A former tourism minister has urged caution as the government plans to move the historic Holetown Civic Centre for tourism development, highlighting tensions between progress and preservation in the island’s oldest settlement.
Richard Sealy suggested the need to balance progress with heritage preservation.
“Holetown is a historic district. It’s where the first settlers landed. And I would sincerely hope that whatever development is planned for the area would be sensitive to that reality,” Sealy said in an interview with Barbados TODAY.
He clarified that he is not opposed to progress but stressed that heritage must remain a priority.
“I am not against development,” he said. “I spent a career promoting tourism development. But whatever decisions are taken, I think we must still be sensitive to our heritage always.”
Acknowledging the critical role of collaboration in national advancement, Sealy added: “The only way this country is going to develop is with the government and private sector working jointly. And so we have to decide how we are going to manage that reality going forward.”
The tourism minister during the eight years of the Freundel Stuart administration shared a desire for more details regarding the proposed plans for the new civic centre, noting the importance of transparency and inclusivity in such projects.
Sealy said: “I would certainly, like I think most Barbadians, want to see some specifics in terms of the proposed civiccCentre and we can make [further] comments at that stage.”
While remaining open to the potential benefits of a modern facility, he also noted the need to ensure that development serves the community rather than private interests.
“I mean, if I understand, it’s going to be something that’s larger, more impressive, perhaps able to serve that community and by extension Barbados in a more effective way, then I am not going to just oppose it for the sake of opposing it,” he said.
But he cautioned against any plans that prioritise profit over public good: “If we are just taking up land and putting it in the hands of an oligarch, a profiteer, then I think obviously we will have to raise some alarms.”
(SM)
The post Sealy calls for caution in Holetown development plans appeared first on Barbados Today.
