CPA sends Beach Bay back to drawing board
(CNS): The Central Planning Authority has released the minutes that document the details of a hearing earlier this month when the controversial plans for a 9-storey hotel in Beach Bay were put before the board. The document shows that the CPA adjourned the application and sent the developer back to the drawing board to redo the plans and re-notify the affected homeowners in this quiet residential community.
Explaining the decision to adjourn the application, the CPA said the applicant should submit revised plans before they can consider the application for planning permission. Outlining what needed to be addressed, the CPA said that on these new plans the developers must show that the required 12’ public access to the sea has been relocated to be adjacent to the public road reserve along the westerly property boundary.
They must also comply with all required setbacks, and the back of house facilities should be relocated so they are not next to an existing residential development. Planning further stated that a minimum of 285 parking spaces will be required, and given all of these required changes, the applicant must re-notify the adjacent landowners within the required radius.
The project has caused considerable controversy because of the size and scale of the proposed resort in a very quiet residential community. The two 9-storey buildings that the developers want to build will also be on a very small piece of beachfront, which is a turtle nesting area.
Many residents are concerned that the project will undermine their community, their quality of life, cut off their access to the beach and bring more traffic congestion, noise and disturbance to their peaceful small neighbourhood.
Int their submissions on behalf of the developer, Andrew Gibb and Spencer Levine had argued, when asked about the need for a 9-storey resort in a residential neighbourhood, that the developer wanted to “provide a certain type of experience in order to attract persons to pay $2,000 per day”.
But the plan for this extensive resort is in an area with no hotels or tourism accommodation nearby. The land was re-zoned during the previous PPM-led administration from low density residential to hotel and tourism to accommodate the proposed development. Then, some four years ago, government entered into a deal with the applicants, offering them a $25 million duty waiver.
Some people still question the real intention of the current investors and wonder if the goal is not simply to secure planning permission then flip the land, which was purchased with the benefit of the stamp duty concession, for a profit.
While the location has been talked about as a potential site for a hotel since 2008, there has been very little movement towards any development. And while this project proposal has stirred up significant controversy, it may be that this latest plan is another one that never gets past the drawing board.
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Category: development, Local News
CNS – You also forgot the promised road to the hotel (Manse Road / Beach Bay /Pedro connector, or whatever its called) that the Government also promised to pay for in order to get the area developed. It would be interesting to compare the cost of that road (+$25mil duty waiver) to the cost of the hotel. At some point CIG could build one of these things themselves and lease them to management companies, a la almost any of the major hotels on SMB, rather than propping up the developers through concessions. Pity the idea of a locally purchasable Cayman Development Bond was never taken seriously. (Build the hotel/port/etc. infrastructure and own it ourselves.)
The Planning Board seems to really be using their thinking cap now a day. Understand that they refused a church in W Bay because that certain Religion already has three churches there.
We certainly don’t need more churches in West Bay.
If guests are gonna pay $2,000 per day for a room that’s a lot of money they should go to Dog City buy out all those poor people in there so they can relocate somewhere else and build the hotel there! Central George Town needs a new facelift instead of always looking like a getto! No they don’t want to go places like that!.. that needs it!.. .they want to go into my people peaceful and quiet neighborhood and disrupt that!… Poor Cayman what a mess in the name of 💰
‘The back of house facilities should be relocated so they are not next to an existing residential development.’ Whoever drew up the plans for that needs to go back to school and learn (or re-learn) a few basic principles of architecture.
This has always looked a bit like a very chancy cluster**** and that rather confirms it.
If you asked my opinion (and for legal reasons that’s all it is – a personal opinion) I’d say this is the latest in a series of ‘we’re going to build this fabulous new resort’ scams that have surfaced in recent years.
The new plans are now at Planning and the new notification was in the Oct 1 Compass. So far as I can see the change has been minimal. “Back of house” is still between two nearby housing estates. Buildings are still on the beach. But objectors have to file new letters.
There’s this thing that’s not from the 1800’s, they call it “copy and paste”
I hope that is where the plans stay in perpetuity. On the table, or scrapped altogether.
People who pay 2K a day won’t want locals, or anyone else for that matter, on or near the beach. They can have their development but it is high time law was changed to stop anyone else building within 10 foot of the edge of the beach. Cayman wants it’s beaches – all of them – back.
I hope Mr. Gibb, reallyusefularchitect guy thinks about the environment this time around!
And the public who also use the beach.
They going come back stormin with new designs and planning will go ahead an approve. So Beach Bay residents can now relax!
They have now gone up to 11 levels with underground car parking. Golf cart parking where they have to drive them over an already congested road.Buildings with no labels so your guess is as good as mine.
What about the turtle nesting beach? If they have gone back to the drawing board they need to set the hotel back so it doesn’t lie directly on the beach and reduce turtle nesting habitat. Or better yet, set fire to the whole idea and leave beach bay the quiet, peaceful little area that it is.
Thank you. A little boutique hotel set back off the beach would be fine, but this is an ugly, sprawling complex which is clearly ultimately designed to take over the entire area. Next thing you know, we’ll be glared down by security guards like by the Kimpton.
What you think they plan to feed the guests?
Wha bout deh money dem alredy a pay wi politician dem to Mek dis ting agwaan? Bwoy ting a get serious round ya sa!
wtf?
Need a translation, or disagree with the post?
don’t be a smart a$$
Wtf?
Make them build an overpass at Grand Harbor and i will support it
I am all for the overpass or a bypass behind Hurleys but will never support this huge development planned for my local beach.
No overpasses. Build one and we will start building them all over George Town.
An ultra modern, efficient bus system, with fully trained bus drivers is what we need ASAP. Bermuda did it so we can too. We are not a stupid people.
Good!