Plans by the Grand Cayman Marriott Resort to limit public access to Seven Mile Beach while it carries out repair and related work have failed to gain the support of the Public Lands Commission.
The agenda for the Central Planning Authority’s meeting on 25 June shows that the hotel has made an application to repair the deck on its beach terrace and to relocate its bar and pond pump.
The submitted application asks for planning permission to repair the existing seawall, backfilling it ahead of installing a new deck. The application also asks to relocate a damaged pond pump, remove the damaged bar structure and to repair the terrace as well as take out a section of the island pond.
Commenting on the application, the Public Lands Commission said that it discussed the issue at its meeting on 27 May, adding, “Following careful consideration, the PLC voted not to support the temporary closure of any registered public beach accesses located on the property.”
The planning board also received comments from the National Conservation Council, which said, “We consider the principle of the development to be acceptable as it seeks to repair an existing structure and the works would be conducted behind the existing structures.”
However, it added that it remained concerned about the adjacent marine protected area and recommended any planning approval should come with conditions to reduce any adverse impact from the works.
Both responses are set to be discussed by the planning board on 25 June.
The Marriott has long been held up as an example of the problems of beach erosion on Grand Cayman, especially on the southern end of Seven Mile Beach. While there used to be a stretch of sand in front of the hotel, in the past few years the beach has been completely lost and meant the hotel had to drop the word “beach” from its name.
As reported by the Compass in January, owners of the Marriott have submitted an application for a “coastal protection and beach enhancement project”. The National Conservation Council ruled on 4 June that an environmental impact assessment isn’t required for that project. The next step is for the Department of Environment to make a recommendation to Cabinet so that the project can proceed.
The Marriott proposes to deposit up to 8,000 cubic yards of fresh sand on a 60-foot stretch of shoreline in front of the hotel to restore the beach. Low-profile ‘shoreline stabilisation structures’, buried under the sand and below the mean high-water mark, are proposed to help the sand from being swept away in future storms.
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There is no current need for the beach access paths because there is NO beach to access. As can clearly be seen from the photos.
In my opinion the Public Lands Commission should support any attempt to restore the beach.
This is a ludicrous decision, it’s only temporary until the repairs are completed and there is no beach to access. Who is on the Public Lands Commission, and bearing in mind recent comments about the excessive remuneration on public Boards, how much are they paid?.
As the last person stated There is no beach so why should there be beach access So people can walk into the water The government or lack of it has done nothing for years FIX THE BEACH
This is sheer lunacy. The Government drag their feet doing little to solve beach erosion, but Marriott, who are prepared to spend a fortune restoring part of the famous Beach, are having roadblocks put up by that same Government. No-one currently has public access to the Marriott “beach” as it doesn’t exist. What calibre of person sits on the Public Lands Commission?
What this means is that no where on island can beach repairs be done, because the public will be required to have access to those building sites. What a strange conclusion. I think the public lands commission needs to just get out of the way.