Archive for March, 2012
Mosquitoes multiplying as swamps flood
(CNS): Experts from the government’s Mosquito Research & Control Unit (MRCU) are warning of an increase in the numbers of mosquitoes over the next week after high seas and rain have combined to flood the swamps. MRCUDirector Dr. William Petrie explained that the higher than normal population of swamp mosquitoes is because of the favourable breeding conditions created by this flooding. Although the unit is equipped and ready for the surge in numbers of the pest Petrie asked for the public’s patience as his staff go on the attack both on the ground and in the air to reduce the numbers.
“Staff are prepared to deal with the issue but at the same time we want to advise residents on Grand Cayman to expect a higher presence of mosquitoes for the next week or so,” Petrie added.
Tides in Grand Cayman have been rising over the last few months and are now at a level that produces flooding in the swamps, he explained. Tidal fluctuations plus a recent rainfall event have led to favorable breeding conditions for the swamp mosquito.
The swamp mosquitoes (Aedes taeniorhynchus) lay eggs in the swamp mud which may survive in a dormant state for long periods of time. Rainfall and tidal increases inundate the eggs which hatch into larvae very quickly. Larvae will feed and grow and within 7 to 10 days pupate and emerge as adult mosquitoes. The male mosquitoes do not bite and only survive for a couple of days. The female mosquitoes, which do bite and become a nuisance to the public, can survive for up to 15 days. The females seek blood for egg production and will lay numerous eggs back onto the swamp mud.
The director said that the MRCU has a proactive surveillance program that monitors the swamps for favorable breeding conditions and the presence of mosquito larvae. MRCU operational staff will deal with the mosquito emergence utilizing a fleet of truck-mounted foggers and the customized spray plane.
The Aedes taeniorhynchus mosquitoes migrate into residential areas during the evening after sunset and the early morning before sunrise. Truck-mounted fogging and aerial spraying target the Aedes taeniorhynchus mosquitoes during these high activity periods when the female mosquitoes are seeking a blood meal and biting ferociously.
MRCU will be monitoring the emergence closely and scheduling appropriate island-wide control activities during the week and into the weekend. For any questions or to report high levels of nuisance biting in your residential area contact MRCU on 949-2557.
Holy Trinity returns
(CRFU): The Cayman Rugby Football Union will not only play host to Dartmouth University in the coming weeks but will also welcome the return of Holy Trinity School from Ontario Canada.Holy Trinity School is a co-educational Anglican independent day school located north of Toronto which enjoys a rich history of Rugby at girl’s level as well as u14, u16 and senior boy’s rugby. Holy Trinity were last in Cayman in 2005 to be the first touring side the Cayman Rugby Union hosted post Hurricane Ivan. The young Canadians tookhome not only fond memories of swimming with Stingrays but their new found Cayman Rugby experience saw Holy Trinity win their local Rugby championship, a feat Holy Trinity hope to re-produce in their up-coming season.
Schedule of Games:
Monday, March 19
4:00 Holy Trinity 7s
5:00 Holy Trinity U17 V Cayman U17
Wednesday, March 21
5:00 Holy Trinity U17 V Cayman U17
Brac government homes will be ready in April
(CNS): Government officials on Cayman Brac say that the latest homes being constructed on behalf of the Sister Islands Affordable Housing Development Corporate (SIAHDC) are almost completed. Eight contracts were awarded in December to construct four homes on West End site and four homes on the Watering Place site and Chair Christine Maltman said the houses were 75 per cent complete already. “We are nearing l completion and hope to wrap everything up by the end of April. I am amazed at the speed and pleased with the high standard of work that is being carried out by the contractors,” she added.
One 2-bedroom and three 3-bedroom homes are being constructed at the Watering Place site and four 3-bedroom homes at West End. According to a release from the ministry, the plans are similar to the eight existing homes at the West End site, which are 855 sq. ft. for a 2-bedroom home and 1,073 sq. ft. for a 3-bedroom unit. While the units are called affordable homes, all are well constructed and go beyond the usual standards required.
The inner walls are full concrete and the homes are complete with a full kitchen and all the standard appliances such as washer, dryer, refrigerators. While there is no central air conditioning, the homes are constructed so that central air can be added in the future.
“Beyond the service being provided to Cayman Brac working families, these homes also represent a meaningful investment opportunity in our communities because the housing scheme has created jobs within the island by awarding eight contractors, who in turn, have hired members of the local workforce,” Maltman added.
