Hospital not dock, says Arden
(CNS): East End’s opposition member of the Legislative Assembly, Arden McLean, has told his constituents in that he is in favour of a hospital in the district but not a cargo dock or the dump. Speaking to the people of East End at a public meeting last night, the PPM former cabinet minister said he would back whatever his people wanted but he said he believed that out of the various development projects being proposed for East End the medical facility proposed by Dr Devi Shetty would be the most advantageous for the country and his constituents.
Reporting back about his political activities on their behalf, including his recent visit with Cabinet and the representations he had made for them, he said he was standing against any proposals to move the landfill to East End or a commercial dock. However, he said he had always been in favour of medical tourism.
“There are advantages and disadvantages to bringing any development to a community but I prefer a hospital over a dock,” he said, adding that he wanted to know how the community felt about the various proposals being made concerning the eastern districts.
McLean said he did not know exactly where the proposed 500 acre medical facility would eventually be built but it seemed as though East End was the most likely location. He said he was not going to advise people what to do about selling land in connection to the project but he believed that it was the most positive of the various proposals.
“I believe a hospital will enhance the lives of the people and offer new business opportunities and careers for the future,” he added, noting that in the end it was up to his constituents what they wanted him to support on their behalf. But he made it clear that personally he was against the cargo facility as there were too many disadvantages.
Having said that, however, McLean said he believed he and his constituents should be willing to hear out Joe Imperato, one of the local investors proposing the commercial port facility in the district, who was present at the meeting. McLean said he would be organising another meeting soon where the people of East End would be given the full details so they could decide for themselves whether they wanted the dock or not.
McLean said he already knew that his constituents were against moving the landfill to his district and so would not support that under any circumstances. Nevertheless, he noted that a proposal by another East Ender, Walling Whittaker (an independent candidate for George Town in the 2009 Election) for a waste reclamation and recycling plant could be worth considering for the district. He said that ,when the opportunity arose he would also bring Whittaker to East End to talk about this proposition. “I believe this could work it is a different type of waste management,” he added.
With a number of proposals for development in East End McLean said the people had to decide for themselves what they wanted in their district. “You may say no to them all,” he said. “But I need to inform you of what’s going on and what is being proposed to come into your community and then I will represent what you want.”
He explained that whatever was developed in the community their lives would be changed forever, whether it was a hospital or a dock, and the people needed to get all the facts before deciding.
The audience response seemed to follow the lead of their representative, with some support being voiced for the hospital but the cargo port appeared to raise various concerns. The vulnerability of such a project to a severe hurricane could cause environmental catastrophe for the whole island, not just East End, one elderly resident warned. There were also questions raised about the roads that would be required for a commercial port and the impact on the beauty and tranquillity of their district.
Imparato thanked McLean for inviting him along and said that when the time was right he would ensure the people of East End were fully informed of the details of the proposed project and he hoped he would be able to persuade them it was a good thing and to support the development. “I will share all of the details of this project very soon,” Imparato told the meeting.
Category: Headline News
Nice to see a politician really representing his people and weighing the pros and cons for his district. That’s what a real representative does – I hope the others take note and follow suit.
Arden what happened to all the rocks from that were piled up out by Lover’s Wall?
I’ve already said my 2 cents in regards to the Shetty hospital – not going there today.
However, I would like to take this opportunity to encourage all Caymanians – especially those in the Eastern districts – to seriously consider the standing opportunities of opening and operating B&B (Bed & Breakfast) accommodations.
With plans for the hospital charging ahead, there has never been a better time for us to explore this option. Many of our new visitors will be outside the usual umbrella of "luxury tourists", and will in fact be looking for these types of accommodations for reasons not limited to lower costs by the way. Furthermore, many of these new visitors will likely be groups of several members of family and friends – and not necessarily wealthy ones.
We constantly complain about how Caymanians are being squeezed out of the tourism industry – even its supposed economical benefits – well, here is a way to grab a sure piece of that pie. Do we think it is by mere chance that the prospect of a vibrant B&B market is practically never supported or encouraged by the powers that be?
This, my friends, is because such a development would eat into the pockets of who I like to refer to as "the others".
While we are looking to build half million dollar homes and tend to neglect and discard the "old" and damaged homes of our childhood or parents – we may be sitting on a potential gold mine and not even realize it.
Our eastern districts are awash with many properties that are ideal for such an endeavor – sadly however, I have witnessed many of "the others" purchasing, renovating and renting to our visitors!
People, brand "Cayman" was built upon the reputation, character and nature of OUR people – this is what attracted our visitors in the first place. However, today they barely see or interact with us any more because we have been squeezed out and replaced by what we see all around us.
They want to see us Caymanians – I hear the complaints all the time.
No budget hotel on SMB could ever compare with a clean, friendly and Caymanian staffed, served and nourished small, intimate establishment – none!
