Vexed Bermoothes

With the approval of the goliath “business condo” complex on Reid Street, twelve special development orders (SDOs) have been granted since 2003.

Look we all know that the Planning code and process are inadequate. But in 2003, the PLP had already been in power for 5 years. Now after 10 years, it’s still broken!

I understand that SDOs are good in some circumstances – but there be must be a process to explain why a project may deviate from the Planning code for the good of the country. We’ve not only had a flood of SDOs, but there are rarely any explanations or enforced restrictions on them.

Meanwhile, Government has floated a trial balloon that they want to halt all other development on the island for 6 months until the Planning code can be updated!

In other words, Government will restrict the rights of normal Bermudians to build, but give a bypass to large developers building condos for business users and international real estate investors. That’s not fair.

In the end, many of these large projects should probably occur. But there has to be a “Plan for Planning” and it has to be evenly and transparently enforced.

Planning exists to protect the rights of Bermudians as well as create a framework for development. If the largest and most impactive developments all bypass the system using SDO’s, then the Bermudian public have been unfairly silenced and a mockery made of the system.