The following email was submitted by a concerned citizen who resides at Vaucluse, St. Thomas and we have reproduced without any changes to the content. It seems that this is an issue which the sitting MP Cynthia Forde for the area has been unable to resolve. Please note that this communication was also sent to Barbados Free Press and the Nation newspaper.
David
There are just a few things that motivate me to write publicly. When something is wrong, legally and morally, and it affects your community, should one be quiet, or should one place it before the society? When one has a small successful business in a supposedly also successful, happy Caribbean Island is it right to intervene in a community issue? What gives one the right to fight on behalf of community? People are doing a development at Vaucluse without Town Planning approval. For several years now I have led a campaign (quietly in our area) against the establishment of a race track in an area of Vaucluse Plantation, adjacent to Dukes, and close to the villages of Shop Hill, Christie Village, Dukes, Whitehall and Vaucluse. In the beginning it was due to the noise and the anti-social aspects of such a thing being established. A child was killed on the roadways by a truck, unlinked to the track. My family and I were nearly killed by a drunk driver in a line of traffic coming away from an event at the dirt track a couple of years ago. Now, with the mode of its development I observe a dangerous trend in Barbados, one that we should be extremely wary of.
At Christmas 2005 there was a Town Hall Meeting at Lester Vaughan School, where objections were voiced against retention of the dirt track, and further objections were voiced against a drag strip, and expansion, and paving, as proposed by the developer. Subsequently written objections were sent to Town Planning and the Minister. One of those who spoke out against this track being established was the Honourable Cynthia Forde, M.P. for St. Thomas. Ms. Forde has been a friend of those who are against the track, and has spoken out against it whenever we, the residents of the community, have asked. We mounted a petition, an unfinished petition, in our community and received 300+ signatures, covering half of Shop Hill and Dukes, which were delivered to the Prime Minister and to Town Planning: against establishment of this track, with grounds. Many of us wrote objections, which were never acknowledged, or responded to.
Town Planning has issued both ‘Stop Orders’ and ‘Enforcement Orders’ on this development, but to no effect.
Thus we see a picture of (on one hand residents, Town Planning and the M.P. for the area Cynthia Forde) speaking out against; and on the other hand we see the owners and developers doing a development without Town Planning approval. Is this OK? Is it legal? Is it morally correct? Should owners be allowed to retain something that has gone against all rules and regulations? Just what kind of people do things this way? The evidence
Attached are 4 Google earth pictures from 2006, showing the area of the track in 2006. As you will observe when you open it and magnify, the track at this time was a dirt track. The track shown was subsequently paved, which you will see in the 2007 Google earth picture in the following link: but even more construction has proceeded in recent weeks. There has been no approval for any development of this track, and it has been at Town Planning for years as an application. Is it OK for people to develop without permission in Barbados? During the last 2 years the people making this track have really gone ahead, by paving, and just this last month they have brought in backhoes, bulldozers, rollers and trucks. They are making real roads on this site.
I called Town Planning’s enforcement division on October 3, 2007 when I saw the heavy machines working, and they sent an officer to stop them, but they did not stop. I called again a day later, and they sent an order for them to stop, but they did not. I called Ms. Forde, who called Town Planning. By this time everyone was telling them to stop, and do you know what they did? They did not stop. Yesterday, November 9 2007 I took photos of heavy equipment working at the site, and I took pictures of roads they have made during the past month. I am sending these in another email after this one. From these photos, and looking at the Google Earth images you can PROVE that work is being done, and you can PROVE the time when it was done, and you KNOW that they do not have Town Planning approval. The pictures of the machines working show roads that are NOT ON GOOGLE EARTH- they are brand new!!!
We the residents said ‘No’. Town Planning said, ‘No’. Minister Forde said, ‘No’. The only person left who can say ‘No’ is the Prime Minister. Will they listen to him and stop?
I have lived in Barbados for 40 years, requesting and being granted citizenship in this special island. I have always believed that Barbados, above all countries in the world, was a place where one was safe from victimisation, where one was protected by the upstanding legacy of our heritage. I thought that all were equal in Barbados under the law. Today I ask a simple question: Are we the special place I thought we were, or not?
Thank you
U. Goodenough
Related Article
Is The Town Planning Office Of Barbados Delivering Its Mandate?
