Let’s join forces, says Miller
(CNS): The people who are opposing the dredging of the North Sound channel should join forces with those who are opposing the development of a commercial seaport in East End and vice versa, says the independent MLA for North Side. Ezzard Miller, who says he opposes the dredging of the North Sound for the channel and the creation of artificial islands, says there is common ground in the two campaigns and they will be all the more powerful as a joint force. “We need to find a way for everyone who opposes these projects to stand together,” Miller said. “Both are detrimental to our environment and neither can be justified on the grounds of being of benefit to ordinary Caymanians. These proposed projects need to be stopped by people power.”
Miller says that not only is he concerned about the risk to the Sandbar-Stingray City, and the dangers to the island from cutting the reef but he also said that the premier recently indicated that this project would now require financial input from government to complete some of the infrastructure related to the project.
“In his latest comments the premier spoke about the need to provide supporting infrastructure which probably means the public purse will be paying for the causeway,” Miller added. He said it was interesting that the message that the channel was about creating a market for mega yachts and the economic benefits such an influx would bring has turned into the need to create two artificial islands and a new resort to make the project viable.
“It appears that government is going to allow investors to create several acres of prime waterfront real estate, the sale of which will not offer any benefit to Caymanians,” Miller noted. “We were led to believe that the channel was required to tap into the mega yacht market that we are supposedly missing, but now it seems the channel won’t be viable without creating these artificial resorts.”
The promised jobs for locals would also be few and far between, as is the case with the proposed development of the East End Seaport project, Miller noted. He pointed out that the dredging would take several years, and with no dredging firms in Cayman the developers would likely be using outside companies, who would use their own people.
“Whatever the long term prospects on either project, I see little if any benefit for Caymanians,” he added. “I don’t see any prospects for what we really should be doing, which is creating opportunities for middle class people here to develop their businesses.”
Miller also said the proposal to build an oil refinery in Cayman didn’t seem to make much sense either and doubted the claims that it will be zero emissions. “Even if it is possible to build a refinery that is ’green’ I dare say it would be extremely expensive and I don’t believe that it would go well with our tourism industry,” he added.
Category: Headline News
There was an job advertisement placed by City Services (Cayman) Ltd. for a Managing Director to manage the daily operations for a major maritime infrastructure project, with responsibility for managing all facets of the project incl budget control. The individual must have 20 years managerial experience with marine construction, harbour dredging, hydraulic dredging, marine infrastructure, methodology in engineering in deep harbour construction, human resources, accounting, and financial control. Starting salary = CI$50,000 – $60,000 per annum. THIS HAS TO BE A SHAM / PUPPET position for the to be constructed dock or the EE port – which person with this much exp and qualifications will require between 4,166 and 5,000 per month??
City Services seems to be a newly created company, who owns it anyway? Is there any ultimate beneifical owneship by any politician or closely connected person to a politician?
Where are these petitions being held…would like to sign both of them.
Link to online petition (which is NOT for those eligible to vote in The Cayman Islands) and attachment of the ‘paper’ petition – you print the whole thing, sign the appropriate signature page and then turn it in can be found with the following CNS article –
http://centos6-httpd22-php56-mysql55.installer.magneticone.com/o_belozerov/31115drupal622/headline-news/2011/03/07/cayman-signs-save-north-sound
And thank you!
We need Big, Big and very big Yachhts here in Cayman.
Our fearless leader will sink our Island to get his way. Has anyone noticed that all UDPMLAs are as quiet as little Mice.
We need some big cheese for the little Mice. Elio, save us man. You could never stop talking about any subject but comes time to save our country your nowhere to be found. I want my vote back you fraud.
I heard The Chuckster on Rooster this morning……..thank you Chuckster for setting the record straight. I can’t believe that CG was on the radio trying to take credit for the Chicago and DC service and the Canadian market expansion and Westjet service when that all started under the Chuckster.
The UDP is reaping the benefits of the Chuckster’s policies……perhaps next time CGcould tell us what the UDP has done differently for tourism since 2009…….as far as I can tell they have been following the Chuckster’s plan. At least for that I can give them credit.
Now Ezzard if you would just stop bashing the expats so much you and the Chuckster could make a great team ! Food for thought !!!
The wheels of government move very slowly – even more interesting would be to see how many of ‘The Chuckster’s” successful policies and programmes actually started with previous governments or Ministers.
