The following letter sent to the Chief Minister’s Office, by the West End concerned group, was copied to The Anguillian for publication.

22nd February, 2006

Hon. Mr. Osburne Fleming
Chief Minister
Chief Minister’s Office
The Valley
Anguilla B.W.I

Dear Sir,

We are a small, but vigilant, group of concerned citizens of Anguilla and in particular of the West End community. Over the past several months we have found ourselves sharing grave concerns in regards to certain activities affecting our community and hereby wish to bring them to your attention so that you could address urgently.

Our most pressing concerns are in regards to:
(1) The Viceroy Project:- We have previously expressed our concerns verbally about the lack of beach access as it relates to this project.
(a) Beach access- close to Dolphin fantasy-has been blocked by Viceroy’s containers.
(b) Access to the beach via Coccoloba has been blocked with mountains of dirt.
(c) Also, the area that had been earmarked for public parking now acts as the nursery for planted coconut trees.
(d) Further, these investors have upgraded the level of the land directly east of the road granting them access to their property, thereby making certain areas more prone to flooding during rainy periods.
(e) In regards to the Viceroy project, we are also concerned about the piles of dirt and possible future consequences to our health – lungs, eyes, etc. –as we are not only breathing the dirt which is more airborne than usual, but ingesting it via the drinking of water which is being contaminated due to the excessive mounds of dirt collecting on our roofs and thus being transported into our cisterns.

The above points of concern lead to the four (4) pertinent question:
(a) How soon will we have access to our beaches access-both to Meads Bay and to Barnes Bay beaches?
(b) As it pertains to the area for public parking- if this area is currently occupied by the organization/company whose responsibility it was to make it available for public parking in the absence of previous parking space, where are we, the citizens seeking use of the beach supposed to park our vehicles- that is, of course, if we are lucky enough to find access to the beach?
(c) What can be done in regards to the run-off of water from their upgraded land levels?
(d) Has any consideration been taken in regard to the health issues (asthma, etc)?
(2) The Temenos Golf Course Project:- Our main concerns in regard to this project is that the model built to show the building plans for this estate shows buildings around the jetty area which is not accounted for on the plans presented to the planning department. This is an issue for us because the jetty area is an area earmarked primarily for the use of the fisherman - this is non-negotiable. While we understand the removal of coral reef is not only restricted by law, we as the citizens of Anguilla have the authority to protest, and nullify these actions. The removal of natural reefs adversely affects not only the fishermen, but the island on a whole as this is the island’s protection from certain forces of nature. The destruction of the marine life, therefore, is a violation against not only the livelihood of the fishermen, but also against nature.
We have brought these issues to the attention of our Government representative, Mr Albert Hughes, who has assured us and, in some cases, actually provided us with documentation to the fact that he has already brought these issues to the Government for action. While this assures us that our representative really is looking out for the interests of his constituents, and of Anguilla on a whole, we feel that it is still pertinent that we also bring these issues to the government.

(3) In regard to Shoal Bay West, the Altamer area:- Does Altamer’s plans for the yacht marina come with any specified benefits to our community and the rest of the island- Recreation grounds or halls, student sponsorship to match the islands growing needs in areas such as engineering, marina related posts, etc?

We request that a representative from the planning or environmental unit (s) visit the sites mentioned above and provide us with written feedback with steps taken to address these matters. Please provide us with feedback as soon as possible, preferably within twenty-eight (28) days, so that we may be assured that action is being taken.

Respectfully yours,
Mr Anderson E. Fleming
Chairperson

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