All it takes to get started is the property and a free internet listing or $25 website.
Not only would this enable more of us to participate in our major national industry but it would enable our visitors to experience true and authentic Caymanian culture and its "warm and friendly" people.
All the best.
(Lastly, I would like to encourage my fellow Caymanians to resist all offers to sell personally or family owned property in order to facilitate the newly proposed developments. Instead try to rent or lease whenever possible. Property ownership has never been more crucial in the history of not just Cayman but the world over (economic / fiat money crisis).)
Too bad that Arden it not the leader of the country rather than Mac and his deputy with their pettiness.
Why don’t McKeeva Bush leave the Pristine East End alone and put the cargo dock in his district and continue to destroy West Bay.
Leave East End alone and let us continue to be the envy of the other districts for our natural beauty!
hospital in east end. I do not think you will see it happen. will the people sell thier land for this project,i doubt it very much. i think you are doing the right thing by telling your constituents what is going on. some is not please because you is supporting what you see will be good for east end, not because it is UDP preject. as for the 1103am poster the PPM knew about this before the UDP came to power.yes we will continue to pick our cherries. we have to do that because the country do not a leader who knows when the cherries are ready to pick
People you have to understand, Arden cant really do much, but have a motion against something that is agreed upon in the LA.
I dont take it as if he is backing the UDP, but rather trying to make sense out of the UDP’s stupid about moving the landfil to East End or a commerical dock which would destroy East End and there wont be an East End after that.
My question is, how is the Mr. Shetty going to get land to build is hospital??
Is he going to BUY IT HIM SELF??…… Or is the GOVERNMENT going to GIVE HIM the land??
I think a lot of people tend to forget when you are elected you are the voice of the people. So what you do and the choices you make are a DIRECT reflection of the majority of the people of whom you represent.
These guys work for the people of the Cayman Islands and are paid by the people of the Cayman Islands. There are on our time… (we really tend to forget this and I think we let our politicians get away with too much)
So regardless of what "non-eastenders" may or may not think. If they (the people of east end) don’t want a dock or anything else they it is only fair that Arden should express that. Otherwise what the hell is the point of voting?
I do not think that you understand the UK model of representative democracy. The voters pick a candidate but the candidate is not obliged to espouse the views of those that voted him in.
12:17
From a neutral stance I am asking how do you know Dr. Shetty can’t afford to pay the Caymanian worker that could potentially be laid off? Do you have the statistics of his salary budget?
I am just asking because I don’t like when "Facts" are presented without solid proof or stats, then your statment just becomes subjective rather than objective.
Once again I am at a neutral stance not for or against the Hospital.
I thought my point would be supported by good common sense but I guess I have to expand some more. The only way in which the services rendered at Dr. Shetty’s Hospital would attract foreign patients would be as a result of rock bottom prices (with high quality medical care). As you may observe with our current two Hospitals, we are unable to implement that model to attract foreign patients. Now imagine, a billion dollar Hospital that must be made profitable over the long-run (therefore the services at his facility must be even cheaper than the current services offered at our two local Hospitals + much better). Can you imagine the amount of patients that they will need to attract to cover their start-up costs??? In business, to maximize profits one must seek to exhaust all revenue earning measures, whilst, simultaneously seeking to cut as much cost as possible. Therefore, as salaries generally represent a significant percentage of any organization’s operational expenses, it would seem like common sense for Dr. Shetty to look to minimize his salary expenses. As we know there are not enough doctors in Cayman to fully man Dr. Shetty’s Hospital, it becomes blatantly obvious that doctors will be brought into these Islands to man the facility. Let us guess that the average Caymanian doctor earns $8,000 CI dollars a month, do you believe that Dr. Shetty will be able to pay all of his imported doctors that same amount? I don’t think so! It would make that facility automatically uncompetitive with the American Hospitals (and our two existing Hospitals) as one must also take into account the CI – US currency conversion rate. Then, if he pays his doctors less than that amount, the doctors will struggle greatly with paying skyrocketing malpractice insurance premiums. Hypothetically speaking, Dr. Shetty imports doctors and are paying them less than the average local doctor. Then, the other two local Hospitals go out of business. Do you think that our local doctors / administrative staff will accept the salaries (or are warranted to) that Dr. Shetty’s doctors / administrative staff are making? NO! One must understand that these Cayman Islands are indeed Islands! How can we offer pharmaceuticals at a cheaper price than a location (such as Florida) where they are actually produced?! How can we offer the best in medical care when we don’t even have robust medical school programs feeding the proposed facility (unlike Florida, Texas, California etc)? How can we acquire the necessary medical equipment (that needs to be imported) at prices cheaper than jurisdictions where they are made? Not to mention, who is going to protect that facility when Ivan’s brother or sister decides to visit us in the future (bearing in mind that facility will always have critical patients)?! Let us wake up and use our brains. It is IMPOSSIBLE without imported labour, and if that be the case, then our Caymanians need to be very very very worried!
