In our editorial yesterday, we expressed the hope that this week’s news that bids are likely to be forthcoming from at least two substantial companies for the development of new cruise ship berths in George Town will be just the first step in revitalising our capital city. However, as our page one lead story suggests, there could be as may as ten proposals for the Port Authority to consider.

Although there may be no “inner city” in the conventional metropolis sense, the triangle roughly demarcated by North Church Street, Eastern Avenue and Shedden Road is certainly an area that desperately needs to be redeveloped and/or otherwise improved as a part of George Town that could tie in with the image of the Cayman Islands as an upscale tourist destination, instead of one interspersed here and there with substandard buildings and roosters and iguanas strolling in the yards and streets.
How nice it would be if this area were to be fully incorporated into central George Town and the entire city made into a lively place day and night, full of urban amenities and street life.

Many cities around the world are struggling with urban decay and unplanned outward growth. In greater George Town, however, one might say that there has never been much urban development to decay. Indeed, much of the original construction seems to have been built in an inner city void of any particular architectural style or code from the outset.

However, the unfettered development of surrounding suburbs experienced by larger cities in other countries has certainly been mirrored by the residential developments that have sprung up over the years – essentially to provide bedrooms for George Town commuters.

And over the years there seems to have been little or no consideration or planning at a governmental level as to whether it might not have been preferable to encourage appropriately stylish residential development – perhaps with mixed use – within the environs of George Town itself instead of in the immediately outlying areas.

Such forethought might have reduced the traffic congestion by stimulating the creation and growth of public or private transportation within the city itself, and at the same time avoiding the need to put expensive downtown land aside for parking.

What is needed now is some of the forethought that has been conspicuous by its absence in the past. Is this asking too much?

Any renewal or redevelopment of George Town will have to be one of the much touted public-private partnerships and, in relation to the private sector, it would be wrong to overestimate the concept of social responsibility as a driving force behind any such urban renewal.

The motive for the private sector will be, as always, the prospect of commercial gain and this may, in turn, be stimulated in part by government incentives for suitable redevelopment.

By and large, business people will not become involved with civic affairs unless they can afford to do so, and to take a longer term view of what is desirable for their business, recognising that its future is bound up with that of the locality and that they are thereby protecting or augmenting their investments.

A new theory of planning is needed for George Town, based on creating and harnessing market demand for the inner city area with an eye on environmental and social care, and so creating development and commercial spin-offs.

Such new development would inevitably create more revenue for the government, which at this particular time should be a strong incentive to look closely at our suggestions.

Yes, most of the inner city areas of George Town comprise some of the less privileged parts of Grand Cayman and any renewal efforts must be careful not to become or be perceived as a programme for people removal. The answer to poverty, however, must lie in creating local enterprise that pays enough to lift people over the poverty level. Poverty needs to be tackled on the spot, not by displacement.

Certainly, the present environment in inner George Town is complex, interrelated and deep-seated. There will be no neat solutions or a ‘quick fix’. The current situation has a variety of symptoms and causes, requiring a long, hard grind of comprehensive and varied responses.

The symptoms of inner city decline are all too clear: unemployment; crime; decaying buildings; filthy streets; vandalised public services. Similarly, the general concept of what has to be done to revive them is clear: to rebuild local enterprise and (re)establish local self-respect.

Fortunately, for now, the capital of George Town has not succumbed to these disorders. It is with this in mind, that we hope that all the parties submitting bids as well as the decision makers on the Port Authority and its advisors, will choose an entity which will be favoured with the contract to provide the new port facilities, will grasp this opportunity create the best face for Cayman.