Trust appeals for help to save 150-year-old GT house
(CNS): A traditional 19th century wattle and daub cottage in the heart of George Town that was built around 1875 is at risk of demolition. The National Trust for the Cayman Islands is appealing to the community to help them move and save the cottage, one of the very few historic buildings remaining across the Cayman Islands. The old home is on land that has recently been sold, and there is only a short window of opportunity for it to be rescued.
The National Trust is hoping that members of the community who are interested in preserving the country’s built heritage can help them with the moving costs. Gifford Anderson’s House, which the Trust’s historic register describes as a single-storey home on Ironwood Stilts with wattle and daub walls, is located at the end of Elgin Avenue. The original zinc roof has been changed, and a verandah with a cement floor and a back room made of cement blocks have been added.
The National Trust established a Historic Preservation Fund in 2022, but it has not yet attracted the kind of money needed to relocate this type of historic property. While it is understood that the Trust has land where the house could be placed or held until someone interested in renovating it can be found, there is an immediate need to relocate this old and delicate property, which can be very costly.
There are still no laws in place to protect Cayman’s built heritage, and saving historic buildings is down to the community and non-profit organisations.
“It boils down to finding people with a passion, and the means to see these treasures preserved,” one of the NT’s members said in a social media group appealing for help. “Over the past few years, several have been preserved in situ or by relocation. However, once moved, much of its historic significance is lost, and each time one is moved from its original location, our few remaining ‘historic neighbourhoods’ are fractured and diluted.”
The Trust is also seeking public support to draw attention to the importance of these last remaining historically significant homes and push for their incorporation into new developments where so many have been lost. The Trust has recommended changes to the planning law so that heritage advice can be submitted to the Central Planning Authority when a historic building is at risk due to redevelopment, but there has been no indication that this is likely to be welcome.
The Department of Environment often raises the issue of protecting built heritage when it submits its recommendations in relation to the natural environment. But even in cases where traditional homes were in historic and heritage overlay zones, once the land is proposed for development, the CPA hasn’t refused planning permission or put conditions on landowners about Cayman’s traditional buildings. It has merely encouraged developers to incorporate or relocate these pieces of local history, many of which are now lost.
Anyone who can assist in relocating this latest threatened traditional house is urged to contact the National Trust directly by email at info@nationaltrust.org.ky
To donate to the Heritage Fund, call 749-1121 or visit Trust website.
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Category: development, Heritage and Culture, Local News
Just because something is old doesn’t meant it has value.
Unless the trust is willing to pay the property owner for the future development profits they don’t have a say in telling anyone they can’t use their land how they see fit.
Trust just wokenup?!
That beautiful house has sat there available for 25years!
Kenny will sort it. Give him $8,000,000.00
While some of the posters here correctly point out that the building itself is not fit for purpose, that misses the entire point of seeking to maintain a semblance of Caymanian heritage and culture – both of which have been systematically under attack for decades from all sides, including our own fellow Caymanians.
What happens in other countries is that similar historic properties are preserved – yes, often entirely rebuilt with modern materials, but on the exact footprint and style, mimicking the original at every step. It should happen here.
A good way to deal with these issues is for a Heritage Tax to be imposed on all development, and have it sectioned off for these purposes. Ignore the naysayers, we need to keep a hint of our culture and heritage and exploit it for tourism and education. Infact i beleive Dart would get right behind such a move, and perhaps the large financial sector offices.
Historic buildings that really influenced events, history, important people, but not just any arbitrary old shack. This building has some short term architectural charm research value, for sure – take many great pictures – but no pivotal historic influential significance worth commemorating with the multi-million dollar NT expense of moving it somewhere, and putting a plaque on it and sending tourists to visit it.
If the people who built this old wooden shack were alive today they’d be staggered that anyone would want to preserve it.
These buildings were built with the materials available at that time eith an anticipated lifespan of under 50 years.
It’s not the Sistine Chapel or the Tower of London. It’s an old shack.
Give it a rest National trust, you got your enforcement arm , called conservation council, so let’s have just one tree hugger harassment group please.
Caymanians sold it and profited. We against owners making money?
Why cant this come out of Kenny’s park funds?
