Do We Really Have A Land Use Policy?

Development underway at St. Davids

In a previous blog BU echoed the concern of many Barbadians regarding Town Planning approval given to several entities to build in St. Davids Christ Church, specifically on the Staple Grove Plantation lands. We should point out that approvals for projects in St. Davids straddle both the BLP and DLP governments. Barbadians whether old or young know this area to be a rich agricultural belt which adjoins the St. George Valley, another rich agricultural area. Of further concern are the several applications for housing development scattered across Barbados.

BU has no issue with People’s Cathedral building a 42 million dollar facility in St. Davids. From all reports the Holmes William’s operation has been a model citizen. We may have a concern based on reports in the local media the haste with which he threatened to shut the school operation down because his teachers threatened to join the union…

The big concern of many Barbadians centres on the lack of an orderly development of our land resource. Barbadians can easily cite the cluttered West Coast which has crowed out all but a few windows to the sea. In recent weeks the local media seems to have awaken from its long slumber to alert Barbadians to the rapidly disappearing Mullins Beach, no doubt caused by the tampering of our coastline by developer after developer.  Local reports continue to point to other beach areas rapidly losing the battle to the sea. The previous government justified the unbridled development of our West Coast to the need to encourage foreign direct investment operating on the economic concept that land should always be allowed to fetch its highest economic value. There we are!

The government has changed and there is no more West Coast to develop, the South side was exhausted a long time ago. That leaves the East Coast and the North West of Barbados relatively untouched. We shall see how long the current government stave-off selling land to pay down debt.

What has started to concern Barbadians in recent weeks is the wanton development of prime agricultural lands in the quest by the government to deliver on its housing program. Obviously if there is a demand for housing the land must be found somewhere. Commonsense however requires that given the size of Barbados, the density of the population, the commitment to sustain a reasonable agricultural base, as well as all the other considerations which the Town Planner should factor to maximize return of our scarce land resource, any approval to cut-up prime agricultural land should be deliberated-on with the utmost care.

Part of the appeal of Barbados is its island beauty which is a mosaic of its indigenous fauna, flora, sugar cane fields, housing etc. While we  understand that development of the island must occur to sustain the required GDP level, it must not come at too expensive a price. At the rate we are going Barbados will soon kill the goose which is laying the golden eggs.

Before the government in its enthusiasm to find housing solutions to satisfy the 30,000 requests received by the National Housing Corporation to date, we suggest that all the stakeholders take a step back  and visualize how decisions taken today will impact the sustainability of Barbados tomorrow.

Almost two years into the Thompson led government and we are waiting for a land use policy to be practiced which is visibly different.