BASSETERRE, St. Kitts - SANDY BANK BAY on the Southeast Peninsula has had vehicle access restricted due to the ongoing Christophe Habour project, but one official has stated that this would not prevent public access to this or any other area.
In the past month, wooden gates were erected and large stones have been placed across all of the entrances to Sandy Bank Bay, and some members of the general public have aired their concerns in local media that this was intended to keep people away from that beach.
Christophe Harbour’s Director of Planning and Government Relations, Ellis Hazel said that this could not be further from the truth.
“We assure the general public that Christophe Harbour is all about inclusion. It is not about trying to create a state within a state, and there is a role for all Kittitians and Nevisians.”
In regard to the reasoning behind the erection of the gates, Hazel said they serve a two-fold purpose.
“If you know Sandy Bank Bay properly, you know people would drive down onto Sandy Bank Bay, and the important thing about that beach as an ecosystem is that it is probably one of our better turtle nesting sites on this island.”
Hazel stated that by partnering with the St. Kitts Turtle Monitoring Network and building the gate, Christophe Harbour is helping to ensure that the leatherback turtles that nest on the beach do not become “any more endangered than they already are”.
Apart from protecting the environment, the fence would also aid in the general public’s safety as construction continues on the villas to be built at Sandy Bank Bay.
“You would also appreciate that we have started construction in the Sandy Bank Bay area already, and very soon you are going to have a lot of activities taking place within that area.
The gate has been placed there as a construction control. We pay a lot of consideration to public safety. We don’t want to have heavy equipment operating within Sandy Bank Bay and people are just leisurely driving through.”
He noted that the six-foot wide walking trail from the parking area that Christophe Harbour built at the main entrance of the beach is designed to encourage persons to still use the area. Furthermore, he said that even if the development wanted to prevent persons from using the beach, they are prohibited by law.
“It is very well enforced in St. Kitts and Nevis that ‘the beach is mine and I can be there anytime’. I am not certain which law it is, or whether it is just a common law, but it is there. The development agreement with Government and the developers also clearly states that beaches are to be held in the public realm, and that adequate access is to be provided,” Hazel said.
While the local population may not be accustomed to seeing parking on the beaches barred, the Director of Planning stated that it is for public’s general good and safety.
“It is not unreasonably far from the beach. It is not what we in St. Kitts may have been accustomed to in terms of sometimes driving right up to and parking on the beach, but it is a distance from the beach that most persons do not seem to think is an uncomfortable walk.
“I think that the parking lot provides somewhat of an enhancement to the area, and once we see the removal of the animals and see that area landscaped, the experience would be a lot different from what it is now,” he stated.
