If all of Little Cayman’s approved subdivisions were developed and occupied, the population of the Sister Islands would nearly double, according to the Department of Environment.
This would put “significant pressure” on the current infrastructure and amenities, it added.
The department gave the warning in its response to a planning application for a new 54-lot subdivision on Sam McCoy’s Drive in Little Cayman.
It said the Development Control Board should consider the overall impact on the infrastructure and population of the island “given the scale of the existing parcellation”.
In November 2021, there were 1,064 undeveloped subdivision lots under one acre on Little Cayman – a figure that has likely increased in the past two years, the department said.
“Hypothetically, should each of the 1,064 subdivision parcels be developed for housing, this could result in a population increase of 2,128-plus people for Little Cayman,” it wrote.
“This would nearly double the current combined population of the Sister Islands, taking the estimated population from 2,572, to 4,385-plus people.”
The department, contributing under delegated authority from the National Conservation Council, said these numbers were working on an estimate of two people per household.
They came from the Economics and Statistics Office’s Population and Demographics 2021, which grouped together Little Cayman and Cayman Brac’s population statistics.
“With nearly twice as many inhabitants, there would be significant pressure on the infrastructure and amenities on the island,” the Department of Environment wrote.
Development plan
The environment department stressed that any decisions on more subdivisions should ideally be assessed within the context of a new development plan for the island.
This would provide a strategic framework for development, particularly large-scale proposals, the government body wrote in its analysis of the application.
“Against this background, the need for further residential housing development lots should be robustly justified,” it said.
This suggestion was brought up in the past during similar subdivision applications in Little Cayman and Cayman Brac.
The department said that in the absence of a development plan, the department “strongly recommends” a comprehensive review of the need for more subdivisions.
“The impact of a further residential subdivision on existing infrastructure and the environment of the island should be properly considered and evaluated,” it wrote.
Just last month, when two proposals for large subdivisions in Grand Cayman were submitted, the department requested that a review on subdivision applications take place.
The applications were for a combined total of 441 lots across more than 121 acres of land.
New application
The latest application was from Cayman Development Group for a 54-lot subdivision on Sam McCoy’s Drive in Little Cayman, which includes a lot for a road.
The lots range in size from 10,030 square foot to 13,800 square foot, and range from 80 feet, 5 inches, to 141 feet.
As well as the concerns about overwhelming the current infrastructure, the Department of Environment also mentioned that the site is on primary shrubland and dry forest.
“These habitats are often very old, existing long before humans and may consist of many endemic and ecologically important species,” the department wrote.
“Primary habitat is in severe decline and becoming a scarce and highly threatened resource as a result of land conversion for human activities.”
It added that the critically endangered Sister Island rock iguanas – listed as being protected at all times – are known to nest in the area.
Jackhammering and operating heavy machinery are not safe for nesting iguanas, the submission said, adding that construction works can crush or bury iguanas and their nests.
The plan received one letter of objection from a neighbouring resident, who said it is not consistent with the Little Cayman Development Plan 1997.
The objector added that “every effort should be made to retain [Little Cayman’s] unspoilt character and make it an attraction for persons interested in natural life”.
The proposal was discussed at the Development Control Board’s meeting on Tuesday, 21 Nov. The decision will be published in the minutes at a future date.
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