Billionaires Compete for Hotel and Quality of Life on St. Barts

The Dupré companies started the projects because the island was dealing with new concerns about sustainability. A 2016 report by the Wildlife Conservation Society says the island’s environment is “deteriorating rapidly” because of land-based pollution that drains into the sea, destroying marine habitats, urbanization and overfishing. A year later, Hurricane Irma devastated the island, exacerbating an already dire housing shortage for workers.

That tension may explain some of the animosity toward Ms. Dupré and her husband, Mark Nunnelly (a former managing partner at Bain Capital, former chief executive of Domino’s Pizza and an investor in an outsourcing company, call center and other ventures). Someone scribbled “Get Out Dupré Pig” in red on the white building wall – a highly unusual act of vandalism on the largely crime-free island. One of the island’s English-language online forums has a chat titled “Death to Domino’s Pizza” that references the hotel project.

“In one corner you’ve got this billionaire company and in the other a bunch of locals saying please don’t harm our marine life,” said Youngstown, Ohio, attorney Eddie Czopur, who resided at St. Jean Bay. during the winter season for years. “It was like a ‘Rocky’ story, which the locals won.”

But Ms. Dupré and Mr. Nunnelly aren’t the only super-rich who have been accused of making plans that seem to ignore the island’s scale or the Caribbean aesthetic. Islanders have seen tycoons increasingly compete to see who can anchor the largest yacht in the harbor or build the largest villa.

The local government recently limited the size of new villas to less than 150 square meters (just over 1,600 square feet)† But there are at least 50 more previously issued building permits in the pipeline, meaning new mega-mansions are sure to be built. The once crystal-clear waters around the island have become murky as sediment runoff damages the reefs and drives away marine life. A marine biologist who works on the island told me she wept after returning to a dive site that was once teeming with turtles and sharks and found it barren.

Ms. Dupré and her husband declined to comment on this article, directing questions to Mr. Stanton, a spokesperson for Ms. Dupré and her company, SAS St. Jean Beach Real Estate. He said the company will appeal the ruling against the L’Etoile license in a higher court in France in March, but that ruling will take at least 15 months. Ms Dupré still hopes to build a hotel but will fill the gap as ordered once the collectivité grants approval, he said.

“She has an in-depth background in hotel management and Denise and the family have had a special fondness for the island for over 20 years,” said Mr. Stanton. “She and the St. Barts team she worked with feel they were very thoughtful in bringing a peaceful, beautiful thing to this beach, and will continue to engage in constructive dialogue with the community about the project. “