The man has a one track mind, his only contribution to the country has been to build things.
He is backing both projects! He had the Port developer address his constituents at HIS public meeting, that’s the introduction! And then supported the Hospital! Thank you Arden! Now go and thank Mac!!!
To Anon 14:49, you ignorantly say that "He is backing both projects!" You are a silly little girl, why do you make a comment if you have not read the article? Several times in the CNS report it quotes Arden Mclean as saying that he supports the Shetty hospital in East End but NOT the cargo dock or the relocation of the dump, but he also says that he will act according to the wishes of his constituents (that is the sign of a great representative). Please read the report, Arden does NOT support the cargo dock in East End.
I wish I could vote for Arden Mclean because how many politicians would do what he did? He is AGAINST the cargo dock, yet he respects the wishes of his constituents so much that he is willing to invite the developer to present his case so that in fairness East Enders will know both sides of the story, even if it means there is a possibility that his constituents’ views may differ to his. That is a great representative, that is the Action Man. Most politicians, especially you know who, would do their very best to present their side of the story only so as to try & influence his people to see things his way only, he would not want to present the other side so as not to influence his people to support something that he does not support.
For you, Anon 14:49, to say that he supports both projects because he invited the cargo dock developer to speak to his people is ignorant & totally out of order. I congratulate Arden Mclean for inviting the developer to the meeting to present his plans to the East End people so that THEY can decide for themselves & not just rely on Arden to tell them his views. For the record, even though I am not an East Ender I support Arden Mcleans point of view. I would HATE to see East End destroyed because of the proposed cargo dock development & the relocation of the dump. Leave beautiful East End alone. Arden, do not let the almighty dollar destroy East End like how Big Mac allowed the almighty dollar to destroy the Seven Mile beach. It only benifitted a few, & we know who one of the few lucky ones was who did benifit (from all the development on the Seven mile beach).
I was there at the meeting. Arden did not have Joe Imparato address the crowd. After Arden spoke, the was a question and answer period where the microphone was passed around. Mr. Imparato took the microphone and made his brief remarks stating that he looked forward to presenting the plans for the dock to the East Enders at a meeting in the future and that he hoped to persuade them to see the project the way he viewed it.
Arden knows his constituency well, and he is there to represent East Enders. To further remove any ambiguity, he has started that he will hold meetings with the developers of each project so that the people can make a fully informed decision. For years, the people of East End have said that they do not want the dock or the dump…Arden is simply representing the views of the people who elected him.
Keep doing the good job that you do Arden!
In my mind the only relevent thing is where the hospital is to be. Obviously the site has been chosen. Would someone care to "shet" a light on it? Is it a state’s secret? Who are the screwees?
THE TRUTH ABOUT SHETTY HOSPITAL
Is the Cayman government, so naive, that they think the USA medical sector will just stand by and let Dr. Shetty take USA patients?
They will fight him, with everything they have — discounts, price cuts, rules, regulations, whatever.
He will never succeed, IMHO.
If you think the hospitals are in control of the US health care system, think again! It’s the insurance companies. And they will be very happy to pay lower prices for the same services. Only Medicare will not participate, as the rules are now. But that too may change.
So typical>>>>tear down and doom say< and be haters< don’t build up, Don’t encourage or look forward>>>>thats why this country will never succeed<jealousy and small mindedness.Maybe a strong hurricane season will bring us back to earth and make us count our blessings>>>Watch the news for God sakes….the world is in a mess, We had better start pulling together and working toward a future to hand over to the next generation, instead of complaining day and night night and day…If it’s so bad here, pull up roots and move to Louisianna.
This is a small island. It is very selfish of Arden to say he does not want something in East End when it would benefit ALL of the people of the Cayman Islands. East End has the largest piece of Undeveloped land, the majority of it unaccessible. These types of development could help to open up East End and provide employment on this side of the island. Jobs other than the low paying hospitality jobs. Wake up East Enders. Do the George Towners complain when you drive to town every day to work in George Town? If these projects are planned well and integrated with the sweet harmony of East End, there is no problem with the projects.
To Anon Tue, 06/01/2010 – 14:21, how can a development that will most definitely hurt our environment, will definitely hurt the East End environment, be "integrated with the sweet harmony of East End" & not be a problem as you suggest? It simply does not make sense. A cargo port development in East End will hurt, if not destroy a lot of the coast & environment around East End. Once the this development goes into East End you can kiss the "sweet harmony of East End" goodbye. You cannot have your cake & eat too.
sorry arden…. the days of cherry picking prefered projects are over…
the country won’t be held to ransom by the narrow mindedness of the tiny minority
Actually it is tiny minority who are shortsighted and tunnel visioned enough to think that building a dock in EE is a good thing. It has not seemed to dawn on the UDP that a dock turns the area into an industrial zone and is not attractive for tourism of any sort, that it will seriously damage the environment and increase the risk of even greater devastation from a hurricane.