She encouraged persons in need of housing to apply to the SIAHDC. Home buyer eligibility is assessed on household income, residency, employment and personal references.
For the first two phases of the affordable housing programme on Cayman Brac, which were started under the PPM administration, the SIAHDC board gave qualifying owners the choice of location – either at Watering Place or the West End site, which is elevated on the Bluff. All chose the West End site. The current board, however, has commissioned the construction of the homes first before they are allocated to qualifying owners.
The District Administration ministers said providing safe, affordable and quality housing to citizens is a common goal for every government.
“I believe we have achieved that goal. As the Cayman Islands works toward a bright future, we’re going to get there by creating an environment that fosters investment in the vitality of all of our communities and we recognise that affordable housing as a big part of that equation Juliana O’Connor-Connolly stated. “We are proud of the partnership SIAHDC has developed with each and the bank, by supporting improved housing for the residents of Cayman Brac.”
Lauding the contractors for their speed and efficiency in working on the homes, she said: “The contractors understand that people want to improve their lives and they are working equally hard to ensure that the homeowners can move in as quickly as possible. This is what is known as nation-building and I am pleased to be associated with it.”
Mac calls for Arden probe
(CNS): The premier says he has written to the Anti-corruption Commission about the PPM’s former Cabinet minister Arden Mclean, whom he accused of not paying his power bill for over a year during the time he was negotiating a licensing agreement with CUC in the last government. McKeeva Bush told a public meeting in Bodden Town on Thursday night that McLean had admitted on radio recently that he did not pay the bill and if this was true, it meant he had used his office for personal gain. Taking aim at the opposition, who he said was accusing him of corruption and incompetence, he said he had "on his armour now", as he revealed the request for the investigation.
Bush also said that he would be asking for anti-corruption enquiries into the opposition leader, Alden McLaughlin, and another PPM member but gave no details on who or what he believed the others had done.
In an ironic twist, Bush made no mention of the actual ongoing investigation into financial irregularities over his dealings with developer Stan Thomas but suggested that the opposition had the audacity to point the finger of corruption at him and were using it as a red herring in order to get back into office.
The premier said that McLean should explain to the country, if what he admitted to on radio was true, why he did not pay his electrical bill. “Should that be an investigation Mr Arden? So you want an investigation on me giving East End $200,000 for projects – he didn’t have to pay his light bill but you have heavy ones to pay,” he told the audience.
“Can you imagine they talk about corruption and incompetence?” he queried as he told the audience that if the opposition wanted a fight he was ready as he was a hard worker. “I have on my armour now.”
Reading from his letter to the police commissioner, who is chair of the Anti-corruption Commission Bush said he wanted the commissioner to look into the failure of McLean to pay the CUC bill when he was in office and dealing directly with the power firm in his role as minister responsible for utilities.
“After all that has been said in this country about corruption and the use of public office for private gain and conflict, I would ask that this matter be investigated by the Anti-corruption Commission,” he said quoting from the correspondence to David Baines.
“I want to tell at least two more of them that I have twomore letters that I want to give to the commissioner but I am just getting the facts,” he added. He later indicated that one of the letters he would be sending to the police commissioner was about Opposition Leader Alden McLaughlin.
He queried why there were no investigations into various issues from the PPM administration, such as the money allegedly stolen by the former UCCI president, Hassan Syed, the Matrix scrap metal deal and the expenditure on the schools.
“All kinds of financial infractions and process took place in that contract,” he said about the high school projects, which were awarded to Tom Jones International, which is now embroiled in a legal dispute with government.
In a speech that lasted close to two hours and gave very few updates on government projects and policies but was very heavy on political rhetoric, the premier launched a full scale attack on the opposition, as well as the various activists that are opposing government policy.
Responding to theaccusations on Friday morning Arden McLean told CNS the country was in trouble if this was the best the premier could do to “deflect from his own criminal investigation.”
The former PPM minister admitted that he had been in dispute with CUC over power bills but just like everyone else he had to pay. “There is nothing criminal or corrupt about paying your bill late when you are in dispute about the amounts,” McLean stated. "I am sure any investigation into that will be over very quickly as opposed to the criminal investigation into the premier,” he added.
See more on CNS later today from the Bodden Town meeting and the Keep BT Dump Free Coalition demonstration.
