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PM stands up to RIU
. Fraud Squad called in to investigate possible criminality
Friday, May 02, 2008
Prime Minister Bruce Golding left no doubt yesterday that he expected the RIU Hotel to demolish its unapproved fourth floors on three buildings at Mahoe Bay near Montego Bay, St James, or face the full brunt of Jamaican law.
"The Government will not tolerate this blatant violation nor will it entertain any request for breaches to be regularised," Golding said in a release issued after a meeting at Jamaica House yesterday with representatives of state agencies involved in the building approval process.
Golding also ordered that an enforcement order be served immediately on RIU Jamaicotel, developers of the RIU hotel at Mahoe Bay - in the direct flight path of aircraft using the Sangster International Airport three kilometers away - requiring them to "comply with the approved building plans and to demolish any works which exceed the specifications that were approved".
"The prime minister wanted to send a very strong signal that he is putting an end to the practice of developers committing breaches of their approved plans then seeking to regularise them," junior minister in the prime minister's office, Daryl Vaz told the Observer last night.
Golding's directive came a day after the RIU Hotel chain insisted it would resubmit a "revised building plan" to legitimise its three four-storey buildings that breached the plan approved on June 29, 2007 by the St James Parish Council and the National Environment and Planning Agency (NEPA).
The prime minister appeared to have been particularly incensed by news from the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) that breaches were detected on nine of the 10 buildings being constructed by RIU at Mahoe Bay.
Golding was advised that the developers knew that based on the development order they received, that construction of the fourth floor was in breach of the approved order.
He directed that the Police Fraud Squad be called in to investigate possible criminality surrounding the recent submission by RIU of a building plan that carried the signature of the St James Parish Council's superintendent of roads and works, Tubal Brown, and the council's official stamp.
However, the plan, in Spanish, was not taken before the council or NEPA, and the requisite fees were not received, according to Montego Bay Mayor Charles Sinclair.
Brown has not yet responded to a request from the mayor to provide an explanation of how his signature came to be on the Spanish-owned hotel's plan that did not come before the council.
Golding also instructed that the matter be taken up by the Parish Council Services Commission.
Yesterday, it emerged that Jamaica is apparently not the only country where the RIU Hotel is having run-ins over alleged building breaches.
According to the online publication, CafeCancun.com, the chain was recently fined more than US$3.5 million for building an entire hotel without permission as an annex to a new hotel in Cancun, Mexico for which they did have permission.
"The local federal environment director was relieved amidst accusations that he had taken bribes in this and other situations," said the publication which gives news, opinions and advice about the Mexican resort.
The writer described the RIU hotel "as sickeningly grotesque and out of scale", akin to complaints in Jamaica by RIU's neighbours that it is not in sync with the topography and tapestry of the resorts.
RIU's representatives were not invited to the meeting Golding called with state ministers Robert Montague and Vaz, and officials of the St James Parish Council led by Mayor Sinclair, NEPA and the CAA.
"The PM has no intention of meeting with them to negotiate anything. What he wants is for RIU to comply with the provisions of the approved building plan of June 29, 2007," Vaz said last night.
He said based on the report from the CAA's commissioned land surveyor who did measurements at the building site, nine of out 10 buildings had breaches of the approved height: one exceeded by 2.21 metres; two exceeded by 1.31 metres; three exceeded by 1.51 metres and three by 0.41 metres.
. Fraud Squad called in to investigate possible criminality
Friday, May 02, 2008
Prime Minister Bruce Golding left no doubt yesterday that he expected the RIU Hotel to demolish its unapproved fourth floors on three buildings at Mahoe Bay near Montego Bay, St James, or face the full brunt of Jamaican law.
"The Government will not tolerate this blatant violation nor will it entertain any request for breaches to be regularised," Golding said in a release issued after a meeting at Jamaica House yesterday with representatives of state agencies involved in the building approval process.
Golding also ordered that an enforcement order be served immediately on RIU Jamaicotel, developers of the RIU hotel at Mahoe Bay - in the direct flight path of aircraft using the Sangster International Airport three kilometers away - requiring them to "comply with the approved building plans and to demolish any works which exceed the specifications that were approved".
"The prime minister wanted to send a very strong signal that he is putting an end to the practice of developers committing breaches of their approved plans then seeking to regularise them," junior minister in the prime minister's office, Daryl Vaz told the Observer last night.
Golding's directive came a day after the RIU Hotel chain insisted it would resubmit a "revised building plan" to legitimise its three four-storey buildings that breached the plan approved on June 29, 2007 by the St James Parish Council and the National Environment and Planning Agency (NEPA).
The prime minister appeared to have been particularly incensed by news from the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) that breaches were detected on nine of the 10 buildings being constructed by RIU at Mahoe Bay.
Golding was advised that the developers knew that based on the development order they received, that construction of the fourth floor was in breach of the approved order.
He directed that the Police Fraud Squad be called in to investigate possible criminality surrounding the recent submission by RIU of a building plan that carried the signature of the St James Parish Council's superintendent of roads and works, Tubal Brown, and the council's official stamp.
However, the plan, in Spanish, was not taken before the council or NEPA, and the requisite fees were not received, according to Montego Bay Mayor Charles Sinclair.
Brown has not yet responded to a request from the mayor to provide an explanation of how his signature came to be on the Spanish-owned hotel's plan that did not come before the council.
Golding also instructed that the matter be taken up by the Parish Council Services Commission.
Yesterday, it emerged that Jamaica is apparently not the only country where the RIU Hotel is having run-ins over alleged building breaches.
According to the online publication, CafeCancun.com, the chain was recently fined more than US$3.5 million for building an entire hotel without permission as an annex to a new hotel in Cancun, Mexico for which they did have permission.
"The local federal environment director was relieved amidst accusations that he had taken bribes in this and other situations," said the publication which gives news, opinions and advice about the Mexican resort.
The writer described the RIU hotel "as sickeningly grotesque and out of scale", akin to complaints in Jamaica by RIU's neighbours that it is not in sync with the topography and tapestry of the resorts.
RIU's representatives were not invited to the meeting Golding called with state ministers Robert Montague and Vaz, and officials of the St James Parish Council led by Mayor Sinclair, NEPA and the CAA.
"The PM has no intention of meeting with them to negotiate anything. What he wants is for RIU to comply with the provisions of the approved building plan of June 29, 2007," Vaz said last night.
He said based on the report from the CAA's commissioned land surveyor who did measurements at the building site, nine of out 10 buildings had breaches of the approved height: one exceeded by 2.21 metres; two exceeded by 1.31 metres; three exceeded by 1.51 metres and three by 0.41 metres.
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