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(CNS): The Cayman Islands government has refused to release a report it conducted into the country’s dire housing problems, which would have helped formulate new policies and provided some insights into addressing this pressing issue. The shortage of affordable housing for Caymanians and expatriate workers to buy or rent has reached a crisis point and is affecting the economy and society on many levels.
However, despite the UPM government making this a priority, no significant progress has been made in addressing the problem.
As the Cayman Islands continues to overdevelop high-end real estate, a series of problems have made it impossible for young people in the Cayman Islands to buy property and even middle-income workers to rent suitable accommodation.
Speaking in Parliament last month about initiatives to encourage private sector developers to build affordable housing, Housing Minister Jay Ebanks told his colleagues his department remains committed to developing Cayman’s first public and affordable housing policy and 10-year strategic plan.
“The initiatives under this policy and program are designed to address issues such as how to incentivize the private sector to build affordable housing,” he said in response to a question from Opposition Leader Roy McTaggart. “The policy and program is expected to be completed by the end of this year … Cabinet has approved a new, modernized government mortgage guarantee program.
“The scheme adopts the latest standards that are consistent with the current housing market because it is extremely difficult, dare I say impossible, for Caymanians to purchase a home for CI$200,000 or less,” the minister said, referring to the maximum purchase price of a property under the original Government Guaranteed Housing Assistance Mortgage (GGHAM) scheme.
Ebanks said discussions were ongoing with financial institutions and that the Treasury Department planned to launch the program by the end of the year. But he did not mention the status of the task force report, its findings or progress on broader policies. Consultant from the UK They were hired last year to help develop the policy, or it was the result of a public survey they conducted earlier this year.
Some time ago, CNS submitted some questions to the Ministry and requested a report from the Ministry’s working group. Cross-departmental representatives But the officials refused to respond and instructed us to file askThe document was submitted to the Cabinet Office which holds the document.
After violating the law and extending the response time far beyond the deadline stipulated in the legislation, the office refused to release the report. Although CNS has appealed this refusal, we expect that it will take some time for the report to be released.
According to the rejection letter received by CNS, Cabinet Secretary Sam Ross said the document was rejected because, among other things, it was “an exploratory exercise designed to identify areas for further review, study or action to assist Cabinet’s deliberative process” regarding the country’s housing needs.
Although the government is said to still be considering high-rise affordable housing developments, the only high-rise developments currently approved are luxury or hotel accommodation.
The housing shortage is caused by a number of factors, including the country’s outdated planning legislation and the government’s failure to address public transport issues. This was recently exemplified by the rejection of Legoland Properties’ application to build a 10-storey apartment building on Boilers Road in Georgetown. Authorities rejected the 189-bed project because it would increase traffic on the narrow and heavily trafficked road.
The block will have over 250 parking spaces. As there are no amenities in the building itself and the area has poor amenities, residents will be forced to drive frequently not only for work but also for all their needs, which will affect the already congested surrounding areas such as Walkers Road and Seafarers Way.
While the apartments were not designed as affordable housing, the sheer number of them may have contributed to Georgetown’s acute housing problem. The capital’s growing population of workers, both rich and poor, lacks affordable and suitable housing, which affects employee recruitment and retention.
It has also contributed to the formation of slums as landlords continue to increase the number of people renting out individual homes, in violation of various laws, putting pressure on everything from garbage generation to parking.
As the next general election, expected to be held in April next year, draws closer, the United Muslim League has failed to make any notable progress in any of the areas it promised to address. There has been little progress on public transport improvements, immigration reform remains stagnant, and the end of the ReGen project has left the country’s growing garbage pile untouched.
It is clear that the housing problem is unlikely to be solved now, and the public remains in the dark about the scale of the problem.
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