A court has ordered the immediate closure of Jack’s Walk for seven days.
The matter appeared in court earlier this week after a group of Dominicans recently filed and obtained a court injunction to stop work at the site which is located in the Botanical Gardens.
The group said the use of “concrete steps” in the works will remove the “natural beauty” people once experienced years ago in hiking Jack’s Walk and will be dangerous for those who use it.
“All persons traversing the said trail do so at their own risk,” a release from the Ministry of Tourism and Urban Renewal said. “The Ministry of Tourism & Urban Renewal and the Forestry, Parks, and Wildlife Division of theMinistry of Agriculture and Fisheries therefore advise the general public that Jack’s Walk is closed to ALL users until further notice. We regret any inconvenience caused to the users of the trail and look forward to the resolution of this matter in the interest of all current and future users
of the trail.”
The project at Jack’s Walk costs around EC$65,000.00 and was under the supervision of the Wildlife and Parks Division.
The matter has generated much debate on social media. Some people opined that the use of the concrete steps does not fit in well with the natural ambiance of Jack’s Walk, while others think the court action has to do with people who do not want to see progress and development.
Others believe that public consensus should have been sought before the project was undertaken.
The matter is between a group of Dominicans and Tourism Minister Robert Tonge and Attorney General Levi Peter.
It will be heard in court again soon.
I want to kmow about the 3.5 milliom Dollars from the swiss
The 3.5 million dollars the UWP got on the promise of Diplomatic passports is a more important topic for National discussion than Jacks Walk. We want to know who this money went to. UWP kicking dust over Government giving Dominicans money to improve themselves. How much of that 3.5 million has the UWP given to its poor supporters. All of a sudden allu not saying nothing not even talking about sueing?. Stop giving other people the garbagge allu carrying.
No cement steps.nature island . Natural
agree
I believe the concrete steps will make the path more dangerous in the long run.
Would you consider 35 steps dangerous? How many times have you been on Jack’s Walk to make thhat coclusion. Hope you donot use concrete when you build. I recommend strws to you.
Jack’s walk has always been a trail going up to the Morne Bruce area, it was like a little adventure going to the Morne via Jack’s walk it was intended to be so, what should have been done is kind of widen the trail; don’t forget not too far around the area there is a set of concrete steps, we called 35 steps, so no big deal.
Keep the trail. Remove the concrete from the trail. Do you guys know the thousands of tourists who enjoyed going to see the Cross and used the trail of Jack’s walk? No you do not you were not born yet and some of you would never go to the Gardens by yourselves, you never played in there, maybe you were not city kids who loved the Gardens, so leave the trail remove the concrete. You have destroyed the natural beauty of the Gardens in the name of development. Find a way to put the Jack’s walk trail natural again.
You donot go to Jacks Walk. How do I know this? There is alrerady concrete on the trail. Though not extensive but it is there. I guess for the same reason the west coast road should have been left as a dirt road from Colihaut to Coulibistrie. Growing up this was dirt road. Remove the ashphalt and put back the dirt road. So you see how foolish your idea is?
I see no reason in the stopping of concrete steps .Do your know how difficult it is to climb muddy steps..Progress is what we need.The enhancement comes with building better.
Instead of concrete I recommend stone steps. That will give it a colonial era look.
Concrete in Paradise? Yes, where and if necessary…used safely, tastefully, in keeping with natural, historical, and sustainability stuff.
Concrete in Paradise? Why not make the forbidden fruit in the garden of plastic whilst we are at it? That is progress, after all.
What is wrong with having a concrete step. We cannot stop development in the name of preservation. Should we also keep pit toilets? Let us not take this joke too far. If you want to object on the grounds that they are dangerous or not attractive I may listen, but do not come with rubbish just because you are enemies of progress.
Did you read the article?
Yes, and in the name of “progress” and not “preservation”, the Italians should tear down the Coliseum and put up a parking lot!!!
Now it hit me. Cries were made to house the vagrants and nothing was done. Now vagrants are being murdered. Wow wow whats going on
Don’t worry June. Soon it will be July.
Now it hit me. Cries were made to house the vagrants on the streets and nothing has been done. So whats going on. Now they are being killed. Hmmmm
The judge and others complaining get off your behind and go take a walk and see for yourselves why tourist complain of the danger. You want to wait when a tourist or our very own gets hurt and then come and say alas. I went there in 2006 and i promise myself i will never go back until the road is n better conditon. Safety is priority here.