Miller states that we have no Dredging companies in Cayman.
What about Caymarl. Are’nt the Bodden family that own Caymarl Caymanians.
I have a single question for all who have blogged on this thread.
If the Cayman Islands had oil in the ground (yes I mean black gold) would there be any objections to drilling for that oil and would an Oil refinery have been such a bad thing if we had oil????????????????.
Come on. Takeme up on this one. I have broad shoulders.
Yes, you have broad shoulders because you are Anonymous, but would your shoulders be so broad if you signed your name? DUH! NO!
So what are you. “SYNONIMOUS”?????????????????.
NO! But I don’t claim to have broad shoulders! Haha. Anyone can claim to have broad shoulders if they are Anonymous! What a joke!
Instead of preoccupying yourself with the size of my shoulders and my anonymity, why dont you contribute to the question I asked.
Exactly. In the 80’s Ezzard had no problem cutting through the reefs in North Side at multiple locations so the local fishermen could come through with their small boats. They used big, hydraulic excavators and walked them out to the reef and started digging. He had no regard for the environment but it got some votes.
MLA Ezzard’s failed stand against the East End Seaport has led him to the North Sound objectors. But Ezzard is clearly no environmentalist, after all he objected to the Conservation law wanting Northsiders to do what they wish with their land.
Now that its convenient he wants to jump on the environmental bandwagon.
Pure Poli-tricks
It would be best if we all focus our efforts on insisting that the law to protect the environment be brought to the LA and passed. Even Mr. Miller must now see the absolute need for this to be done, in spite of his past objections. Then we would have requirements for EIA’s, etc. to be done before any wild scheme is considered.
Even if it was passed it would end up like the rest of the laws no enforcement.
Canal and islands. Just about everyone in these islands are or by now should be aware of the methods of The Mac. Most will say that he is ignorant, aggressive and is only looking out for the Special Interest to list a few. Also, that he has no vision and therefore falls short of how to plan for the future. Here’s is what most of you are missing. On the flip side Mac is indeed one of the smartest career politicians Cayman has ever come by. Before I part the next information on you, I must apologise if I let the "cat out of the bag" Mr Premeir. Just take a look as you drive the SMB strip and count the number of empty lots you may see. These are very few and far apart. This my dear friends spells the end of the goldmine commissions for the "Special interest", (i.e. the realtors etc). Shhh careful how you say that. These companies and their high profile owners have very little, to no interest in the other parts of the island because let’s face it, when you become accustomed to taking in 10s and 100s of thousands at times 1M+ of comminssion dollars, who would be interested in taking home the few 100 or 1000 dollars?? Here is where the plot thickens, the geniuses and that they are, came up with the plan of creating more of this precious square footage by……. hmmmm… creating two islands in the North Sound, they would need a canal because this will now become the "Creme la Creme" of the Cayman Islands because the water is a bit shallow. Most of the new owners of this property will be in the category that can afford a Mega Yacht and besides we have the Ritz and Dart who will back them as this is a direct drop in their purse! All in all, we have another win fall and the rich get richer as the saying goes. Oops, almost forget they will need the little Philipino to catch the rope ($3.50/hr). There is one minor detail that has to be handled first, but this is really not an issue because as in the past all they need is Mac and they now have him positioned to where this is no longer a minor point but rather a mute one. XXXX Again, I apoloogise Mac but they would have eventually figured it out. I just want to know if you will actually shed a tear when you instruct the door of the private jet to close and you take that final fly by of the destruction of the island that time once forgot?? PS. Could someone please post a link to the last Enviromental Impact Study commissioned by the CI Gov’t for a project that came back negative or an absolute NO.
Dubai islands are eroding/sinking.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1349532/Dubai-islands-falling-sea-Dubai-World-sinks-fund-crisis.html
Wise men build their house upon the Rocks. Foolish men build their house upon the sand,
In the case of Dubai, no erosion protection have been built to protect the islands and they are simply slipping back to their place of origin.
If we build islands in the North Sound they must have erosion protection such as sheet piling , concrete walls or large boulders. Without this the material will gradually return to its place of origin, such as has been happening in Rackleys and other canals around Grand Cayman.
These so called "resort islands" are undoubtedly where McGamble’s casinos are intended for. Just like in the Bahamas where you have Paradise Island, we will have McGamble’s Islands.
