D-Day for MoBay’s Dreams hotel

Residents and other stakeholders of Montego Bay’s Freeport community are expected to know today, the decision arrived at by the environmental regulator, National Environment and Planning Agency, NEPA, regarding an application by hotel developer Seawind Key Investments Limited, SKIL, for its planned 11-storey Dreams hotel.

SKIL is also seeking permission to construct build a three-floor parking structure which will also house a spa, pools and a leisure activities centre across the road and beside its 150-suite Breathless resort.

Some residents oppose the construction plans, particularly owners of the Emerald Cay townhouse complex located beside the proposed parking structure, and the owners of the units in the newly built ultra-luxury 10-storey Soleil Residences. They have raised concerns about loss of privacy, noise pollution, restricted access to the beach, and inadequate physical infrastructure in the area.

On Monday, NEPA wrote to the residents and stakeholders by email advising of a meeting at 11 a.m. today, Wednesday, to provide an update on the SKIL application.

The proposed Dreams resort will feature 281 rooms and will be built next to SKIL’s two Secrets hotels that already operate in the resort and residential neighbourhood of Montego Freeport.

On Tuesday, the planning authority issued an advisory to say it would meet with the developer on Friday, July 15, to advise of the outcome of the application.

On June 1, NEPA met with the residents and stakeholders, including the Jamaica Environment Trust, to hear their concerns and answer questions.

On June 10, the environmental regulatory agency advised lawyers for the Freeport Peninsula Association, FPA, that it would not be acceding to their request to require that a new environmental impact assessment, or EIA, be conducted by the hotel developer, who had commissioned one in 2007 prior to the Secrets and Breathless property developments.

“As part of the information dissemination, and for transparency, we are inviting the media to share in the update,” the NEPA email said, adding that the agency anticipated that the update meeting would last no longer than 40 minutes.

Attorney Gavin Goffe of the law firm Myers, Fletcher and Gordon had earlier hinted at further action by the its client, the FPA, should their request for a new EIA not be granted. Contacted recently, Goffe said he was not at liberty to disclose the next move to be taken by the association.

At the June 1 meeting, NEPA had assured the residents that beach access would be enforced by the agency, and that it would bring their infrastructure and public order concerns to the relevant government entities. President of the National Water Commission, Mark Barnett, had also advised during the meeting that there was sufficient water and sewerage infrastructure to support the hotel development.

“Resort developments, unfortunately, result in some inconvenience to neighbours during construction, and additional demand being placed on utilities and infrastructure once the resort is operational. Our development and the required planning permission process represent an opportunity for the community, including SKIL, other resorts and residential owners, to advocate for the necessary utility and infrastructure upgrades by the relevant authorities and state agencies,” SKIL said in a project information document, which, it said, was being made available to stakeholders.

It adds that while there will be added traffic, noise, and dust during the construction phase, having developed two other resorts in the Freeport community, SKIL was experienced at handling construction and will apply that expertise to ensuring minimal disruption and inconvenience.

“We are currently addressing mitigating actions for foreseeable issues as we go through the planning and building permit process. We will share our general construction schedule via our website closer to the start of construction, which we hope to begin in the first quarter of 2023,” according to the hotel developer.

Director of SKIL Michael McMorris to the Financial Gleaner recently that the company had not yet been advised of a decision by NEPA on its outline planning application.

The granting of outline planning approval by the environmental regulator would clear the way for the submission of building plans to the St James Municipal Corporation for approval, as well as further submissions for additional permits from NEPA and the Natural Resources Conservation Authority, for construction and operation of the resort development; use of the foreshore and floor of the sea for commercial and/or recreational activities; and undertaking foreshore modification work, including dredging, beach nourishment, and the construction of jetties and groynes.

The developer says once approvals are in hand, the hotel is expected to be built over 24 months, with a targeted construction start date of early next year.

huntley.medley@gleanerjm.com