Roy: Govt determined
to make Dawn Beach a
success story
PHILIPSBURG--The Island Government will take all necessary steps to ensure that the new development at the former Dawn Beach Hotel “becomes a success story in terms of the protection of the environment, the beach, public access to the beach, public parking, etcetera,” Commissioner responsible for Public Works and environmental affairs Roy Marlin said last night.
He was commenting on a number of published letters to the editor by concerned residents in recent weeks, raising questions about the multi-million-dollar new development being undertaken by Columbia Sussex Corporation.
In a statement in which he sought to “set the record straight,” Marlin said the government would like to let everyone know that it will make sure that all necessary steps are taken by the developer for this project to become a success story.
After giving details and historical background about the project, he urged: “Let us not cut off our nose to spite our face by making unsubstantiated statements without having our facts straight.”
He said the original Dawn Beach Hotel had been built in 1980 and at that time, the land was cleared for construction and the water runoff from the valley stopped before the beach, which is higher than the land on which the water sits.
“Anyone with a history in Dawn Beach knows that whenever excessive water came down the valley, the whole area from the beach back and across the road would flood until the water was high enough to break the beach and all the black silt and dirt would pour into the ocean. It would coat the reefs and discolour the ocean for days,” he explained.
He continued: “Then from 1980 to 1995 all the grey water from the Dawn Beach Hotel septic system went into the area, which created more pond, and because this retention area is so close to the ocean only the top couple of feet of water serves as retention because the bottom is all sea water in the area where the retention pond is below sea level.
“In 1998 the land was cleared of the eyesores and the old hotel was torn down. More than 100 trucks of sludge were taken from this pond. Now one of the largest private hotel groups in the world is developing this property with a flagged resort and the creation of at least 300 jobs, not mentioning the economic spin-off this resort will have for St. Maarten.”
Contending that the property had always been destined for such a project “ever since its destruction by Hurricane Luis in 1995,” Marlin said the new project, “based on its request to Government for a planning permit, will comply with all requirements, including several changes from the first set of drawings submitted by the developer, to facilitate the concerns expressed by interested parties during the public review process of the planning permit.”
He said the revised drawings showed maximum building height of three levels and the closest building to the sea would be approximately 169 to 227 feet away, leaving all turtle nests undisturbed.
“Government will set as a condition to the planning permit a road to the beach along the property line from a public parking area usable by beachgoers. Finally, a proper retention pond is being engineered by I.C.E., to accommodate rainwater runoff coming from the valley. A proper septic system for the new resort will be engineered and constructed from which the grey water will be used for irrigation purposes.”
He urged “all concerned parties to give government the opportunity to finalise the details with the developer.”
He said that while some Caribbean countries must give developers “all sorts of financial guarantees to secure a project of this magnitude,” the St. Maarten government did not have to do this.
“All concerned parties can rest assured that their concerns are being taken into consideration and, like the boardwalk, the airport extension, the harbour and all other developments that have taken place in recent years on St. Maarten, when this project is completed the island will have something to be proud of,” the commissioner concluded.
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