.

In total, the developers proposed exchanging 39,654 square feet of agricultural reserve for 98,920 square feet of woodland reserve and coastal reserves.

When Sardis, a Canadian company, made its announcement in March it detailed that it would erect a new 34-room boutique hotel that would feature two restaurants and two swimming pools, as well as gym and spa facilities.

The project will also include six guest condominiums, two guest suites and a large home, which would be part of the hotel’s stock for at least six months per year for the first five years of the hotel’s operation.

Ground was officially broken on the project in July.