No one is changing, you made statements, I checked and found that your post is filled with untruths, yet you persist in speaking about ‘stop orders’ that were never issued. The Town Planning is in receipt of two applications, no enforcement orders are in effect now or in the past. That is the reason you avoid any discussion when asked for a copy of the ‘enforcement’ or even write to the Chief Town Planner for the ‘enforcement order’ which will be blank.
frankology // November 23, 2007 at 4:30 pm
The two applications you are speaking about do not have ‘No Approval”. If it was ‘no approval’ the next step would have been ‘enforcement’, that did not occur, Why?, because none were ever issued.
———————————————————–
Frankology and 4morevalves,
Are you confirming that two applications for development have been submitted to Town Planning?
Are you also confirming that to date they have not been given approval?
Your comments continue on and on about enforcement orders and stop orders. What we are interested in is whether the developer is proceeding without approval. Quite simple and on that count I think we are starting to believe Goodenough because the two of you are just trying to confuse the issue.
I have absolutely no idea what applications are there from what aren’t there. No one is trying to confuse any issue.
Are you confirming that two applications for development have been submitted to Town Planning?
Are you also confirming that to date they have not been given approval?
…………………………………………………………………….
Waterboy, you seems to miss the point. Applications were made in 2000 and 2001 for widening of the existing cart roads and rebuilding an existing bridge that was build over 75 years.
The other was to change to recreational use.
A friend of UG went to TCP and see the same applications that I peruse today. These applications do not contain any statements of acceptance or denial. It only contain stamp of acceptance.
I dealt with a senior personnel within the TCP and was inform of TCP Operating Procedures.
I was told if this matter was not approved or the application was not in an advance stage of being approved, then, an enforcement order will be eminent. It was also confirm that no orders were ever issued to stop this development, due to no fixed structures are on the property. What he is saying that the developer can continue doing what he is doing once things remain the same without any construction. I was advised that the laying of marl will not contravene any illegal action.
He dealt with another issue, stating if the developer had a change of use to be a housing development, and the developer was laying down roads with curbs and utilities, possibly, that developer have intentions to start construction of homes. You are dealing with fixed roads with utilities in place. Vaucluse matter is different, the only fixed property is the fencing surrounding the property and the developer has all rights to protect his property.
All the lies about stop orders being issued are all lies, you are a wise guy and you know ‘enforcement ties in with the policing’ yet, you prefer to accept the one sided issue of UG.
Twenty years from now UG will be singing the same tune. Probably, he might convince you so much that you might start humming the same tune.
I did my investigation, I visited the TCP, I spoke to one of the top officials, if you Waterboy has any doubts, visit the TCP before commenting based on empathy.
By the way, Bushy Park is still awaiting approval from the TCP. The problem is the residents who are extremely close to the action, understand motorsports bieng vital to the sporting community.
I wonder if the ‘change of use’ was for an upscale development, if we will be hearing a financial tune.
David
I have just sent a 2 large emails with attachments. A third will come in a few moments of the yesterday photos Kindly confirm receipt?
This is the info you want. If I may say so it’s a really big story, but long too. Hope you’ll carry it, and the readers will read it.
Thank you. God bless Dukes, St. Thomas, and the citizens of Barbados. We do this for these people, not for any other reason.
May we have peace all in our respective homelands.
Exodus 20:13
Just want to make a couple of observations. First off, I am a tourist….love us or hate us, but, my husband and I are from the U.S. and have been visiting Barbados for about 15 or more years. We love the country and the people. We just returned from Barbados a week ago and for the first time we went to Bushy Park and watched the races. We loved it!!! The day Tropical storm Olga visited the island we set off to visit Vaucluse. We found it and had a quick look. It seemed to be in a relatively quiet area. I hope when we return next year we can watch an event at Vaucluse. I am not suggesting that I have any say in what’s best for Barbados…I don’t… but when we saw the dramatic increase in building along the west coast that was going on this year, I would be more concerned with the inevitable traffic mess you will have to deal with in years to come. My husband and I both enjoy track driving here in the U.S. in an event we call Auto Cross and we even drove our rental car around Bushy Park when no one was there!! We hope the outcome at Vaucluse is what the majority want,,,as it should be….but, I think you could do much worse than a track where people enjoy a sport that certainly beats so many other things. Just think….you could have a WalMart in every town like we do here…..then you’d know what misery is!!
Pingback: Update:Vaucluse Raceway Saga Continues ~ Where Is The Checkered Flag? « Barbados Underground - bringing the news to the people