Tibbetts commits to dealing with beach access
(CNS): The planning minister has told the Legislative Assembly that his ministry is examining the issue of beach access in order to protect the rights that have been gradually eroded due to inadequate protection and extensive beachfront development. Responding to a private member’s motion brought by East End MLA Arden McLean during this month’s meeting, calling on government to update the legislation and ensure that access rights are properly protected, Kurt Tibbetts said the government was “happy to accept” the motion in principle.
But the minister warned it would take more than the three months the member had outlined in his motion to achieve the end goal.
McLean had told his colleagues that over the years the confusion regarding rights had mounted because of inadequate provisions hampering public rights of access, which were being encroached on by developers. He called for updated legislation that would protect future rights because governments and the legislature had not been paying attention over the years to what the future held for rights, taking it for granted that beach access would always be a right for people to enjoy.
The issue struck a chord with many members during the debate, in which they related stories regarding landowners shooing the public away and even calling the police to run people off the beaches, clearly unaware of the indefeasible rights. Some even recounted incidents where property owners had tried to move fishermen in boats in the water in front of their properties. MLAs spoke about not enjoying the beaches of Cayman as much as they had in the past because the few beaches that remained accessible were overcrowded and using the beach lawfully in front of private property could too easily result in disagreement.
Tibbetts told the parliament that the chief surveyor in his ministry was in the process of completing a report on beach access and rights of way across all three islands and he expected that to be completed soon. He also accepted that the various laws needed to be reviewed to enable government to intervene to protect access. The minister revealed that a public land use bill was currently out for stakeholders’ comment, which he hoped to bring to the LA in January. That legislation, he said, would deal with the broader issues of management and use of all public land, including beach access and rights of way, but there were several other laws that need to be amended.
Tibbetts said the goal was to deal with the wider legislation to be fair to all concerned and preserve the access rights. He accepted that the problems with the current legislation prevent government from acting, and although the public has a right to mount a legal challenge where beach access is denied, few people can afford to take cases to court.
Pointing to historic Caymanian land ownership he said locals never denied people access or rights of way on land but as it has been bought and sold, “people have come with a different mindset”. He added that some people believe they can prevent others from walking on the beach and that has been compounded by the commercial development along Seven Mile Beach.
Tibbetts said the government had to start dealing with the matter, making it “crystal clear” what rights people have and establish proper rights of way and access. He said the current state of the legislation meant it was not that easy to deal with as the “teeth are not sharp enough”, but committed to working with McLean to unravel the legislative problems and make the necessary changes.
The independent member made it clear that he would make this a campaign issue if the government did not move quickly to address the problems. He thanked local activists from the Concerned Citizens group for the research they did to support his motion, as he urged government to stop developers blocking the beach.
McLean said the issue was not a problem that had just emerged but there had been a slow steady erosion of rights and legislators had failed to act. It was now passed time to reverse that erosion, he said.
Burn the property of those that block the beach
Enjoy the beach but don’t cross my property to get to it
CNN, at my stage in life my short term memory has all but dissolved, but not to extent that every post I try to vote on tells me I’ve already voted (!).
CNS: Thanks. We’re working in this.
And I suppose the ugly Cayman equivalent of the Berlin Wall still blocks the views and restricts access at high tide on Frank Sound beach/launching ramp?
Minister Kurt Tibbetts, while you are amending laws concerning the beach, please also protect our heritage by banning dogs on beaches, by amending the relevant laws.
Caymanians do not worship dogs, and while dogs do have their place, it is indeed foreign to us to have dogs running up an down beaches, while their owners allow them to interfere with bathers and sun-worshipers belongings. They also defecate on the beach which means that young children cannot even build a sand castle any longer.
I think the …its ok to tie up your animals to a chain outside should be addressed first….oh and the breeding of dogs… the shelter is full…so sad…band them on the beaches …smh…thats hardly a problem and people that think that is a real problem bc they don’t worship dogs… you got issues…
I often walk my dog on the beaches in the Eastern districts ALWAYS on a lead when people or other dogs are around and ALWAYS picking up and safely disposing of my dogs poop. Please don’t tar all expats with the same brush. Whilst on the topic however, I must support some of what you say as there are some who just let their dogs run loose and seemingly do not appreciate that some people and other dogs do not appreciate it, no matter how “friendly” their own dogs are. Turning to your comment about how “Caymanians don’t worship their dogs” this is in actual fact another contributing factor you may not have considered. Whilst many are responsible and WALK their dogs, there are many more who simply let their dogs run all over the districts eating from bins, chasing people, killing fowl and lizards, breeding like flies, going in other people’s gardens and defecating all over the place including the beach.
