Unease over THA plans for Store Bay

Vendors of the Store Bay Beach Facility are calling on the THA to come clean on their plans for the redevelopment of the popular spot.

Their plea came on September 2 after an August 30 Facebook post on the I Support Phillip Alexander page, which claimed that the facility was being given to "the one per cent."

The post said, "Store Bay beach facility famous for Miss Jean crab & dumpling. Miss Jean and all the other vendors have been evicted. Talk on the ground is the entire facility is to be handed over to a 1% developer to turn into another exclusive Pigeon Point type club."

Over the weekend, the THA Division of Tourism, Culture, Antiquities and Transportation denied having any final redevelopment plan.

Speaking with Newsday on September 2 at the facility, an uneasy Greville Nicholson, owner of the Waving Gallery bar, said he has been a tenant for 27 years.

“I don’t know what they’re doing, much less what they’re doing with me," he said.

"I am in a quandary. If they want their place, they have to relocate me. I have an investment of $1.5 million and nobody eh talking to me."

He acknowledged receiving an open invitation to a couple stakeholder meetings hosted by the Division of Tourism on July 16 and 25 this year, but was left unimpressed.

“So they want a mega swimming pool on Store Bay. The name of the place would be the Store Bay Beach Club so yes, it’s a master plan for the Store Bay Beach Club. The swimming pool cannot compete with the beach – people leave all over the world to come and bathe in Store Bay Beach, they’re not leaving to come and bathe in Store Bay swimming pool.”

He said the model is somewhat close to that of Pigeon Point.

“So they’re changing the front – so when you come at the front, you pay a money to come in and relax. For people like me, the rent would go up and I cannot afford it. If you relocate me, when the project finish, you’ll have to bring me back, I might not be able to see that but I intend to live for 123 years with all faculties intact.”

He has since written to the chairman of the board of the facility Nyron Leung, calling on him to speak to the tenants in a more professional manner.

Tour operator Ronny Elliot said he was unaware that any consultation was held.

“We don’t know anything about any consultation – we heard that they had something in the community centre but we heard about them things after the fact. Me who here every day, I was never informed of any consultation.

"We have no issue with them doing whatever they want to do as long as the people who here have a say in what’s been done here.”

He said the facility is "in a mess," but stakeholders must have their input.

"We don’t need nobody coming here with a plan and telling we what the plan is and then claiming it’s consultation. They have to talk to the people who are here everyday and let we agree and disagree and come to one consensus and say,'Right, this is what we’re going to do.

"They’re not going to bring anything here and run we out of here. I don’t know where they’re getting all this money from where they’re suddenly talking about.”

His views were supported by another tour operator, Andre Martin, who agreed that upgrades are needed.

“Development is part of progress, but my thing is that the people weren’t informed properly – a few were informed, but it wasn’t a mass media. The local boat owners, the local craftsmen, the local food people – we all have a part to play in this development.

"We don’t know if they’re breaking down the entire thing, but things need to change in terms of how they’re approaching it. We as the local people must have a say in what’s taking place here.”

Progressive Democratic Patriots (PDP) Watson Duke held a news conference and warned of a “potential tragedy that would not bring Tobago any advancement, but rather leave a sour taste upon Tobagonians, Trinidadians and would-be visitors.”

Duke said, “Store Bay Beach Facility, it is a gem when compared with one of our iconic beaches, Pigeon Point. It is a gem."

He said Store Bay Beach Facility has tremendous upside as it is an intimate beach; it's just five minutes' walk from the airport; there are bathroom facilities available; lockers are available; and security is there.

He said all of this is “up for grabs,” and no one is aware of what is happening, which is creating “a certain level of unease, a certain level of frustration, a certain level of confusion in the minds of those who ply their trade here."

Armed with his bullhorn, Duke said he was present to amplify the voices of those affected.

"This is a revolution, I call it a people's revolution, and we will not stop until Tobago wins, we will not stop until the people of Store Bay and the dependents thereof – they must win."