~ No building permit, building stop ignored~
Sint Maarten – Residents of Cay Hill on Tuesday called on government to immediately inform the owners of an illegal commercial development in their neighborhood that they have to stop the ongoing construction and relocate their business, or face legal action.
In the wake of submitting a petition to government on April 20, government has informed the residents that a building stop had already been issued on April 16, pending a decision of the building permit request. Government has allowed minor work, such as tiling, to proceed in the meantime. However, the owner of the establishment, who has claimed he has government in his pocket, is continuing with major work and started to pour a roof on Tuesday with concrete.
The residents said that this response by government only proves one thing; the entire development is illegal because no permit has been issued. They are also asking why government has not outright stopped the development if there is no permit. Also, by allowing minor work to proceed, is government saying it is considering allowing a commercial development on a residential lot?
“They do not have a permit and it is a residential lot. So what exactly is government making a decision on other than the obvious? We are asking government again to do what is clearly right or we will have to do what we have to based on the law to protect ourselves and our properties,” the residents said.
“To our knowledge the lots in the outlined area/location has been pegged for residential use. However, the proprietor of this property has placed over twenty (20) forty foot containers on said lot and seemed to have commenced an illegal commercial operation of some sort from the location as of March 22, 2021,” the petition read.
“As a result, all residents have had to put up with an influx of noise, dangerously parked cars, unknown personnel and daily heavy equipment and container movement at various hours and on holidays. This raises our level of concern for the safety and security of our neighborhood in addition to how this sort of operation will affect the valuation of our properties. The double stacked 40 foot containers pose a serious hurricane hazard to the direct and surrounding area,” the petition read.
The residents are once again asking the Minister and by extension the government and Parliament for their urgent attention to this matter.
