The Tribune

By YOURI KEMP

Tribune Business Reporter

ykemp@tribunemedia.net

DOWNTOWN Nassau stakeholders yesterday backed the creation of a statutory body to manage the city’s transformation while urging the Government to respect private property rights.

Vernal Major, chief executive of the Equinox Group of Companies, which owns the Equinox Business Centre, Xscape Lounge & Nightclub and the Climax Lounge, told Tribune Business he was forced to switch from being a nightclub to a co-working centre to remain in business and keep staff employed at the height of COVID-19 lockdowns.

He maintained this model until pandemic-related restrictions were relaxed such that nightclubs could re-open, but swiftly realised that operating a standard 9am to 5pm business downtown has its challenges.

One of the major problems was insufficient parking spaces, and Mr Major said he is becoming “annoyed” with patrons’ vehicles being towed from various open spaces around his business.

Representatives from the Government met with downtown Nassau stakeholders to discuss plans for the redevelopment of Bay Street and the surrounding areas on Tuesday. Among the topics discussed was the creation of a statutory government body to manage the city of Nassau’s overhaul.

Mr Major said: “I think it is the duty of the Government to manage the affairs of downtown. However, the bottom line still remains; you have to be a little more understanding with how the laws work.

“If you have land as an owner, and you have certain rights, that has to be subject to developments that are taking place. You know there is really no law that speaks against these things.

“You will find yourself as a government wanting to do this and that but, at the end of the day, that's private property. So you could sit down behind your desk and think about all these grandiose things, but until the law changes, you’re just wasting your time.”

Marcian Sawyer, owner/ operator of the Crew Pub, added: “I've always said that I think that the downtown areas should be its own constituency, simply because a lot of other businesses down here are just getting brushed under and bullied into other constituencies that are more residential base.

“And I think residential and business should operate separately at all times because there are different bye-laws that govern each of them.”

Having a statutory body to manage the downtown area would be welcome if it was run properly, said Mr Sawyer. “When you visit a US coastal state like Savannah, Georgia, and you want to open up a t-shirt shop, you have to go to the mayor of the town and put in a request for approval,” he added.

This, Mr Sawyer said, would stop all the duplicate stores in downtown Nassau that are each selling the same thing with very little differentiation between them.

He also feels as there are not enough garbage receptacles in open spaces for people to dispose of their trash. “If you look at some of the places over in the bazaars and places like that, they have to use like communal garbage systems and stuff like that, where it's kind of hard because there really is not a good waste receptacle organisation that's consistent and clean for the downtown area,” he said.

“The Downtown Nassau Partnership has been around for over 10 years now. I joined the board about eight years ago, and I showed up for one meeting that never happened, and I wrote them off in the back of my head.

“But that was a private organisation and they really didn’t have any power to do anything. The Government still had the authority to get everything done. So you can’t just create an organisation and not give it the power to do anything. So I think a statutory board for downtown would be beneficial. The question is: Will it be run properly? It’s just a matter of how it will be run.”