A petition is being circulated throughout Grand Cayman with the hope of saving an old house near the Lobster Pot Restaurant.
The Cayman Maritime Heritage Foundation and Cayman Catboat Club are distributing the petition in an effort to save the house that has been their home for the past eight years.
The view of George Towns harbour from the porch of the house thats been home to the Catboat Club for the past eight years. Photos: Jewel Levy |
‘If we could get our clubhouse back we could turn it into a unique place for Cayman’s visitors,’ said Jerris Miller, chairman of the foundation and president of the club.
The club’s plans include building more catboats to shore up its fleet, which was lost to Hurricane Ivan, putting on catboat races and keeping the public and tourists informed about maritime heritage in the Cayman Islands through photographs, journals, demonstrations and lectures at the house.
Government owns the building, which is more than 100 years old.
Prior to Hurricane Ivan in September 2004, the foundation and club had a year-to-year lease on the old home.
They now have a month-to-month lease.
Mr. Miller and other club members are afraid Government is going to have the house razed.
‘If we can, we need to get a long term lease,’ he said. ‘A 30-day renewable lease is not enough time to raise money for renovation.’
Fixing up the building would cost about $150,000, he said. The club will have to raise the money and is looking for donors.
‘The Cayman Maritime Heritage Foundation has engaged the services of a Caymanian architect to design a new building utilizing the part of the building that remains to showcase the history of the building,’ states a letter attached to the petition. ‘The new design includes a covered workshop area with a room to be used as a maritime museum and lecture room.’
Mr. Miller and other members maintain the old house has historic significance and should not be torn down.
A 1999 letter from the National Trust to Government states part of the house is indeed historic.
‘Evidence would suggest that the original structure, that part closest to the road, was a small rectangular wattle and daub house, typical of Caymanian style cottages of the time,’ the letter states. ‘The Trust would be particularly interested in the preservation of the original structure and those sections added prior to 1960. The removal of any subsequent additions would not diminish the historic integrity of the house.’
Leader of Government Business Kurt Tibbetts said the house can be salvaged, but not where it’s sitting.
He suggests the house be relocated or a new building built on the northwest corner of the lot, nearer the water for the Catboat Club’s use.
‘If they can move that building and put it on the site, I don’t have a problem with that,’ he said.
But Mr. Miller said he is afraid to abandon the house on the promise of being able to build on the corner because the area being suggested is gazetted and can’t be built upon.
Mr. Tibbetts said Government is in the process of taking the northwest corner off the gazetted road so the club can build there.
‘We’re prepared to give them that commitment in writing,’ he said.
As it stands now, the house presents a safety problem, he said.
People trying to launch or load boats at the site have to fight busy road traffic and manoeuvre around the building.
‘There have been several accidents there,’ said Mr. Tibbetts.
It’s the only boat ramp in George Town on the harbour side, except for a launch at South Sound.
The George Town launch is used by marine search and rescue and at times they have been hampered because of cars and trailers parked haphazardly near the launch.
‘There’s a safety issue with traffic and with search and rescue,’ he said. ‘We have an incumbent responsibility to take those things into consideration.’
Mr. Tibbetts said he and the Government support the foundation and the Catboat Club.
‘There is absolutely no reason to believe we don’t support the Catboat Club,’ he said. ‘We have to be able to utilize that area properly to serve both purposes.’
While a solution is being sought, the club is going ahead with its planned activities, which include free catboat rides beginning at 10am 25 February at the launch near the Lobster pot.
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