tidings
Tobago Tourism Agency Ltd Chairperson Alicia Edwards – THA
Plantation Beach Villas resort manager Sean Clarke has called for zoning to be taken more seriously in Tobago.
At last Wednesday’s tourism partner forum hosted by the Tobago Tourism Agency Ltd (TTAL), Clarke said development should not be done without environmental considerations.
“Recently I had a guest who said with all the cleanliness, green, safe, quiet, beautiful, beyond extraordinary, you come out of the airport and for the first 15 minutes of (your) journey there is not a single tree. Everything is glass, steel and concrete.”
He said he avoids visiting the western part of the island as “it’s too much of a mess and out of control for my type of tourism”.
He claimed to have spoken to Chief Secretary Farley Augustine about the matter. “He was very excited about all the rustic bamboo bars and so on.”
Clarke also discussed the state of the Fort Campbellton rum distillery.
“It needs cleaning, tidying up, some picnic benches, country grass or something – these are the things our tourist is coming for. They’re not looking for big glass and steel buildings.”
In response, TTAL Chair Alicia Edwards said there is hope for community tourism on the island, noting that one of the most successful models comes from the village of Castara.
“There is hope for community tourism – Castara has proven that, and I don’t know what it would take for other villages and areas to see that, but it’s something I definitely support.”
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She said an authentic Tobago experience is something that is not as polished as the TTAL product aims for.
“It’s important that we see the beauty of the half-gone or half-process and actually use it to contribute to what makes us authentically Tobagonian. The wooden houses – we’re not going to do toilets and so on now, but I understand for certain categories of tourists that will really make Tobagonians stand out in the local market.”
Regarding the devolution of town and country approvals, Edwards said he is aware that some discussions took place at the town and country planning level.
These discussions signaled THA’s intention to have a little more control over what was built and where it was built.”
She added: “I’m hoping that before we get to Woodbrook (the scene) and other places where housing has been forcibly commercialized and all that, that we actually get some decent zoning laws in Tobago.”
