MARIGOT--Tropical Wave Restaurant at Le Galion, for decades a popular venue for beach-goers and water-sports enthusiasts, faces eviction and destruction of the premises after a recent court ruling allowed Conservatoire du Littoral to expropriate land on three parcels formerly owned by SCI Le Galion.

 

The ruling paved the way for Conservatoire to buy the land on August 19, 2014.

 

Chargé de Mission for the Conservatoire, Olivier Raynaud who is currently on island confirmed to The Daily Herald that Tropical Wave and its proprietor Patrick Turner will have four months' notice to leave.

 

Turner has said he has received no formal documents so far to this effect and maintains Tropical Wave is not part of SCI Le Galion.

 

"Conservatoire's vision is to reclaim the land for its ecological importance, to restore it to a more genuine green environment," said Raynaud. "This will entail destroying the old hotel buildings and Tropical Wave, and re-organising the whole area for traffic circulation and parking."

 

He added a building at Babit Point, Oyster Pond, also has to be taken down with the old hotel building at Le Galion, and much asbestos has to be removed in April and May 2015, and destruction of the buildings shortly afterwards.

He agreed the decision to remove Turner was "hard" after so many years, but said he would have to leave anyway because he would not be able to use the hotel building any longer as storage for his generator and other items.

 

According to Raynaud the plan is for the Conservatoire to construct some type of food and beverage snack bar situated a way back from the beach in the future, and an open bidding launched for someone to run it. "Turner with his experience and knowledge would have a very good chance of winning that bid."

With regard to other nearby businesses, namely the Butterfly Farm, Bayside Riding Stables and Dogman (kennels), Raynaud said these "do not pose a problem for now" but will eventually have to meet certain criteria. "Talks are ongoing and they will most likely have to move back onto private land," he said.

Turner said he has refrained from reacting fully until he receives official notice from the Conservatoire. "Is that just and fair after 38 years?" he said in disgust about the snack bar idea. "My lawyer is arriving and we are going to review all my papers and licences. I'm up to date with all my taxes and social charges. How on the one hand can you give authorisation to be in business one day and have employees, and in the next breath take it all away?

 

"This is an incredible injustice, a travesty of justice that someone can work 38 years of their life here, put their heart and soul into this beach, have children born here, survive being caught in the crossfire of a shooting, and to find it is all going to be taken away. There needs to be compassion and justice."

 

The Daily Herald