We ALL have our part to play, Caymanian or expat; dog worshipper or not. This is not a question of nationality it’s a question of RESPONSIBILITY.
Can they build them with beer bottles and ciggie butts? Cuz there is 100 -150 times more of those on the beach than Fido’s poo.
30 years to late BO BO. Done now.
Tibbetts is one of the most ineffectual ministers in the history of Cayman government. And when you consider the amount of his salary, it is nauseating.
yep…the premier who spent and sleepwalked the county into bankruptcy…
5.33pm He spent the country into bankruptcy while sleepwalking. Do you realize how silly that sounds. Did you take the time to read your post before pressing ‘send’. Didn’t think so.
That just shows how very good he is at it.
I wonder if everyone has forgotten that it is the Chief Officer for the Ministry is who calls the shots to get the work done. How often have you seen or heard him????
SKEPTICAL Jealousy is a bad thing. It will eat you up.
Jealous – of Tibbetts – don’t make me laugh
What about the goddamm price of gasoline, Kurt you are retiring please fix this ripoff problem for us before you go. Your legacy awaits.
Based on his long, personally fruitful, yet nationally fruitless tenure as a heavyweight in the Legislative Assembly, surely the term, “Tibbetts commits” is an oxymoron of the highest calibre?
Perhaps we should finish the phrase more accurately, “Tibbetts commits to procrastination”?
Drain The Swamp
Cayman 2017
Kurt Tibbetts is still an MLA? This is the first time I heard his name mentioned in how many years????????
8.00 Just shows how out of touch you really are.
He has a bunk-bed with captain Eugene.
It’s amazing how the prospect of an election and the risk of losing the huge pay packet and perks of being an MLA suddenly stirs them into action.
Thank you for this motion Mr. McLean. It is very sad that it has come to this “jack don’t want me to bath on my beach”
We were never thinking for the future because we were so kind to the new people who came here to retire. They liked our people because we were like the native Americans . GIVING. Then they got their foot in the door, and all you could hear was, “We paid for it” But our culture and history all over the Caribbean was to “respect the beach” . Do not abuse the property , not because someone paid for it. But because we used it too. Now no one wants to allow anyone to go on the beach. Remember Holiday Inn ? We swam , ate breakfast ,lunch and dinner. Did anyone throw garbage on the beach that a Caymanian didn’t tell them to pick it up. We policed ourselves.
But it’s not just beach its also property that is landlocked because there is no law that allows landowners more then a 6 foot right away? In todays large development you would think that would be your right. You should know that you shouldn’t be charged to build a 30 ft. right away when the road both of you build will benefit both properties. Can you imagine a landowner has to get permission plus pay whatever they want then when you build the road you increase their value? Which group didn’t see the foolishness of this idea?
Included in this proposed legislation should be new regulations governing the use of lights along the beach. There is one private property along 7-mile Beach, close to the Royal Palms, that installed blazing security lights on 30-foot poles, a couple of years ago, and then aimed them up and down the beach, completely ruining the wonderful experience of walking on the beach at night, unless, of course, you like staring into Xenon headlights and fear the night sky.
I believe Planning was unable to do anything about it, because those who framed the original regulations never imagined that anyone would use multi-million candle-power lights on Cayman’s iconic beach, and then shine them in people’s eyes. This issue must be addressed and the law imposed retroactively.
The ministers (who have created the problem by not making the right of way paths in the past) will now try to fix the problem by opening up the paths that they did not make back then. After they figure out what button to push.
This situation is the Cayman Islands Government’s FAULT and their problem. Not land owners, at least not the current owners. Caymanians sold the land with no thought for the future. Government has no thought for the future or they would have purchased more beachfront property. As a population grows, as tourism grows there needs to be more designated public beaches and facilities. Not private land owner beaches and facilities but public. Why should a private person’s property be used and in some cases destroyed by people who have no vested interest in it? Government is at fault, government is to blame, and government needs to rectify it by purchasing more land for public use. The government wants more people, more tourists. Well then facilities need to be put in place for these people both local and the tourists. Government has not kept pace in the last 20 years with the growth of these islands. No fore thinking for the future and so the scale is off-balance and causing tensions that should not be there. Smith Cove was a prime example of this and more properties need to be purchased by Government as public areas.
