Over the past few months, we've been keeping you updated on the jostling that's taking place over which mega cruise facility will come out on top to control Belize's cruise tourism future. The challengers - and the 3 proposed docking facilities at this time - are Port Coral, Port of Magical Belize, and the Waterloo Port.
Tonight, reports reaching 7News are that the principals behind Stakebank/Port Coral and Port of Magical Belize are about to end up in a legal battle at the Supreme Court. That's because the company, Stakebank Enterprise Limited, is applying to the court for judicial review.
They want the court to examine the validity of the environmental clearance which the Department of Environment and the National Environmental Appraisal Committee granted to Port of Magical Belize. As you may recall, Developer David Gegg and his company, Portico Enterprise Limited, received clearance in April of this year. Should Stakebank be successful in this claim, they are asking the court to quash Portico Enterprise's environmental permissions to move ahead with the next phase of the Port of Magical Belize.
Documents we've seen indicate that Stakebank is asserting that Port Coral is situated in close proximity to the proposed Port of Magical Belize. They insist that it, quote, "poses [a] significant environmental threat to Port Coral's property and the Belize barrier reef..." End quote.
Stakebank Enterprises insists that they have already invested 50 million dollars toward the development and completion of their project. In excess of 250 Belizeans are employed in its construction. They think that the Port of Magical Belize is capable of "irreparable harm" to their economic interest and the surrounding environment. The applicant insists, therefore, that the Government had a responsibility to duly consult with them before granting permission to Magical Belize.
Sources tell us that this lawsuit is in its early stages, and as soon as the matter develops further, we'll tell you all about it.
