The commencement of work on the Atlantic Hotel on the Beach Road near the Takoradi Port has inspired hope among residents of the twin-city of Sekondi/Takoradi.
There were many who had expressed great concern about the imminent collapse of the hotel until last year when it was announced that the hotel had been sold to a private investor.
The reactivation of the project brought joy to many residents, especially the elderly because to them during the days when the Atlantic, Star, Ambassador and the Meridian hotels were in good business Takoradi was a place to be as the Atlantic Hotel provided live band music regularly.
The previous structure had about 70 rooms and with the rehabilitation 144 more would be added to bring the total number of rooms to 214. When completed the hotel is expected to give employment to more than 800 people. It will also have a golf court and a block of offices and spacious conference rooms to host international conferences.
Its name will also change to Atlantic International Hotel.
Located just about a few metres from the Takoradi sea and the air ports, the hotel is expected to bring life back to Takoradi as many people, especially the elderly, will patronise its services and have many stories to tell about the “good old days” when Atlantic Hotel was a household name in Takoradi.
One of such people is Mr K. Hackman, a former employee of the defunct Ghana National Trading Corporation (GNTC). He wondered why the Atlantic Hotel and other former state facilities could collapse just like that.
“When we talk about Atlantic Hotel in Takoradi, that is where the action was, those of us who got an occasional invitation to the place were constantly left with unforgettable memories of the Atlantic Hotel,” he said.
Mr Hackman said with the collapse of state enterprises, the new generation who might find their way in government employment should be told that “once upon a time there were countless companies, which we lost because of our lackadaisical attitude towards work”.
“One sad aspect of it is that the companies and hotels did not only collapse but their collapse is to extent that they cannot even be remembered again,” he said.
He expressed the hope the new management would be guided by what led to the collapse of various state institutions to adopt sound business practices for the facility to be vibrant.
When contacted, Mr Ebo Coker and his partner, Mr Patrick Faris, the CEO of Royal Air Port Hotel (Holiday Inn) in Accra, said they would ensure to bring back the glory of the former Atlantic Hotel to Takoradi.
Mr Coker said the hotel would be given an African touch and would bring back many memories.
“I’m is not the only one who has the dream to get the hotel back to its former status, as the Ministry of Tourism and Diasporan Relations, the metropolitan assembly and others are all supportive of the dream of Coker and Faris.”
Mr Coker said the hotel was expected to be completed in the next 18 months with a perfect structure that would satisfy the needs of holidaymakers, tourists and the corporate world, as the financial support was in place.
“At the moment we are demolishing some parts and the contractor would be moving the rest of equipment to the site. We are also likely to finish well ahead of the stipulated schedule,” he said.
“A lot has gone into the design of the hotel, which incorporated the features of the former hotel with other more enhanced features to give the facility an African touch,” he stressed.
The project currently employs about 300 workers, majority of whom are Ghanaians.
“There is hope for the timber, cocoa and mining industries and with the recent oil find it is just necessary to provide the appropriate facilities for conferences, boarding and lodging, as well as an enabling environment for business to triumph and for the investors to feel comfortable,” he said.
“We do not build hotels because people are building; before we decided to acquire the hotel in 1996 we had to do with an extensive research to find out which areas would be successful and attract the required patronage,” Mr Coker said.
“Takoradi should win back its past glory and with the help of God and other investors who are also looking at other areas of investment in the metropolis, it will be just a matter of time for the whole metropolis to regain its vibrancy,” he said.
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