Why blame government when the people complaining are the ones who elected them?
Unfortunately I don’t think Government purchasing more beach land is the answer. Just look at all of our Public Beaches, particularly the main one on West Bay Road.
That has litterally been high jacked by individuals to run their businesses for free on public land and the general public have to fight for access. Meanwhile our spineless Government is dead scared to take action to kick them off!!!!!!
They need to stop pussyfooting around and reclaim that beach for everyone. Oh sorry, I forgot they have been trying to do that for over a year now and the vendors refused to leave, so our Government will find a way to accommodate them by building them stalls!
Unbelievable, one can’t make this stuff up.
Finally there are Representatives in the LA who are not afraid to bring these kinds of motions to defend the rights of the Caymanian people. Gone are the days when the Government bench can go through an entire session without having to make the hard choice. Now it remains to be seen if the Minister will stay on course with this one. I know the Independents will not let him forget it.
those were the days eh? When the current opposition was the Minister of beaches and works. … oops.
Folks, don’t be so fast to praise and castigate individuals (or governments) over long-simmering issues.
If the government doesn’t clarify and enforce the law on both public beach access and public beach rights (water edge and back), Cayman will eventually end up like a third world beach where fences are run right to the waters edge. Property rights and public space can exist together and benefit each other. Set the record straight before public rights erode like sand.
kurt…the guy who took 3 years to change road signs on west bay road…..zzzzzzzzzzz
While you’re at it Mr. Tibbetts and Mr. Mclean, please be sure that your plans include rules and regulations that address how said persons who pass-thru and use beach land, do so in a manner that respects the FACT that someone paid hard earned money for that land and has a right to have it respected. As a beach-land owner, I have to constantly walk my land (and I’m not talking about no high water mark nonsense) and pickup used condoms, empty and often broke beer bottles, discarded fishing lines and hooks and garbage by the bag full. Not to mention the abuse that my seaside landscape takes.. broken tree limbs, holes dug to make fire-pits, sand stolen by the bucket for supposed personal usage and much more. Heaven forbid when conch season opens and I have to make the rounds to pickup broken conch-shells, many of which are illegally taken based on the quantity of shells. Yes I AGREE 100% that everyone should have a right to use the beach and have access to it, but what about my rights as a beach-land owner? Do consider that its a two-way relationship and that much of the push-back and 911 calling that you hear and read about is due to the FACT that many, many people abuse the right-of-way and access that they have.
Can anyone on here actually say what the beach access rights are? I have heard it is the high water line, others say further in. And then what about the two hotels that cordon off their sea areas?
Natural vegetation line. And if you are a land-owner who has cleared back vegetation, more fool you!
Shouldn’t the planning minister have stopped this happening in the first place and not waited until just before the election to talk about taking action maybe, possibly, one day.
Badly needed before problems occur ! Sooner the better for everyone. The Crown ( Great Britain ) own from the high water mark and dum a$$ think they own the view ans the Sunset.
Another ignorant non-issue being blown into a populist frenzy. There are thousands of people who understand and respect private property and walk the full length of seven mile beach unmolested everyday. I’ve been doing it for decades. The only people that are genuinely asked to move along are those that plant themselves on privately owned furniture, or swim in privately owned pools, or use privately owned showers to clean themselves. I’m fairly confident that those that are sent packing by private security are fully aware of their trespassing. There is no right to trespass or scout buildings for future break ins, nor should there be.
12.54pm Are you scouting when you take your long walks?
Not true.
How about the right of way to the beach from West Bay road? Can one walk through anywhere he wants to? It makes huge difference for those with little kids.
There are properties which are designated to provide right of way by planning department (through their construction planning permission). It is properties with 200+ feet of the beach length. Some of them have proper paths and signs. Some of them don’t. If they don’t have proper sign and path, they might verbally attack you and call police if you try to get through. If you tell them about your right of way, they will say that there is no beach access here and revert to threatening with police.
It is not nicest experience, especially with the kids and especially knowing that you are not getting what you are entitled to.
Seven Mile Beach has lots of access points and signage indicating as such? I frequently use them, so not sure what the issue is with that area?
Where is the access point once you cross WBR using the bridge, since the Beach Suites is closed? Many from the Snug Harbor area used to walk straight through the Beach Suits grounds.
