Spotts verified as 2nd dock

Cruise ship visitors prepare to disembark from ferry
tender in George Town. The Minister of Tourism Hon
Charles Clifford has confirmed Spotts dock is to
become the official second cruise facility

The Spotts dock cruise facility is to be developed as
Cayman’s second option

Thursday,  January 12, 2006

The Cayman Islands Government and the Florida Caribbean Cruise Association (FCCA) are fine-tuning an agreement, which will see the Spotts dock being developed into a second string cruise ship facility shortly.

Tourism Minister Hon Charles Clifford said that lawyers for the Port Authority and the FCCA have been working on the agreement, which would virtually derail the previous Government’s plan to have the facility in West Bay. 

“The Port Authority is working with their attorneys to formalise the agreement with the FCCA to formally move the funding from the proposed West Bay dock facility, which we have since discontinued to the George Town and Spotts facility,” said Mr Clifford. 

The ruling People’s Progressive Movement (PPM), since coming into power in May 2005, shelved the unseated United Democratic Party’s (UDP) plan to construct a cruise ship facility in West Bay.

Former Leader of Government Business, McKeeva Bush told Cayman Net News that the multimillion dock earmarked for West Bay would have been a better choice and it would service the Turtle Farm, which is one of the Island’s biggest attractions. 

Mr Bush, the former Tourism Minister and MLA for West Bay, also said that the UDP-preferred site would have doubled up as a ferry terminal to ease the traffic strain on the West Bay Road.

However, Mr Clifford said the agreement between the Port Authority and the FCCA is in an advanced stage and plans are afoot to develop the Spotts dock on the Island’s south coast. 

“They are relatively close to completing that process, once that is finished we will move ahead with the plans to develop the Spotts facility,” he said.

The Island has been in search of a substitute dock to the George Town Harbour that is rendered unusable during the passage of annual northwesters. 

The Minister noted that the Port Authority has the Spotts area on its list of priorities.

“The Port Authority sees it as one of their priorities because whenever we have inclement weather in the George Town Harbour, the only alternate port we have is at Spotts,” he explained. 

Mr Clifford said the FCCA has agreed to have an additional facility and it understood the implications of not having one on standby to the George Town Port. 

“I have spoken to the cruise lines about this and they have agreed that we need the facility, they understand the implications of not having it, they understand the implications to our economy of not having it,” he said. 

According to the Minister, Spotts will be improved to handle a “significant number of passengers.” 

“I have made it very clear to them that I will be improving and enhancing that facility so that when we do have inclement weather in the George Town Harbour we do have a properly equipped facility at Spotts that can handle a significant number of passengers.”

He also stated that road congestion in the Spotts area would be tackled in the new plan. 

“We will be improving significantly the flow of public transport vehicles in that area, so that we do not have the type of congestion that we see there when there are cruise ships at Spotts,” he added. 

According to an official of the Port Authority, there is an approved sum of $500,000 for an upgrade to the facility, which several tourists told Cayman Net News was substandard. 

Officials at the Cayman Islands National Trust said they would await details on the development at Spotts before commenting, but they would definitely raise objections if the Island’s coral reefs were in danger. 

paul@caymannetnews.com

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