The Tribune

By DENISE MAYCOCK

Tribune Freeport Reporter

dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

THE new owners of Port Lucaya Marina have accused the Grand Bahama Port Authority of giving a “vague and misleading” explanation for halting demolition work, warning that the three-day shutdown has already disrupted the project and is likely to drive up costs.

Glyine Delancy, managing director of Bahamaland Waterways, said the company had complied with the permitting process, paid all required fees and submitted requested documents before demolition began.

The work has been suspended since Friday after the GBPA issued a stop-work order.

“This is the third day that work is not being executed which means that we are definitely going to have cost overruns,” Mr Delancy said.

Executive Marine Management, the contractor carrying out the demolition, brought specialist workers to Grand Bahama for the project, which was expected to take four to six weeks.

“EMM had people brought in because this is a special project. They have to house them, feed them, and they flew them in,” Mr Delancy said. “So, therefore, with the delays, we are going to more than likely borne this expense, which is not fair to us.”

GBPA Deputy Director and City Manager Troy McIntosh said on Monday that the stop-work order was issued because the demolition was unsafe and the developer had not provided required documentation from DEVCO, which holds the seabed lease for the marina.

Mr Delancy rejected that account and said the GBPA had failed to identify any specific deficiency that justified stopping the project.

“That explanation is incomplete and misleading,” he said. “These important facts were not mentioned in the Port Authority public statement, nor did the Port Authority identify any specific documents, technical deficiency, safety concerns, engineering problem, or environmental issue that would justify the stoppage of work.”

He said the explanation also raised questions about the GBPA’s regulatory role and its private interests.

“The public was basically given a vague statement that the documentation was incomplete,” Mr Delancy said. “But this raises more serious questions that the Port Authority did not address. The apparent conflict of interest between its regulatory role and its private interest needs to be addressed.”

Mr Delancy said Executive Marine Management applied for permission to demolish the marina on July 13 and later revised the application at the request of the GBPA’s Building and Development Department.

The company then received an invoice for $4,206.40 in demolition permit fees, inclusive of VAT.

Mr Delancy said $3,850 was paid on July 20 and the remaining $356.40 on July 22. The company emailed the GBPA the following day to confirm payment, and the authority acknowledged receiving the funds on July 24.

“To my knowledge and to the general public knowledge, the building and development department customarily issues a permit number by close of business or the following day once payment has been received,” he said. “We did that. We've done that. We therefore cannot understand why the permit was not issued.”

Mr Delancy said the dispute went beyond whether a demolition permit had been issued.

“This matter is simply not about a demolition permit,” he said. “It raises deeper questions.”

He said the recorded lease identifies DEVCO as the landlord and Port Lucaya Marina Limited as the tenant, with responsibility for maintaining the marina and related facilities.

Litigation over the lease remains before the courts, but Mr Delancy said no final judgment had terminated it.

“We acknowledge, however, the court proceedings concerning the lease and the marina's historical condition remain pending,” he said. “However, no final judgment terminating the lease has been issued. And that's an important fact because the lease is still in existence.”

Bahamas Land and Waterways has owned the marina for just over three months.

Mr Delancy said the demolition was considered an emergency measure intended to protect the public from the deteriorating structure.

“We've only had this marina for a little over three months, and we are seeking fit to undertake what we deem an emergency demolition undertaken to protect the public,” he said.

He said the pending court case did not remove the responsibility to address safety risks at the site.

“The court case does not remove the immediate duty of those exercising authority over the site or demolition to act reasonably to public safety and also to protect the public from the ruins,” Mr Delancy said.

“The matter is in court, and it's being litigated. We do have a responsibility to maintain the facility. And right now it is a hazard to all.”

Mr Delancy said the company maintained an amicable relationship with the GBPA and did not believe the authority was deliberately trying to block the redevelopment.

However, he said the dispute had again exposed questions about the authority’s dual roles.

“However, it does draw into question its regulatory role and its interest,” he said. “So, therefore it has to be questioned.”

Mr Delancy said Bahamaland Waterways had not yet met with DEVCO but intended to request meetings with both DEVCO and the GBPA to resolve the impasse.

“We just need to come together with both companies and get this sorted so that we could move forward with this venture,” he said