An application to expand the Foster’s Republix store in West Bay has been deferred by the Central Planning Authority to allow the supermarket chain to revise plans to relocate a 113-year-old house to make way for a parking lot.
The Aldine Franklin House, the property at the centre of the application, is listed on the Cayman Islands Heritage Registry, which was created by the National Trust for the Cayman Islands.
In the CPA’s minutes for the meeting of 13 Oct., which were published on the Department of Planning website, the authority said Foster’s would be required to revise the plan using one of two options.
“The preferred option would be to retain the existing house in its current location and revise the driveways and parking accordingly,” wrote the CPA.
Otherwise, the CPA suggested that Foster’s “Relocate the existing house to the front left corner of the site and revise the driveways and parking accordingly.”
The initial $2 million application proposed an 11,094-square-foot expansion of the current Republix supermarket on the west side of the structure and the addition of 190 parking spaces.
“The decision is not unexpected but we understand the CPA’s decision might have been influence by public concern,” Foster’s managing director Woody Foster told the Compass Friday.
Despite its historic designation, the house is a privately owned, and there are no laws that prevent its sale, destruction or relocation. Therefore, at this time, there is nothing legally to prevent the Foster’s group from relocating the building.
Foster said they are currently reviewing two proposals for the relocation of the house.
To facilitate the expansion, the Foster’s group had proposed that the Aldine Franklin House be relocated to a site in Frank Sound, North Side. In addition, the plan included moving The Bridge, a public right-of-way through a patch of red mangrove swamp, to the western edge of the new boundary. This footpath was once used by the public to access the beach.
The other proposal would see the house transferred over to a plot of land in West Bay that belongs to the National Trust.
When the application was heard last month, Foster said the company would not be able to incorporate the house into their new design.
The plot of land on which the Aldine Franklin House is located has been designated as a historic overlay zone for which, under the Development and Planning Regulations (2018 Revision), the CPA has a duty to promote and encourage the preservation of historic buildings and conserve their historic architectural heritage.
Following the 13 Oct. meeting, Foster told the Compass that he felt the public anger over the potential relocation of the house was misplaced, and instead should be used to fuel a national conversation about implementing a law that will designate and protect items of cultural significance.
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