Kenny slush fund dry up
The National Trust Board might consider meeting with this new regime, to talk about legislating a special incentive to resurrect this unique Caymanian heritage style back into more common neighborhood occurrence, via formal codification into the building regs. Perhaps combining with a special heritage duty free materials waiver/incentive for those wishing to adopt, incorporate, and resurrect Caymanian architectural type plans into a new construction build. If done properly we might all be willing to sacrifice that shack for some attractive uniquely-Caymanian heritage architecture legislation that celebrates this signature identity and aims to bring it back hardcore.
I’m confused what are we being asked to do? Tell the National Trust we want them to save it? Asking the new owners not to demolish? Signing a petition? Donating to a cause?
Is there a gofundme link or bank details for the Heritage Fund?
Llewlyn Road…?
In actuality, a “restoration” will essentially result in a complete rebuild for all intents and purposes. You might be preserving its shape and form, but almost everything will need to be replaced.
If the Cayman community truly cared about this, there should be no problem fund raising enough money to collectively take care of a move and refurbishment.
Would 1,000 people be willing to chip in, say, $100 each to raise $100,000 for this? A good test to see if people actually gave two hoots about this. (My guess is that almost everyone would say…meggghhh. If not, then you have a solution). Otherwise, stop bellyaching about this.
Right? For all the expense and care required to move a brittle structure that was built like this one, an exact replica using original materials and techniques could be built – particularly since that is pretty much what would be required to “restore” this one. The project itself would be a “living history” re-enactment.
As noted below, if historical considerations were built in to development requirements, then structures like this one could be built as gate houses for wealthy expat communities.
Where is the go fund me link?
Go fund me
if the government can give Mr Bryan millions of dollars for a park im sure they can afford to move a historical treasure such as this.
Coalition Government this one be one of those times to shine!
Put it in the park. They want a ‘multi-generational centre’ there. Nothing more multi-generations than incorporating a building like this.
Great idea! Kenny’s crackheads will love that!
Actually a good idea…..
The Trust should take detailed pictures and be advocating for reconstructions in similar Caymanian architectural style for various public use buildings using modern materials – not seeking to relocate unimportant junk, at cost of untold millions, to waste away in one of our growing roster of neglected parks. To do so is foolhardy and would not represent good value/use those scant donor NT funds. Build 100 of these all over.
For what? why doesn’t our Gowerment acquire this land for public parking in George Town they have paid more for less around this island or take it from these unscrupulous and nefarious people claiming it .
What is truly sad is the XXXX who acquired this woman estate now have completed is final destruction by erasing its existence. The preservation of some old wood lice infested shell really Cayman so what we can feel good.lick it down and put the debris in the deep old cistern attached to it So it can haunt these suckers every night !
How did he acquired this woman estate, is the question. he has no blood ties to her. Mr. Harry Anderson still has 2 living children. They have blood ties to this house and other assets he left behind. There are people amongst us that are preditors of the elders. They claims adoption and other linkage to the elders just to get their properties. Their get rich fast plans. They have no generational ties to these properties. Therefore, there is no passion.
It’s actually very simple. The people bought the property with the house on it. So it should stay with the house on it. They got it that way and if they didn’t want to keep it, they could have bought somewhere else. No need to relocate it, the owners shouldn’t have bought it with the presumption that they could destroy our heritage.
Heritage hahaha! It’s a run down old shack!
Look far enough back in everyone’s heritage, we all lived in shacks mate.
You were born in an exclusive, gated, penthouse…you are the rundown brain!
Same as the old Holiday Inn.
Why only try and save it after the property has been sold? National Trust better pay the new owner what they paid for it if they want to save it.
With “What” Coconuts?
The National Trust does not have the funds!
I attended one of their fundraisers last month and there was roaring applause when one kind Land owner donated 1/2 acre of land (way outside of town) and other generous people donated up to $1000 here and $500 there but that won’t be enough to save this Homestead or the others like them 🙁
Before you go ahead and tell the National Trust, what to do, why don’t you do a little 15 minute research and see how they struggle to prefer preserve our land in heritage with very little help and I applaud them for their continued passion!
The new owner has the right to build whatever they want on that land, and the delipidated shack shouldn’t stop them.
If the Trust loves nature and heritage so much, why don’t they knock down the building they’re in and re-wild the property?
The building they are in is in worse shape than this one.
Why do I have a feeling that one morning we wake up to get to work only to see it having been bulldozed down overnight to build a next booming business hot spot? Having a deja vu.
or a parking lot for the One GT building