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(CNS): As a result of the Court of Appeal judgment relating to plans to create a new public road in Boatswains Bay, planning ministry officials have confirmed that work will start on developing Lissa Lane in the near future. The court raised concerns about the transparency of the process in this case but the ruling paves the way for the government to make the disputed access an official road.
The lane in West Bay has been at the centre of a community and legal dispute for several years but this was resolved by the court last month. The appellants had argued that the proper procedure to acquire land for a public road had not been followed and that they were being deprived of their land. However, the court found that the proper procedure was followed and that the appellants did have an opportunity to make their objections.
Making Lissa Lane a public by-way will provide property access to all the adjoining landowners, resolve the landlock issue and facilitate utility access. Deputy Chief Officer Tristan Hydes said the planning ministry would be notifying the landowners and would ensure that the policy and process are published in the public domain, as directed by the court.
“As the Cayman Islands population continues to grow, so do our needs as a nation, whether it’s the need for new transportation strategies, housing projects or public utilities,” Hydes said. “It is important the public understands how the process works when the government declares an intention in the public’s interest that land may need to be acquired for public projects. The process is designed to be fair, easy to understand and transparent.”
In this case, the court found that the ministry had not been fully transparent when it began the process almost four years ago to gazette and create the public road. The appeal court said that the law must be “accessible” and “foreseeable” with a “transparent statement of the procedure”, which was not done in this case.
The creation of a public road should also address the long-running feud which has seen some of the landowners involved face criminal charges. Former Cabinet minister Mike Adam and his son were charged with common assault in 2021 while his neighbour, Wilson Mendoza, was jailed for seven days last year after defying a court order and blocking Adam’s access to his property.
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