The operators of Shelly Bay Beach House hope to have the facility up and running in time for the summer despite complicated structural challenges with the building.

Renovations have begun on the waterfront Hamilton Parish property, which will include a fully licensed restaurant and bar with water sports and beach facilities, as well as expanded parking in the existing eastern lot.

Tom Steinhoff, of Shelly Bay Beach House Ltd, anticipates that he will spend more on the facility than the $1m originally estimated in June 2015 due to structural challenges including rusting steel supports in the walls and wood rot in the roof.

However, he plans to have the venue open in time for the summer — at the earliest June — and said that up to 20 new jobs could be created once it is completed.

Outlining some of the ongoing plans, Mr Steinhoff said: “We want to improve the layout a little bit — it will be the same size; we are just changing the shape of the roof.

“We will have a covered patio so we are able to do indoor and outdoor dining. The outdoor patio will be mostly covered and will have retractable walls so we can close it on bad weather days.

“We had to spend more on the structure of the building but I think the end result will be fantastic. We are shooting for June but the reality is we may come up against some more hurdles and challenges with the construction. We are taking it back to a clean palette so we should be able to make some progress soon.

“Our spending has gone up a bit but we are certainly still hoping to do the water sports like the kayaks and paddle boards. We hope to represent some local dishes to give it a local flair — some good local seafood. We will have entertainment on the weekends such as solo artists — a brunch atmosphere with music.

“We are looking to hire about 20 people and we are certainly looking for Bermudian staff.”

Original plans for the facility sparked controversy due to the inclusion of a new parking lot near the existing playground but that element of the plan was shelved by the developer.

Some concerns have since been voiced about the selling of alcohol near the public playground but Mr Steinhoff does not envisage that being a problem. He said: “We don’t intend on having alcohol near the playground. People take their own alcohol down to the beach all the time. We will be serving responsibly so I don’t see any trouble with it.”

Speaking about the opportunity the new venue presents, Mr Steinhoff added: “I think it is good that people are utilising Bermuda’s waterfront more. It is a great asset to the island and we should really take advantage of it. I think it is good to have more stuff going on the beach.

“We are excited to bring new amenities to the area, clean up the eyesore of the building and make it into something successful.”