St. Kitts Island Resort in Christophe Harbour

Buddy Darby, Chairman of Kiawah Development Partners, breaking ground on the $2B Christophe Harbour development project on St. Kitts in the West Indies Anybody spending more than 5 minutes in the Charleston area quickly learns who the Long’s & Darby’s are – especially if they’re interested in anything having to do with real estate.

What many people don’t realize, is that when the Kiawah Development Partners bought Kiawah Island from the Kuwaitiis back in 1988, it was planting the seed for the 1991 Ryder Cup a mere 3 years later – an extraordinary feat to accomplish – only to be topped by the U.S. actually bringing the Ryder Cup home that year!

Fast forward 20 years and several development projects later, including the Doonbeg Golf Club in County Clare, Ireland, and we arrive at the newest golf course for the KDP: the $2B Christophe Harbour, St. Kitts in the West Indies.

“We are not going to let economic conditions deter our enthusiasm for this project,” – Darby at the groundbreaking ceremony for the 18-hole golf course designed by Tom Fazio.

The resort community sits on approximately 2,500 acres with 6 beaches. When opened in 2010, the resort will feature 5-star hotels including a Mandarin Oriental and Auberge Resort, a Tom Fazio signature golf course, a mega-yacht marina, yacht club, myriad shops, restaurants and activities, plus a private club and residences.