You are correct in pointing out that the country will not be held to ransom by a tiny minority. Unfortunately, you are unable to see that YOU are part of that minority.
If we do not cherry pick then we will be going to hell in a hand basket must faster that we are right now; if that is possible to imagine.
I think what you want to say is that in the name of development we must accept that some mangroves must be destroyed in order to have more beautiful condos. In order to get the owners of mega yachts to come here and spend money we must destroy the reef and the North Sound. We cannot do proper environmental impact studies because we need the new docks in a hurry and if Seven Mile Beach is compromised then so be it. Government entities must be sold off to cronies without proper evaluations or tendering process etc. etc. etc.
Is that why you want to stop the cherry picking?
East Enders can be justifiably proud of having a man of integrity like Arden McLean to represent them. Of course "some" West Bayers are just as pround of the new appliances they get every four years.
hahahaha Anon 16:41, I LOVE your last sentence about the new appliances, that’s great & very funny. I also agree with you that East Enders can be justifiably proud of Arden McLean. Finally, I also agree with you in pointing out that the "tiny minority" are the few people who support the port development in East End. They are a VERY TINY MINORITY. The vast majority of East End people & the Cayman people are AGAINST the port in East End. Good post Anon 16:41, good one.
So very well said!
A North-Side East Ender!
Arden I just want you to know you are doing a great job! I am not from the district of East End but I must say that you take great interest in what the people say. Unfortunately this is lacking in other districts and I hope many more will follow your lead.
This is one time that I will have to take a different position than Arden. I am against the proposed Shetty Hospital as it could potentially change the demographic landscape of these Cayman Islands! We know that it is IMPOSSIBLE for that institution to employ local labour and expect for it to compete with the American Hospitals (particularly those in the ‘Sun Belt’). I can see the need for a medical facility (small hospital) in the Eastern Districts, yet, a project on the scale of Dr. Shetty’s intentions is quite unrealistic. We must realize that if Dr. Shetty gets his way, then, there is a grave possibility that our two existing Hospitals will go out of business! Resulting in highly skilled Caymanians being out of work. Like I said, itwould be impossible for Dr. Shetty’s Hospital to employ those Caymanians due to the salaries that they would demand. Thereby, setting the stage for great civil unrest! Therefore, from examining the information on the amount of Hospital Staff that will be required to keep Dr. Shetty’s Hospital going (10,000? + not to mention their dependants), one must wonder where will the labourers come from?! XXXXX Cayman let us be careful because not everything that shines is gold! The free ‘Status’ granting CAPTAIN (Captain BLIND and UNEDUCATED) is back at the helm and look at where he is taking us now! Take care all.
"I prefer a hospital over a dock"
Pssssss… ;o)
don’t tell dem I meant I prefer NO hospital here…
Me just using psychology on deh members
Don’t be silly. If you know Arden McLean you would know that if he were against the hospital everyone would know it.
Arden is clearly going out on a limb and taking a huge risk with those statements.
Of course this is what theEast Enders want all the benefits and none of the downside of the evolving nation of the Cayman Islands.
It is childish really because everyone knows that you must have both the good and the bad in life and that includes East End.
More mature leadership for the East End would be refreshing.
Arden is a "mature" leadership! because he allow’s no one to walk over him is why it would be refreshing in regards to a more mature leadership.. he’s doing a great job for East End! until he does nothing as our representative he remain’s in his post.. but sorry it takes the people of East End to determin that.
East Side.
Oh my tweet…
All of a sudden he is backing a UDP project
This narrowmindeness is exactly what is the cause of so many problems we face today. It shouldn’t be about whether it is a UDP or PPM project, it should be whether it is good for the Island and its people or not. My gosh, has part politics in Jamaica still not taught you anything? See past the colors, come on, challenge yourself!
It shows he is objective and not about opposing merely for the sake of opposition. You should appreciate that, not mock it.
Not that the previous commentor has done so directly, but I’d just like to point out to EVERYONE that it’s really annoying when people choose to call it either a "UDP project" or a "private sector initiative" based on whether they are pro- or anti-UDP and whether the comment is pro- or anti-Shetty hospital…
This project is a private sector initiative supported by the UDP Government.
You all should be ashamed of yourselves. Threat of war, oil spills people dying of starvation and still you yammer on and on…World going broke massive layoffs throughout the world, teachers, etc. and still we worry about local little picky foolishness…Go give some time or money to a charity of your choice.
11:03
Did you get permission from your parents to be on this site??