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THURSDAY, JULY 29, 2021
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Judge issues plea for Schooner Bay peace By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
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SUPREME Court judge has made an impassioned plea for peace to prevail in an Abaco community that has been beset by a longrunning dispute between its developer and several homeowners. Justice Indra Charles, in a July 20 verdict, sought to help Schooner Bay Ventures and its opponents find a harmonious “way forward” after denying both their claims in a battle over who has the right to manage properties within the development. Having branded Schooner Bay Ventures claim to have exclusivity over all real estate sales, rentals and management a “commercial absurdity”, and effectively upheld the rights of the south Abaco community’s homeowners - one of whom is the prime minister - to market their properties however they want, Justice
• Offers ‘way forward’ advice after real estate battle • Denies developer exclusivity as ‘commercial absurdity’ • But property manager found operating without licence
SCHOONER BAY DEVELOPMENT Charles urged the two sides to compromise if they wish to use “Schooner Bay’s” name in their promotions. Schooner Bay’s founding articles and declaration require persons planning to use the community’s name in their advertising to first obtain approval from its board of governors, and Justice Charles wrote: “Given the fact that the Plaintiffs’ properties are geographically located in
Digital building permits hailed as ‘long overdue’ By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net THE Bahamas Society of Engineers (BSE) president yesterday hailed as “long overdue” plans to slash building permit turnaround times by going digital, branding the 60-80 percent reduction target as “achievable”. Quentin Knowles told Tribune Business it was “about time” the Ministry of Works and its Building Control Department shift to electronic processing of the 1,000-1,500 applications they receive annually, adding: “We live in the 21st century.”
Arguing that it was critical that approvals from the likes of the Department of Environmental Planning and Protection (DEPP) be obtained in “parallel” to those from the Ministry of Works, he added that execution and implementation were key to ensuring the turnaround reduction targets outlined by Desmond Bannister, deputy prime minister (see other article on Page 1B), are achieved. “We’re very happy that it’s finally here, and look forward to it,” Mr Knowles said of the Electronic Permit Review and Inspection
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Sand Dollar targets ‘further milestones’
By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
THE Bahamian digital currency’s roll-out will hit “further milestones” next month, the Central Bank’s governor says, with consumers gaining the ability to switch funds between their bank accounts and mobile wallets. John Rolle, pictured, told Tribune Business that public education on the Sand Dollar will “ramp up” through August going into fall 2021 as the momentum
for its nationwide roll-out continues to gather pace. “We are presently working to launch some of the public education campaign,” he added. “We are
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Schooner Bay, it is my fervent hope that if and when they make the necessary application to the board, such approval will not be unreasonably withheld. “At the end of the day, it is hoped that this community would thrive and flourish in growth, and everyone would live peacefully and happily ever after.” Justice Charles, though, said she was merely providing advice and that this was
“not binding” on either side following a dispute whose origins date back more than seven-and-a-half years. It stemmed from allegations by James Malcolm, principal of Destination Schooner Bay (DSB), a property management company, that the developer was interfering with his business and engaging in restraint of trade by trying to stop him looking after several residences owned by Schooner Bay homeowners. His four homeowner clients included Bennet Holdings Ltd, a company owned by well-known Bahamian accountant, Bennet Atkinson; Thomas Scheerer; Arunas and Marilyn Pleckatis; and Teofilo Victoria and Maria Mercedes de la Guardia. They
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DPM pledges 80% slash over building permit turnaround By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net THE deputy prime minister yesterday pledged to slash building permit turnaround times by up to 80 percent with the implementation of Building Control’s long-awaited digital approval system. Desmond Bannister, addressing a conference to unveil the Ministry of Works’ Electronic Permit Review and Inspection System (EPRIS), said he would hold US-based contractor, Tyler Technologies, to a public launch date in six months’ time. With ministry and Building Control officials going so far as to describe digitisation’s arrival as “tear-jerking”, momentous” and “historic”, Mr Bannister promised between a 60-80 percent reduction in turnaround time for building permit applications once the system goes live. Suggesting that EPRIS will “revolutionise” the process for all constructionrelated professions, the
DESMOND BANNISTER deputy prime minister said: “The current time that it takes to process a building permit is estimated to be on average 55 to 75 days. That’s approximately eight to ten weeks. That’s a significantly long time when a project needs to move forward and other approvals must be obtained from various ministries and agencies. “I am pleased to advise that the implementation of the EPRIS programme will allow for all of the agencies involved in the building permit process to review drawings concurrently, which is expected to reduce the processing time of residential applications to
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