Petition to Save the Micro Atolls of Cozumel - Please Read & Sign

[Ron Lee]

Mike,,,do try to meet Antonio. He is a nice guy.

The development is reportedly to have about 600 hotel rooms...not the 2000 or 3000 noted elsewhere. In addition, they may not develop a new runway which makes sense to me.

However, you have to wonder if people would buy homes there if the ocean is questionable for swimming.

 

[deborahdelamar]

The petition is a small (goal 1000 signatures), international plea to the President of Mexico for the retention of a unique and beautiful piece of wilderness. Its subject is well described by its authors. If you agree with their opinion and want to sign, great -- but I'll still respect you if you don't want to -- it is completely voluntary.

I linked it here as many of you have expressed favor for environmental protection in the past.

FYI, there is no longer a legal barrier to development. The island's land use plan was changed a couple of years ago to allow its construction.

Some of the big, west-side projects were locally unpopular and people did protest. Sometimes small modifications were made to ameliorate, but mostly nada. Personally, I don't think that prior failures are reason enough to stop trying to protect nature's irreplaceable treasures. And this strategy -- of an international group petitioning the President of the country -- hasn't been tried for Cozumel as far as I know.

 

[Dave Dillehay]

Dear Mike,

The Micro Atolls she refers to surround Hanan Beach and are one of the most beautiful and prisitine spots we have even seen in the Caribbean and that is why we have tried so hard to offer dive trips there when we can.

There have been rumors for years as to development in the area, but as best as I can read the jungle drums of the State Government, little is likely to happen. IN addition, for the last few years the economic climate has pretty well put any such projects on hold.

But now that it has been brought up we will make it a point to make sure that Presidente Caleron is aware of the concern, that is if and when we get another chance to take him diving.


Dave Dillehay
Aldora Divers

 

[Gdog]

Signed.

 

[annlaur]

Mike,,,do try to meet Antonio. He is a nice guy.

The development is reportedly to have about 600 hotel rooms...not the 2000 or 3000 noted elsewhere. In addition, they may not develop a new runway which makes sense to me.

However, you have to wonder if people would buy homes there if the ocean is questionable for swimming.

The original project, under the previous mayor, was 3000 rooms and backed by Donald Trump.
The new mayor revived it a few months ago, except he is not going public with this as the original project was so unpopular on the island. He has however, last August, showed plans to a select group of locals, who reported that he didn't mention Trump but a very wealthy Mexican family who supposedly now owns the land (newspaper do however report that Trump's son stayed at the mayor's house a few months back), and that he showed a first stage of the project with "only" 600 rooms, but that it seems they were planning on a second stage that would make it the size of the original project (which is why I wrote "planned to become a luxury town of 3000 rooms").

Even if they stop building after stage 1 (600 rooms), much destruction will already have occurred. They'll have to build a road, cut thru the forest (lots of birds, butterflies, insects…) to build the resort, probably have to spray tons of chemicals (don't think the potential visitors would appreciate being eaten alive by the resident mosquitos), manage waste disposal, damage the sea bottom to build piers and the marina…

Regarding swimming, I've only visited that area during a Norte, so no wave or current that day, but for all I know that specific spot might be sheltered as it is shallow and surrounded by (beautiful and virgin) coral formations that extend to the surface. If these fan covered formations are not damaged by the construction of the resort and the pollution coming from waste waters, chemicals used for gardening and so on, they'll probably suffer from some idiot trying to jet ski around them or from cattle boats of snorkelers.

I also wonder about the sustainability of the project. I'm sure there is a market for upscale, secluded, beach front properties and I know people who actually prefer swimming in the pool (sigh). But no matter how pretty and picture perfect it might look when first built, how will it age ? Maintaining luxury in a tropical environment is extremely demanding and costly.

I'm afraid this project will destroy that area of the island and then look like a piece of crap nobody will want after a few years because they can't keep up with the maintenance or it has been half destroyed by a hurricane.

Meanwhile, more people will have flocked to the island to work at these properties (to build them, maintain them and then maids, waiters, gardeners…), which will strain the local real estate market (unless they plan on building rooms for the staff, haven't read anything about that). And if it fails after a few years, it will leave even more lowly qualified people on the island without a job than there are today.

In all honesty, as much as I love the East coast, I probably wouldn't have signed the petition if they had been planning on building something that I really thought had potential to bring long term employment. But this IMO is an environmental and social disaster waiting to happen.

