Plans to build a $32 million block of 12 luxury apartments next to the four-way stop in West Bay have been hit with objections from local residents and business owners alongside a petition protesting against the plans containing 235 signatures.
The proposed The Residences apartment block, comprising a total of 40 bedrooms, and including a swimming pool, a gym, a generator and a cabana, will be located on two parcels of land known as Heritage Square, which are currently occupied by a car park, a liquor store, an electrical store and a clothing shop.
The application, by Heritage Holdings, was originally for 14 apartments but has been modified to 12 apartments since it was first brought before the planning board in December, although the proposed height, building footprint and building size remains the same.
CPA board members decided at that meeting to adjourn the application for scrutiny by the National Conversation Council in case there were likely to be adverse effects on local nesting turtles and the nearby marine protected area.
The application is scheduled to be heard at this Wednesday’s CPA meeting where the plans will be discussed in detail and objections will be heard. Several letters containing concerns about the plans have been sent to the director of planning, including one letter which contains 14 pages of signatures from people supporting the objections.
The letter, by Betty Ebanks, says that there are more than 200 names attached to the letter, and if there had been more time then “there would be hundreds more” as so many people were distressed about the overdevelopment of West Bay.
The main objections outlined in her letter are that the project is incompatible with the traditional Caymanian feel of West Bay; the construction work will cause noise and air pollution, and safety hazards for residents; and add to traffic problems.
More permanent issues will be the loss of light and air to surrounding buildings, in particular Heritage Kitchen, the effect on nearby beaches, and the loss of scenery and open views to the sea.
“West Bayers are feeling smothered, especially when travelling through these new developments that are so close to the road,” Ebanks wrote. “Most tourists who visit Cayman do not want this over-development either, they leave the large cities to get away to a place where they can rest and relax and enjoy our island environment and culture.”
Other letters submitted to the CPA highlight the impact on tourists who come to the area to enjoy the views, and the need for more retail facilities instead of multi-storey apartment blocks.
In a letter to the CPA countering the objections, attorney Waide DaCosta, who is acting on behalf of the applicant, said that the current retail units on the parcels of land in question “could not be by any stretch of the imagination be a historic building or possess the Cayman Islands historical and architectural heritage”.
He added, “Unfortunately the current building is aging and will have to be removed eventually due to safety concerns. The applicant has therefore taken pre-emptive steps by submitting the present application that consists of residences only as it is the least obtrusive of the permissible developments allowed in the current zone.”
“Respectful development”
DaCosta continued, “The development is respectful of the surrounding area and complements the surrounding properties. There is a gas station at the junction of the four-way stop, the Sands next door and other apartments along Mary Molly Hydes Road that this development would complement.”
The 46-foot-high building, which will have a 12,176-square-foot footprint, will be directly next to the Sands apartment block – where a four-bed apartment is currently on sale for US$3.6 million – and will overshadow Heritage Kitchen and the former museum building which stand on a separate parcel of land.
The plans will be discussed at the next meeting of the Central Planning Authority on Wednesday, 19 March. Specific issues scheduled for debate include whether the plans are suitable for a neighbourhood commercial zone, the number of apartments planned, the historic nature of the area, the height of the building, the setback from West Bay Road, the loss of retail outlets and the concerns of the objectors.
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Please don’t ruin the charm of Heritage Kitchen and the seawall.
I, for one, happen to be an off island resident. I feel as if I’ve been driven OFF. I am compelled to advocate for the Islanders. Let’s first look at the monetary parallel, for the love of Island; can any of you honestly, within your heart not thru the eyes of destruction (because that’s what you’re doing to the Island, you’ve already begun the process of building yourself into extinction) No where on that Island requires another “high-rise, luxury apartment” Consideration NEEDS to given to the handful of “ACTUAL CAYMANIAN” families, not the paper ones or the ones that were “granted / given” citizenship. What is the matter with the government??? I can guarantee that there will never be a time when every resort or hotel or air BNB will be filled at the same time. Extend some grace and mercy to the people. As for “Heritage Kitchen” and the surrounding area by the sea…., it should not be available for a limited few (because that’s what will happen), but to the Island. I believe that 50 years exceeds the time frame for an dwelling to be considered a historical site. You all could have a UNESCO site with the Heritage Kitchen and the Old Homestead but you won’t, if the plans continue. I think it’s safe to say, you’d be mad too, if all you could remember from a once in a lifetime visit, (which you would have had to save up for quite a long time, because of your extreme COL ) to the Grand Cayman Island B.W.I. was the four way stop in West Bay, that until you saw it, you wouldn’t know you were anywhere else other than Miami, as did my return in 2024, having the opportunity for yearly sometime 2 or 3 even 4 times a year since 1960. It would be an absolute travesty to take that so very loved area away from REAL CAYMANIANS in CARE OF. And it would be FOREVER.