Environmental impact assessment required on road project
There is little chance of altering the proposed route of the East-West Arterial road to avoid going through the Mastic Trail, Premier Alden McLaughlin acknowledged on Monday.
He insisted the $40 million, 10-mile highway extension would go through a rigorous environmental impact assessment before being given the final go ahead.
But he said there was no obvious alternative to the original route, outlined in 2005, which goes across the southern portion of the trail, which the Trust has described as an important natural habitat and valuable visitor attraction.
Mr. McLaughlin suggested a bridge could potentially be built across the trail and insisted government and the developer would work with the Trust and do their best to mitigate the environmental impact.
But he conceded, “I don’t think it will be possible to go around the Mastic Trail.”
He said the National Trust’s expansion of the trail, from its original boundaries, had taken it so far to the south that a diversion was not a viable option.
The Trust has already expressed concern about the highway extension, following developer Ironwood’s agreement to complete the work on behalf of government, with the cost funded through duties on its $360 million golf resort development.
“We are disturbed at the possibility that years of acquiring land and millions of dollars raised for these purchases could be compromised for road access,” the National Trust’s executive director, Christina Pineda, said in a statement.
“We are confident that there are ways to avoid this unnecessary destruction by rerouting a section of the proposed road corridor to allow the Mastic Reserve to remain intact.
“We welcome the opportunity to work with the government and the community to help keep the Mastic reserve as the pristine and environmentally significant gem it is,” she added.
The Trust is not the only landowner likely to be affected by the road development. Several landowners along the proposed route face the prospect of having their property “acquired” under the Roads Law.
Kurt Tibbetts, minister for infrastructure, said Ironwood would cover the cost of the purchases as part of the deal. But he gave his personal view that the majority of cases would require no payment, with proximity to the road expected to add value to people’s land.
He accepted that the process had not moved quickly enough in previous cases where government had acquired land for road developments and technical experts had not been able to agree on a fair price.
Mr. Tibbetts added that the integrity of the planning process for Ironwood’s resort development, which has yet to go before the Central Planning Authority, would not be compromised by the road deal and government’s expressed support of the project.
Premier McLaughlin said the agreement with the developer was a “non-binding memorandum of understanding” that amounted to a declaration of intent on both sides.
He said the cost of the project meant it was subject, not only to the planning process, but to the additional layer of scrutiny required for major capital investments through the Framework for Fiscal Responsibility – budget rules for the Cayman Islands Government drafted by the U.K.
He said an environmental impact assessment would have to be carried out and expressed his hope that any threat to the natural environment could be mitigated.
He added, “I think we will wind up with a project that is very environmentally friendly. Remember also, the people coming to live and play on these courses want a pristine environment, not a concrete jungle.”
David Moffitt, the developer behind the project, said he had already met with National Trust staff and hoped a workshop could be organized with Trust officials, government and the development team to find the “best solution.”
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Mr. Premier I beg you to reconsider this deal. Like always it will be the people who will foot the bill when this deal goes belly up and it will.
There’s so much destruction on west bay road now we head east and north to destroy what’s left of tranquility.
This deal reminds me of the For Alliance Deal. Remember only specific people got work from these project and those got the crumbs are still unemployed. Oh what a great deal that was.
I am happy to hear that we are coming closer to reality on the east-west arterial roadway. It has been at least 40 years that I have heard about a road to be built there. I would hope that no one would try to make an excuse to stop it. It is time. Great Grandfather and many generations before him have had to walk through that swamp to keep cows from dying during the dry periods.
When hurricanes came, the beach front roads were found not to be viable roads. So they had to change and build new roads further inland to where they are today. When more development and grandchildren started growing we needed roads, more interior roads needed because of faster roads for emergencies , from accidents, hurricanes . People in the eastern districts take over a half hour traveling time just to get to Savannah . Let us bless the day that another investor is willing to pay and build the road. 4 lanes please? I cannot think why it wouldn’t be quieter since all water front roads are going to be 30 mph in the future. So all racing car drivers will pick the 4 lane? Garbage trucks ,dump trucks, tour busses, any kind of transport truck going to the outlying districts will pick this route . So therefore it will be much quieter building this road.
As far as the Mastic trail is concerned I think making it a shorter walk would attract more tourists. Can someone tell us exactly how many tourists have walked it over one year? How many from cruise ships? how many from hotels? condos? Were there any complaints?
Basically what this means is that the road will go right where is was originally planned to go there will be no reroutes and the bridge idea is BS, that’s not going to happen either. The Trust will have to give up some of their land just as other private property owners will. Any lost to the Mastic Trail can be mitigated but this road has been needed for a long time. People that own land along the path that this road will take will benefit greatly from it by making their land more accessible as well.