By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

Environmentalists fear the Abaco Club’s proposed 44-slip dock is “disproportionately large”, and will undermine the existing tourism business for one of the island’s most self-sufficient communities.

Fred Smith QC, in letters sent to Prime Minister Perry Christie and copied to other government officials, alleged that the Winding Bay-based development’s proposed Little Harbour project would cover almost 20 per cent of its sea area.

The December 21 letters, sent on behalf of Responsible Development for Abaco (RDA), warn that the proposed dock’s non-public nature - coupled with the forced removal of existing docks and moorings - would effectively prohibit existing boating tourists from using Little Harbour as a stop.

“The proposed u-shaped dock will measure 320 feet across the outside piers, 210 feet between the two parallel main piers, and will extend 270 feet into Little Harbour,” Mr Smith wrote to Mr Christie.

“It is intended that it will accommodate boats up to 60 feet. The total area of the dock is approximately two acres, while the total usable area of Little Harbour (excluding shoals and existing docks) is approximately 11 acres. On any view, this is a disproportionately large development for the aptly named Little Harbour.”

Mr Smith’s letters on RDA’s behalf express concern that a foreign developer, this time Southworth Development, is seeking to impose an unsustainable development vision on a community that does not need or want it - and with the Government’s support.

Little Harbour is a 50-home community largely ‘off’ the BEC grid, existing via solar power, the collection of rainwater and use of the natural environment.

The Callenders & Co partner said the Abaco Club’s dock would be totally private, with 10 slips reserved for members and the remaining 34 sold for $125,000 each to private buyers.

That will net the Winding Bay-based project’s owners a total $4.25 million in revenue, and Mr Smith added: “The creation of the proposed dock will also involve the removal of existing docks and registered moorings.

“We understand that the owners thereof are taking legal advice on the remedies they may have for any infringement of their private law rights.”

And he continued: “It is not proposed that there by any public access to the dock. The creation of the dock would therefore reduce the capacity of Little Harbour to accommodate existing boat owners, tourist cruisers and day sailors who regularly use Little Harbour as a last stop before heading out to sea.”

Although Abaco Club representatives have denied that any dredging would be required to facilitate the project, Mr Smith and RDA are arguing that “extensive dredging” over the whole marina basin is essential to accommodate 60 foot boats.

The letter to Prime Minister Christie also notes that the Abaco Club is planning to convert a residential property it has acquired in Little Harbour into commercial use, since it will host the supplies shop and restaurant supporting the dock.

A 6,000 square foot car parking facility is also included in the Abaco Club’s plans, and Mr Smith wrote: “In order to service the 44 boats which may be moored at this dock, the development will plainly require a considerable supply of water and extensive facilities for dealing with waste pumped out from the boats.

“It will also require considerable power. It is obvious that the existing services and facilities, which were designed to support a single residential property, will be wholly insufficient to support the development.”

RDA, which battled BEC’s Wilson City power plant, is threatening to launch a Judicial Review challenge to the Abaco Club development in the New Year unless various government agencies supply it with information on the project by January 2, 2016.

It is alleging that both the Government and Abaco Club have been less than fully transparent about the project and their intentions.

“Our client remains very concerned about the proposed development and the fact that the developer is progressing matters in secret,” Mr Smith told Jacqueline Estevez, south Abaco’s chief councillor.

“The developer is also continuing to refuse to carry out proper consultation with affected residents and home owners in Little Harbour, not to mention the wider community in Abaco.”

Mr Smith, in his letter to Mr Christie, questioned whether the Abaco Club had applied for Crown Land leases or grants involving the seabed as well as for its desalination plant and wastewater treatment facility.

Letters seeking further information on the Abaco Club’s applications, and the status of permits/approvals granted by the Government, were sent to Charles Zonicle, acting director of physical planning; Wilshire Bethel, the Town Planning Committee’s chairman; the South Abaco District Council; and Marques Williams, the port administrator for Abaco.

Mr Smith and RDA are requesting details on whether the Abaco Club has received preliminary Site Plan approval from Town Planning, plus if it has applied for and/or been granted a building permit by the South Abaco District Council.

The environmental group also wants to confirm whether the Ports Department has received an application for docks construction approval, and if any dredging permits have been - or will be - issued by the director of physical planning.

Originally developed by UK investor, Peter de Savary, the Abaco Club opened in December 2004. In 2008, a Marriott affiliate acquired the property and it was then managed by its Ritz-Carlton brand

Southworth and its homeowner allies purchased the 453-acre property from Marriott Vacation Worldwide for around $30 million, a move that ended a $10 million lawsuit that some property owners had initiated against the latter.

Khaalis Rolle, minister of state for investments, told the Abaco Business Outlook conference in September 2014 that Southworth Development had a $123 million investment budget earmarked for the Abaco Club.

He added that the Winding Bay-based property would have a total residential construction value of $225 million at full build-out, stating: “The total projected expenditure related to the project is conservatively estimated at $348 million.”