Construction is continuing at the Celina Atlantic Resort, Kitty despite an oral and written warning from the Ministry of Public Infrastructure to stop.
Chief Sea and River Defence Officer, Kevin Samad on Friday told Stabroek News that an oral warning was given to the contractors to halt all ongoing construction at the resort some time last week. This was followed by a written warning.
When Stabroek News visited the resort perched on the seaward side of the Kitty seawall, the northernmost area was covered in rock and sand and it appeared that a wall was being built. A bridge that linked the main building to the seawall had been dismantled and there were boards around the area. At the back of the resort, ongoing construction can be clearly seen as a bank of almost three feet of dirt is compacted along the concreted area just before the fence that separates the resort and the lush mangrove area.
The construction of the resort and several extensions had been heavily criticized over the years given how environmentally sensitive the area is and because of the risk to the sea defence. Numerous questions have been raised pertaining to how the permission was granted for the construction.
Malcolm Ali, former Chief Hydraulics Officer and Specialist Engineer for Sea Defences, had stated that the resort building violates the Sea Defence Act and permission for its construction should not have been granted.
In a letter to Stabroek News, Ali had stated that that area of sea defence was specifically designed to tackle massive erosion of the foreshore by him. Where the resort is located there was the grouted boulder slope, below which has built up silt. The resort is built on the silt which can spontaneously erode, causing the building to collapse and damage the sea wall.
Ali had stated that the Sea Defence Act was amended due to the amount of severe erosion that was happening along the East Coast during the late 1960s. The act was put in place to prevent construction in several areas of the coast landwards from 50 feet to 1000 feet from the centre line of the sea dam. He had stated that while construction wasn’t allowed in certain places, special reasons and exceptions were granted for minor structures, for religious purposes, seaward of the sea dam.
No person in authority was on the site on Friday to answer questions about who had permitted the work to go ahead.
While permission for construction in the area would have to go through the Ministry of Public Infrastructure, Samad assured Stabroek News that no such permission was granted or is in the process of being granted.
Samad also stated that he was unable to contact the proprietor of the resort in person but a letter was sent to him on Friday.