Does the right hand know what the left hand is doing?
Some years ago it was announced that this “back road” in the photo was to be the route of a new highway by-pass connecting Elmshall Road to Newtown thus clearing the main Botanic Gardens of traffic and creating a by-pass around the back of central Roseau.
Now I see that the new concrete steps are intruding into the proposed roadway. Where is physical planning in all of this?
Calm down everyone? Before starting such a project with potentially great environmental impact, an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and a Sustainability Appraisal (SA) should have been completed by the Ministry of Tourism, at the very least! Consultation with the Forestry and Wildlife division should have been held, at the very least! And I would have also consulted the public and the hiking groups who frequently make use of the path. There is a correct way and a wrong way to do everything!
Oh, look my friend just told me, and then there is the Dominican way, whatever this means…
use the 65k to light up the gardens instead.its the botanical gardens for Gods sake. the mayor needs to intervene. closing gardens gates is pure nonsense. here’s an idea: so many SOLAR lights available now., get some and light up the gardens. breezes mart use to light up their yard trees during christmas time and it was such a beautiful sight. imagine seeing the trees in the gardens lighted up at nights.beautiful beautiful beautiful. money better spent than concreting the “trail” of the jacks walks.
It is a botanical garden not a bloody funfair, for God’s sake.
I think your 2 cents is worth quite a bit; value is high.
What currency is it may I ask?
First of all am not against the step,but if it was done properly,where is the retaining wall to keep the steps stable,and also could have been built out of stones to keep the natural look.This so call administration thinks this is North Korea and the people must bow to whatever they do or say.
There were lessons to be learned after Erika, and we cannot sit back and wait for Jessica. Prevention is sometimes better than cure. If we did learn something from Erika, we have to be prepared for Jessica. In the interest and safety of all concerned, the project should be allowed with work in progress forthwith.
The lesson to be learnt is to carefully consider all possibilities beforehand. All too often projects are begun without public knowledge or consultation.
Once put down concrete is very hard to break up and all too often becomes fait accompli. However, this should not be a deciding factor, especially in this instance.
“All too often projects are begun without public knowledge or consultation.”
Ha! This is chicken feed. Wait for the forthcoming International Airport drama. It is being developed in top secret. Helicopters and small two engine planes criss crossing over Woodford Hill already. Land and homes to be purchased in Woodford Hill for millions $$$ but nobody knows yet if their’s is on the list to go. $2.5 million recently approved by parliament for “further study”. Before anyone knows, it will be a ‘fait acompli’. Wait and see!
They must also put an injunction to stop the park being used as a parking lot and rat race for through traffic.. Please, reinstate the park and make it a botanic garden again for all to enjoy as was originally intended..
In my opinion, it should be OK to drive through but only at 15-20 mph maximum. People are going to fast through it.
When people arrive in buses, I’ve noticed they don’t pay a lot of attention to their whereabouts and could easily get run down by a motor car.
No, it is not. For a start it is not a public highway. Traffic that wants to bypass town can do so, using existing roads: south via Independence Street and north via either Hanover Street or Gt.George Street.
Less convenient perhaps but better for the preservation and health of the Botanical Gardens.
Having said that I would welcome a purpose-built bypass.
No one paves paradise. This is stupid and a complete waste of XCD$65K.
How can you put concrete steps on a nature path???ridiculous… at least use natrual stone in keeping with nature!where do they get these ideas from?
This judge is setting a very dangerous precedence if this foolishness is allowed to succeed in court. There is certainly no legal basis for this injunction and I would be very surprised if a more stable-minded appeals judge doesn’t throw this baseless matter out at first sight
What is the foolishness of which you speak? Have you ever seen streets in Rome, Greece, Italy? Do you see how they put alot of emphasis to protect what is historical, culture & heritage? Many of the city streets are 100% stone built, done centuries ago They couldn’t careless about the excuses of bouncing up and down of an ambulance or the inconvenience. They believe in protecting what was built by their ancestors so their future generation & visitors can learn, experience and appreciate. We need to protect what is ours my friend. We should only alter or change our natural environment as a last resort and not because a few weak minded people make a decision without consultation. I am even surprise that the Forestry, Parks, and Wildlife Division did not stand against this madness. A division with no back bone it seems.
The phrase “educated fool” just came to my mind!!