The president of the Exuma Chamber of Commerce is suggesting most local investors are waiting on a final sale of the Four Season hotel before proceeding with their own projects tied into that mega resort.

"The native person who is building duplexes to house 600 construction workers on the Four Seasons project have certainly adopted a wait-and-see approach," said Reginald Smith Friday. "Once a sale goes ahead, you'll see a pick up in the domestic economy."

That jump start may not happen for a while, with the Prime Minister announcing last week that the government had rejected a sales proposal submitted by UK-based Ambrose Holdings. Last March, it reached a deal with the receivers for the resort to purchase the Emerald Bay property.

That buyer is expected to re-submit another offer, one likely to include another partner with pockets deep enough to help it complete key elements of the resort, still unfinished years after the hotel's opening.

That further development of second homes, club houses and other amenities has effectively sidelined spin-off projects in Georgetown and the surrounding area.

The absence of construction work has effectively stalled the once-bustling local economy. Further compounding troubles has been a slow tourism sector. Exuma, in fact, saw a 15 percent decline in visitor arrivals last February compared to the same period a year earlier.