By Kenicia Francis
The owners and operators of several local businesses are claiming they’re being pushed off the beach at Halcyon Cove where the new Royalton Chic hotel is being developed.
Peter Kelsick is one of the local business owners under threat of having his sole source of income disrupted.
The Development Control Authority (DCA) is likely to knock down his beach bar, Sneaky Pete, despite him operating at that location since 1984.
The former Olympian said he received a notice from the DCA last December, which informed him the demolition of his business is scheduled for this coming Wednesday.
The bar is reportedly blocking the view of a part of the hotel which is currently under construction.
Kelsick claimed that if he refused to move, the hotel warned they had “government authority” backing them.
“So, if you don’t decide to take the pittance that we’re offering you, you’ll be removed forthwith,” he explained.
Yesterday, Observer visited Royalton Chic where an operations manager referred us back to the tourism minister as he said he had “no comment”.
Meanwhile, the business owner adjacent to Sneaky Pete said she is in a legal battle to keep her business from a similar fate. The woman has occupied the facility for more than three decades.
A vendor, who goes by the name “Sugar”, told Observer she relocated there because the previous vendors area was torn down and replaced by a beach bar and restaurant owned by the Royalton.
She was one of 10 vendors who occupied the space under the management of the former Halcyon Cove hotel.
“I’m concerned about where they’re going to put the vendors. What the vendors for Halcyon must do, because they don’t have any preparations for the vendors; none whatsoever. They never even called us to tell us they’re going to build something. They sell the hotel {and] they don’t tell us nothing. They should find a spot for the vendors,” she said.
Reports suggest that the hotel also plans to block a traditional thoroughfare leading to the beach, which is one of two access roads to the Dickenson Bay beach.
Our newsroom reached out to the Tourism Minister, Charles Fernandez, who explained that negotiations were ongoing between the operators of the two beach bars in question and Royalton Chic.
“When you’re on the beach it’s a temporary thing; you’re not there permanently. You don’t own it, and the beach is open to everybody. So, you’ll get special permission to build and operate there,” he explained.
“Mr Kelsick has been in negotiations with the Royalton group where they wanted to give him a gift, bearing in mind he wasn’t even operating at the time. So that is something that he was supposed to have been working out with them,” Fernandez said.
The minister said, to his understanding, Kelsick was being offered 100 times what the bar was worth.
Admittedly,Kelsick said he was working with the hotel until they reduced their offer because he made the matter public.
They initially spoke to him about relocating but he pointed out there was no place to relocate to on the beach and so it was a “non-starter”.
As for the value of his facility he said, “well that’s subjective”.
“Was a survey done by somebody who knows about these things? Was a realtor called in to determine what the value the place was? It’s not only the physical structure, but also the location.”
The 73-year-old declined the offer under the threat of halving his compensation.
“You’re telling me that because I’m exercising my right to free speech, and you don’t like it because I criticise whomever or whatever, you want to reduce the money?” he questioned.
He also has documents to prove he has legal rights to occupy the bar which he has operated for 40 years.
He has decided not to accept the offer and will instead consider filing an injunction to prevent the destruction of his bar.