Bush wants CI defence force
(CNS): Premier McKeeva Bush says he wants to create a Cayman Islands ‘disaster defence force’ once the country is in a position to afford it. Speaking at the official inauguration of the customs new crime fighting equipment this week, Bush revealed his wish list for when the country is better off financially for further crime fighting and security measures. He said it was a long standing goal to create Cayman’s own special cadre of personnel that would work alongside the RCIPS in special circumstances, such as in the wake of a hurricane or other emergency situations, to protect the public.
“In this day and age when you are developing and moving forward, trying to build a nation, we have to build services and I hope that I can see a disaster defence force before long,” Bush said. “It’s not on the front burner but it is moving up and I have spoken to several people about it. Funds are not available now and I don’t know when they will be available but I consider the protection of borders, especially in natural disasters … where we ought to have our own, so we don’t have to reach abroad as we did for Ivan.”
He said one day, when government had the finances, Caymanians would be trained and recruited into the country’s own defence unit that could be there when needed in the wake of disasters and emergencies. “I consider that we ought to have our own cadre of defence force personnel that would work with the police when needed,” he said.
Talking about how much money the government has already invested in crime fighting, he said there were many more things that he wanted to see that would help to keep the islands safe, not just from the threat of crime but natural disasters.
He spoke about getting even better and more sophisticated protection for the borders with a national radar system so the emergency services would know “what was coming down on us” and be able to have the helicopter, boats and other emergency resources available in the right place.
“These are costly things,” he said but he added that his government wanted to move forward with them. “But we need these services and one of these days we ought to have the funds to … supplement the police with these services,” he added.
Police investigate possible Lakeside home invasion
(CNS): A spokesperson for the RCIPS confirmed Thursday evening that the police had received a report earlier in the week concerning a possible home invasion at Lakeside Villas in George Town. The police said that the report of masked men invading a home in the early morning hours of Tuesday when three residents were said to have been tied up was not reported to the police until sometime after the incident had occurred. “We can confirm we received a report late Tuesday morning of an incident at Lakeside that had occurred some 12 hours earlier. The facts of the matter have not yet been established and police enquiries are on-going,” the spokesperson stated.
The police were unable to give any descriptions or further details of the incident or how the suspects got into the apartment.
According to the local television news channel Cayman27 the residents of the apartment say four masked men armed with machetes and a gun entered an apartment at the complex and tied up the 3 occupants before stealing cash and jewellery but the occupants were said not to have been harmed during the home invasion.
Cayman 27 reports that the details of the robbery were circulated among tenants at the apartments by the Lakeside management which says it’s reviewing current security arrangements at the complex with a view to making improvements.
GOAB wins silver medal for being green
(CNS): The new Government Office Accommodation Building has been awarded an important green accolade that demonstratesthe energy saving efficiency of the office headquarters. The GOAB has been awarded a Silver Rating by the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) from the US Green Building Council. A rare status in the region, the award is the first of its kind for a building within the Cayman Islands. “This is a major achievement and we in government, past and present MLAs and ministers, are proud to receive the silver certification,” said Juliana O’Connor-Connolly, the minister responsible for facility management.
“It is important that government leads by example and it is our responsibility to design our headquarters as a high performance, energy-efficient building that requires less water, and energy as well as reduces the operational cost substantially from prior levels. There are very few LEED-certified buildings in the Caribbean and the government and the McAlpine Design Build Team should be congratulated for providing the Cayman Islands with a truly sustainable facility,” she added.
The current administration has persistently criticized the previous government for commissioning the new office accommodation building and at one point attempted to divest the building to raise much needed cash. The goal, however, of the previous leader of government business, Kurt Tibbetts, had always been to provide government with a modern energy efficient home that would in less than a decade recoup the cost of the project by a reduction in expenditure on rent and cut government utility bills.
GOAP project manager Jim Scott said the GOAB has the lowest electricity bill per square foot of any commercial office space in the Cayman Islands and explained some of its design qualities that led to the building receiving the certification.
“The building compares very well to an office in the US and has applied best practice design principles,” he said. “It has concentrated on minimizing energy and water intake and waste output, while maximizing recycling and environmental quality. It uses about 45 per cent less energy than typical existing and old US offices, and about 20 per cent less energy than typical new US offices.”