For these idiotic "projects/schemes" to be stopped, McKeeva MUST BE REMOVED FROM OFFICE!
It’s seems that efforts to stimulate the economy by upwardly mobile development is not really a popular idea. Most residents are against changing the landscape of the island in any way. One way to eliminate the need for new development and possibly foreign investment would be to implement direct taxation such as Income and Property Taxes. This may very well generate the revenue that’s needed by the government to operate at the standards of most Caymanians without the need to build up the islands and consider developments like the East End Seaport, Oil Refinery and North Sound Dredging. Would this be an acceptable alternative to all the ideas the current government has for making money and would Caymanians be will to dig into their own pockets keep the island afloat ?
NJ2Cay, as someone who said that you would never set foot on this island again, why do you now wish to see it destroyed?
Are you so filled with hatred that you now wish the is land that was once your retirement dream to become a nightmare for the innocent population that remain here?
Are you actually living on the same planet as the rest of us?
Let’s compare the Cayman Islands with the great state of Florida with which we do most of our trade.
Florida has a population in excess of 18 million people, it covers an area of 53 thousand square miles, with a coastline of around 1500 miles. In the state of Florida there are ZERO oil refineries. I wonder why?
Anyone who thinks an oil refinery in Cayman would make a good business would be much better off building one in Florida where land is cheaper, and they have a population of 18 million people to sell their product to.
I’m sure the UDP genii have a perfectly good explanation as to why the 18 million people of Florida are so wrong in not allowing an emission-free refinery into the state to compliment their tourist product.
If Ezzard wants to stop this, he should have done more to promote the implementation of the proposed environmental protaection laws, which would have meant that it would be difficult to develop in a conservation zone (ie North Sound)
Now we are faced with Mr Mc Bulldozer forcing us to pay for a North Sound Channel deep enough to take a cruise ship so that he and his cronies can benefit from the creation of new development land caused as a result of all the spoil dredged up….well done you get us to pay for it all, you ruin the environment and you rub our noses in it by proffiting from it all.
Ezzard, as a Ex-patophile, I find it strange that you want the people you dispise to help you politically, by hijacking their petition for your own purposes….get some ideas of your own for once, you are becoming as manipulative as the rest of them.
If you want to stop them, prevent the Chinese from being allowed to bring in their own slave labour and start doing something to implement strict environmental laws so that this can not be allowed to happen in the future.
Ezzard is one of the major road blocks to the new conservation law being enacted and as usual has no doubts about his position.
Sometimes looking to our neighbors in the Caribbean can be good for reflection. This article speaks to proposed dredging for different reasons, but nevertheless was halted by public push back.
http://virginislandsdailynews.com/news/dredging-indefinitely-on-hold-royal-caribbean-drops-pledge-1.1043249#axzz1G12WzMuv
Beyond this article, you can also review the USVI for crime rates and violence and see where Cayman may be heading- it isn’t pretty.
And if you want to view an island with an oil refinery, look at the stories from St. Croix, and then know that the cruise ships all but pulled out of there some 5 or 6 years ago due to violence against guests and cruise ship staff. http://www.cruisecritic.com/ports/newport.cfm?ID=10
And many who have visited, regard St. Croix as a beautiful island, however their crime has dramatically slowed arrivals by air or cruise ship (only 6 per year!)- testament it can happen if crime escalates too far, regardless how beautiful the island is.
I don’t always agree with Ezzard, however in this article I believe he is spot on with his idea to join forces to oppose projects. Nice to see someone stepping up to the challenge.
Let’s get on with it, and start
I think the most damaging proposal so far is the oil refinery. We all need to join forces to fight that, or we can kiss our health and our livelihood goodbye.
The best idea I have heard dealing with our government. let’s get it done. We will see who is for country and who’s against.
I’ve been saying the same thing – not so much about the Seaport (although come to mention it I’d back that petition too) but also most definitely abut the Oil Refinery proposition. So this thing is actually threefold and the (ludicrous) thought of having an oil refinery will most definitely attract international attention if the campaign is dealt with in the right way.
Add opposing an oil refinery and lets go!!!
Am in
***** I don’t understand. You petition the government for a referendum to stop certain projects from occuring, yet there is no petition out to get rid of McKeeva Bush! If you want to solve a growing problem, you have to strike at the root. ***** M.R.