For sale or for investment?

Informally known as the old cannery, Blackfish Resort has been listed for sale for just under $8 million, but developer Steve O’Neill says the move is more about attracting potential investors than unloading the property.

“It is for sale and if someone can come in and pay for it, they can have it,” O’Neill said. “That said, the intention is not to sell it but to make it visible for potential investors.”

As a private, small-scale stock offering, O’Neill said there were legal limits to how he could advertise the project to investors beyond word of mouth.

“The supply of investors interested in a destination hotel in Point Roberts has dropped off recently,” O’Neill observed wryly. A legitimate offer for sale is one way he found to get broader knowledge of the project. “I have had people call me since the listing went up.”

Permits are in place for construction to start on the 28-suite resort, which will include a spa, restaurant, brewery and event space, as soon as the capital is available.

In addition to the resort, the project includes public beach access via a 10-foot easement running along the southern property line. The path, which will be five feet wide with compacted gravel to make it wheelchair accessible, will open as soon as construction is complete. “We are required to have it prior to occupancy but not until the resort is built,” O’Neill said. “I do have ‘no trespassing’ signs up now but people pass through every day and they will tell you I’m a pretty nice guy about it.” For safety reasons they will become more rigorous about keeping the public off the property when construction begins, he added.

The real estate listing for the resort can be viewed at bit.ly/2KGtKQm.