LEED is a standard for measuring a building’s sustainability. Certification can only be awarded after a facility undergoes a rigorous and detailed evaluation by an independent third party. The LEED process began when the building was being constructed in 2008; it was included in the contract that McAlpine had to achieve a LEED Certified Award from the US Green Building Council. The building was registered as a Green Building during the construction phase and now has achieved the Silver Rating. Gold rating or higher requires that all construction materials be purchased within 500 miles of the project and this one of the reasons why the GOAB received a silver rating.
Alan Jones, Chief Officer in the Ministry of District Administration, Works, Lands and Agriculture, said the Cayman Islands government is keen to reduce its carbon footprint.
“By recognizing innovative construction methods, sustainable use of resources and a design that prioritizes the needs of the wider environment and society, we have demonstrated that we are environmentally aware as we contribute to the development of an eco-friendly Cayman Islands,” he said.
Other environmental initiatives include an aluminum can recycling programme, established by Facility Management and the Department of Environmental Health, and only green housekeeping products are used at the building.
Ritz law suit a threat to CI
(CNS): The opposition leader has warned that the impact of the legal action against the owners of the Ritz Carlton, Grand Cayman could pose a threat to the Cayman Islands reputation and tourism industry. Alden McLaughlin has said that for all of the issues surrounding the development of the internationally branded resort, and those since, it has been a boost to the islands tourism industry and its closure would be detrimental to business and Cayman’s standing. While the PPM leader said the outstanding $6 million duty was also of significant concern to government, as it was very unlikely the public purse would now recoup that debt, the hotel closure could be even worse.
McLaughlin was the first person to query the stalled duty payments publicly when he raised the issue during question time in the Legislative Assembly in September 2010. The premier admitted that the developer, Michael Ryan, the owner of a number of companies linked to the hotel, had ceased making payments on a debt to the public purse of some $10 milllion, despite there being more than $6 milllion still owing.
Government officials have recently confirmed that it is several months since they last had any contact with the developer regarding the negotiations for a new payment plan.
Given the current circumstances after a creditor filed legal action in the Grand Court last month in an effort to take control of the Ritz, McLaughlin said the chances of the Cayman Islands Government now recovering the outstanding duty were not good.
“The government’s claim would be pretty low on the totem pole as it is an unsecured debt,” the opposition leader said, if the hotel was to be taken over by creditors. But given the circumstances, government was now unlikely to be agitating as they should be for the money, he added.
Notwithstanding the significance of that amount, McLaughlin pointed to the risk of the hotel closing, which he said could have a much greater impact on Cayman as a whole than the missing duty. The opposition leader said the closure would impact the islands’ image as a high end tourist destination as well as directly affect tourism related businesses. Even if government can’t recoup the debt to the public purse, McLaughlin said, it must do all it can to keep the hotel open.
The opposition leader noted that the duty should have been recovered by now as under the previous administration the developer was obligated to pay back the waiver from the Ritz before the PPM administration agreed to new concessions for a proposed new development at Dragon Bay. He said the government, of which he was a part, had made it clear that new concessions could only be granted on the basis that the previous duty waivers, which became due after the hotel opened, would be repaid.
Ryan’s companies stopped paying the quarterly instalments immediately after the UDP government was returned to office and has made no payments since March 2009.
Independent member for North Side Ezzard Miller said he wanted to know what had changed after the May 2009 election that allowed the developer to stop making the payments, especially now that it was clear the $6 million of public money was in danger of never being repaid. He said the finance ministry should be taking steps to protect the government’s claim in case the results of the pending legal action do not go in Ryan’s favour.
“We need to establish if the Cayman government could be a legitimate creditor,” Miller added.
In 2010 the premier said that there was little risk that the money would not be returned when he told the Legislative Assembly that the Ritz developer was seeking a new payment plan but, Miller pointed out, 18 months later there was now a very demonstrable risk that the money would not be returned.
In addition, as the developer had not made any effort to pay government any money for almost three years, Miller said he believed there did not appear to be “any real intent on his part to pay it back either”, never mind the risk that Ryan’s legal dispute now raised about his ability to pay going forward.
See related stories:
See details of legal action here
Approach to troubled youth begins transformation
(CNS): The way local authorities deal with young offenders and those with behavioural problems is beginning its transformation. With the ground breaking of a new young offenders institute in George Town next week and the official adoption of the Missouri Model at the Bonaventure Boys Home in West Bay, the community affairs ministry is leading the charge to switch from a punishment focus regime to one which encourages troubled youngster to confront their issues. This specialist model focuses on rehabilitation typically within a peer-group setting and since its recent adoption, the programme has seen significant improvements in the boys, officials have said.