I accidentally found that there is beach access between Watercolours and Beach Suites. Accidentally, because there is no red beach access sign there. Not sure whether this access way is shared by both properties or belongs to Beach Suites only. Based on information from Planning department, Watercolours must provide right of way, while Beach Suites is not required.
Also, for the record, The Colonial Club, the property to the right of Beach Suites coming from bridge (which is closed, but it is a different story about endangering pedestrian lives), is required to provide public right of way to the beach based on Planning department information.
There are Public Access paths dotted all along West Bay Rd in-between the various Condo complexes. There is one across from Blue Cilantro and in-between Borolo and the Ritz that I can think of. Problem is you have to park across the road and then navigate 3 lanes of traffic to get to them.
And none in between, which is a lot of distance.
Simply make a law for PARKING ACCESS TO THE BEACH as well.
I see many BEACH ACCESS too along West Bay Road, but no parking is made available … not even for the handicap.
We complain so much about special needs parking in front of grocery stores … but yet the beach which helps the healing processes of such individuals, we allow big shots to deliberately restricted them from being able to park near the accesses. Wow!
THIS IS AN INJUSTICE!
Hahaha, the previous government gave PaPa D your rights to the beach. Hope you remember that come elections in 2017.
And the current government has done nothing to get them back.
Thanks to the ministers in advance of protecting the publics access rights. Now then……
To the individual that has the Queens Highway location home near barefoot beach, to its east: Please stop baring your bottom to boaters who choose to anchor in the small sound east of Barefoot Beach. We come there to swim and clean fish , as it is our right to do so , I would rather not have to subject my wife & daughters to your globular backside. You do not own the ocean ,or the view. I am not sure what you are inferring by dropping your trousers and showing us your bare A$$ . But I have to add in closing that it does look incredibly funny & makes us howl in laughter at you.
Lots of people consider buying property up there until they hear the stories of the constant harassment from the locals. The property up there is worthless if you cant enjoy it, but that has been the plan of the locals since always.
Yep, lots of for sale signs. If the prices keep going lower, the locals will be able to claim back their land stolen by the furiners.
I understand how difficult it is to enjoy the property without baring your bottom. There are islands in the world which are more secluded and can provide this kind of experience.
2.35pm Maybe he is just ‘fishing ‘ too.Lol
Yeh man, but don’t forget to wipe next time, ‘cos damn….
11:16 next time use your spare gun. It a land fish.
You silly fishermen drinkers of salt wateeeeer. Don’t come round here no more. I fart in your general direction. Now go away before I taunt you a second time!!!!
Clop clop clop… rides into sunset.
This needs looking at in the Rum Point area especially. After passing the Rum Point Restaurant there is actually zero beach access along that strip. I personally don’t mind trespassing through someone’s yard to get to the beach but I feel that this may stop others from enjoying one of the most beautiful beaches on the island.
11.12am That area was one of the main reasons for the Beach access and signage being introduced in the late 80s.. Ezzard fought hard for it and to this day Ezzard is not liked by some of these landowners.
Nearly all that land and all of that beach was created by dredging by the Dises who developed the Cayman Kai planned community back in the late 50’s and set aside public space. There is a nice public beach 2000 ft before Rum Point, a public beach near Starfish Point, a public beach right next to the Kaibo beach bar, and a nice public park, beach, boat ramp and dock at the end of Water Cay Road. All of that was created as part of the development. Rum Point itself is of course open to the public. You can walk on the beach all you want starting from Rum Point or any of the parks or vacant unfenced lots. So stay the hell out of my yard. BTW Miller was not responsible for creating any of this.
This minister was also animate about closing the loop hole that made the 12 story Kimpton possible, but at the last minute folded to Dart and made it possible to happen again. So much for his commitments!
Adamant
Prince Charming!!
Thank you for correcting me.
Animate??
inanimate?
10:38 He should show more concern for government property that was taken, is being eased on and the beach access that electrical for a condo was placed on. Time to get out and see, talk with residents and get a better understanding of what’s happening in the districts. Government property that once had an house on it has reduced to barely a beach access. What purpose does the Lands and Survey serve?
Good job Arden and Kurt. Please make sure that Little Cayman & Cayman Brac get proper beach access.
Dart buying up all the beach land in little cayman and in cayman brac the tibbetts kirkconnell and she dart own all the beach land
Finally there are persons in the LA who will bring these kinds of motions. Gone are the days when the Government Bench can get away with not having to make the hard decisions. Good job Independents, keep the pressure up.