 

[Mike]

I've visited a few projects similar in scope or in "hoped scope to be" around the Caribbean, the last one I looked at was Parrot Tree on Roatan. It's on the windy side of the island just like this one would be on Cozumel. It about 12-13 years old, and moving into it's 3rd phase, I can assure you that swimming won't be a consideration. These projects all involve their own man made beaches think "lagoons" when they are on the windy side of islands. I this ones read their plan/prospectus and it's pretty much similar to everything I've seen already that has successfully been built or is being built. This one on Cozumel follows the typical method that they all employ which is phases of development. It allows the developers and investors 'outs' along the way by minimizing financial commitments. If things go well in the first phase they move on to the second phase, if things don't go as planned they back out.

Anyways a couple of things - Will Donald Trump really be involved? He's pretty busy with his project in Capa Cana in the Dominican Republic, that's a struggle enough with the economic down turn, his develpments in Dubai are on hold... in other words as Dave eluded to... probably not going to happen. This project is very ambitious in its entirety.

But I'll tell you if your Mayor or whomever is in charge of the Island development was smart, he'd tie the developers of this project into providing Cozumel with a lot of infastructure upgrades along with granting them the ability to develop any of this. Just like when a developer in the states develops an area and his new development will increase traffic to the area and he has to pay for new roads, lights etc... so should Cozumel be getting upgrades to their infastructure from these developers, there should be sewer treatment, water purification, roads, airport improvements and whatever else they can think of they want for granting them the ability to develop this.

However, I can't see any of this getting off the ground at all based on how much development already farther along then this has been put on hold or abandoned in the Caribbean. I don't think you have to look much farther than problems The Landmark by the Money Bar has faced, which is a much smaller, tiny actually compared to this, to see how virtually impossible this project is right now.

If this development ever came to be Cozumel would never be the same. It would spur development all over the island like nobody has ever dreamed before.

But very interesting, I'd never heard of any of this until finding this posting today.

 

[cicopo]

News of the Trump plan came out at least 2 years ago on Tripadvisor.

There was a protest re the piers being built back in the late 90's and it was only recently that I finally sent the old dive magazines that encouraged us to send letters of protest for recycling. The internet wasn't the way it was done back then so if you didn't buy the magazines you likely didn't know about the protest, but it existed & I'm pretty sure I wrote & mailed my letter. As for some of the other development along the east side I suspect some people in high places increased their personal wealth statistics in exchange for permits, but that's just my view on how rules constantly got revised as needed.

Edited after doing a search. This ones from Jan 2007

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopi...de_Development-Cozumel_Yucatan_Peninsula.html

 

[TomZ]

OK. I read the links Ron and annlaur posted, then Googled the issue. It looks like Mike's comments about the viability of the project in light of current economic conditions, have merit too. All things being said, this project does not look like the best idea for Cozumel, it's citizens and environment. I signed with this comment:

" Sir, The business of business is to make money. It is illogical to believe developers care about protecting the resources they exploit. Environmental accommodations cost money. Can you honestly say all transactions between local government and developers will be done according to current law? Will laws be modified to the benefit of the few? Please do not allow the destruction of natural resources to line the pockets of those who only care about profits, to the detriment of your citizens and fragile ecosystem."

 

[WSOPFAN]

Mike,,,do try to meet Antonio. He is a nice guy.

The development is reportedly to have about 600 hotel rooms...not the 2000 or 3000 noted elsewhere. In addition, they may not develop a new runway which makes sense to me.

However, you have to wonder if people would buy homes there if the ocean is questionable for swimming.

I have read most of the articles over the years about this development and from what I remember it would be built near the large cove area up there similar to the protected cove near Chen Rio. I would think it would allow water activities but maybe someone who has been at that cove could confirm this. I think Hanan is farther north from there?? If you check a picture on Google Earth you will see a large cove area north of Mezcalitos.

 

[WSOPFAN]

If this is correct it is farther north than I remember......

Cozumel Real Estate Revisits a Tourist Super Project on the Island

The mayor of Cozumel mentioned that the east part of the island is ideal for the project with its natural beauty and attractive beaches The project would be located on the land that extends from Xpalbarco beach to the Mayan remains called The Royal Castle ( El Castillo Real ).