The new youth centre which will also be based on the Missouri Model, is due to be finished by May next year and will serve as both a home and treatment centre for juvenile offenders and remanded young people.
“Missouri’s approach is not at all a ‘soft’ approach to delinquent behaviour, but instead, much harder, more demanding and more likely to bring about meaningful change as you must face and deal with your most difficult and traumatic issues and take responsibility for your actions and behaviour”,” said the Minister of Community Affairs, Gender and Housing, Mike Adam.
“With these enhancements in youth rehabilitation, we all have an opportunity to help chart the way forward by empowering our children and youth, strengthening our community and securing the future of these Islands,” he added.
Along with the new programme the Bonaventure home as also recently been renovated to reflect the new philosophy. There is now an open dorm layout for staff observation and safety, classrooms, and a group meeting room. Residents have a daily schedule consisting of education, group counselling, individual counselling, meals, recreation, dorm cleaning, and check-ins.
The Chairman of the Children and Youth Services (CAYS) Foundation, Garth Arch, which runs the home said, “It is encouraging to witness the significant progress being made with the shift in youth rehabilitation from the traditional punitive approach towards a strength-based model focusing on group interaction and positive personal development.
The establishment of the new Therapeutic Community Programme is a meaningful advancement towards successfully rehabilitating at-risk youths to become positive and productive citizens.”
The Therapeutic Community Programme General Manager, Sydney Williams, is happy with the home’s new look. “With our remodelled home, we now have a full plan – one that includes more suitable accommodation, trained staff, new principles and higher standards for the boys to enjoy,” he said. “The new system has really put a positive spin on the way the boys interact, and I am confident that this new direction will help our youth become productive citizens of this country.”
The ground-breaking ceremony for Cayman’s first purpose-built youth rehabilitation facility, Cayman Islands Youth Centre, on Thursday 15 March at 4pm at 73 Fairbanks Road.
UCCI promises unforgettable conference
(CNS): Organisers are promising a feast of intellectual thought later this month with this year’s UCCI conference. With its theme of surveying the last fifty years and mapping the next fifty, it offers an opportunity to empower an entire community as members revisit the success stories of the past while charting a course into the future, the college said this week as it promoted the conference. A diverse list of speakers includes Cayman’s own chief justice, the former prime minister of Barbados and the premier of Bermuda. “This coming together of intellectuals, policy makers and the general public should allow for an unforgettable experience,” said Conference Director Dr Livingston Smith.
“UCCI is engaged in these conference initiatives for no other reason than to stimulate and inject new ideas and to thus offer invaluable opportunities to raise national intellectual and social assets to respond in more innovative and creative ways to the needs of the island and those of the broader Caribbean,” he added.
The conference is being hosted by UCCI in collaboration with the University of the West Indies (UWI, Mona) and the International College of the Cayman Islands (ICCI). 50-50 Caribbean Conference is scheduled for 21-23 March and is the third in the series of well-received annual regional conferences staged by UCCI.
The line-up of speakers includes Owen Arthur, the opposition leader and former prime minister of Barbados; Paula Cox, Bermuda’s premier; Sir Ronald Sanders, an international consultant and former senior Caribbean ambassador; Professor Orlando Patterson, historical and cultural sociologist from Harvard University; Dr. Carlyle Corbin, an international advisor on governance and multilateral diplomacy; Cayman Islands Chief Justice, Anthony Smellie; Dr Dax Basdeo, the financial services chief officer; as well as Prof. Neville Duncan, Dr Michael Witter and Dr Keith Nurse from the University of the West Indies. The former Bermuda premier, Ewart Brown, will also be chairing a panel and presenting a paper.
“It is safe to remark that it will be a long time before this level of expertise is assembled together in one room, not to mention the added bonus of being able to hear them explain and expound their positions,” said Roy Bodden, UCCI President. “As if this is not reason enough to warrant attending the conference, there are some one hundred papers to be read and discussed. The UCCI International Conference has truly grown in significance and I implore you, the public, to attend as many presentations as possible,” he added.
Bodden said the collaboration of UCCI, UWI and ICCI is precedent setting. “Together these institutions of higher learning have set as their collective objective to provide an enlightening and outstanding experience for all conference participants.”
The 50-50 Conference is a huge event representing various sectors of the community coming together to encourage awareness and education and Bodden offered his appreciation to the sponsors.
To register and for further information, visit www.ucciconference.ky