Proposed Marriott-branded hotel at Goedverwagting doesn’t require impact survey

With no environmental impact assessment needed, Trinuyana Investments Incorporated, the developer of another Marriott-branded Hotel is now required to submit an Environmental Management Plan to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

In a notice published in the Guyana Chronicle, the EPA stated that the developers of the management plan will have to indicate how they intend to address specific issues that can have a negative impact on the environment.

In a one-page project summary (accessible on the EPA’s website) the proposed hotel is to be sited at Goedverwagting, East Coast Demerara, approximately 2.5 km south of the Atlantic Ocean and approximately 0.5 km east of the Ogle Airport (the site was formerly a sugarcane plantation and consists of 2.61 acres of undeveloped land and relatively flat). The land is covered by moderate vegetation. It is bordered by a Ministry of the Presidency facility (a former Guyana Sugar Corporation GuySuCo facility) to the south, a drainage canal to the west and other former sugar-cane plantations to its north and east. It was announced during the sod-turning ceremony that the construction of the hotel is pegged at US$75M and that Trinidad and Tobago’s businessman, John Aboud of Amalgamated Security Services Limited, is the investor.

In their project summary, the developers stated that the hotel will be five stories tall covering an area approximately 11760 square feet and will house 150 rooms. The hotel will include amenities such as a fitness room, lounge, library, salon, meeting room and a reception area. A commercial complex is also proposed. There will be a courtyard to the front of the building serving as the entry and exit to the hotel while east of the courtyard there will be an outdoor area. The facility will be equipped with paved parking lots (catering for 114 vehicles), driving

John Aboud aisles with a drop off and roundabout in front of the courtyard. Site roads are planned to the north of the hotel. The summary stated that a service road will be constructed to the west and southern peripheries of the site. Also planned are a new access road constructed to access the hotel when it becomes operational, a new bridge north of the access road constructed over an existing canal which will also provide access to the hotel. Further, the developers said that parts of the project’s land space will be upgraded to accommodate new plants for the facility’s enhancement.

Once the project comes on stream, 400 persons will gain employment during the construction phase with a further 200 persons to be employed. “…Trinuyana Investments Incorporated (will target) business travellers to Guyana, especially those linked to Guyana’s nascent ‘Oil and Gas’ sector and the creation of ExxonMobil (Guyana) Headquarters,” the statement said. Aboud’s investment underlines the expanding Trinidadian interest in Guyana’s oil and gas economy. The National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL) days before the 2020 Regional and General elections announced the deal after lengthy negotiations. The FiveStar hotel, according to Aboud, will serve as a complement to the current Marriott Hotel, which is located in Kingston, helping to further boost tourism here. “After visiting here a few times and seeing the numerous opportunities that exist, I decided to invest in buying some land as I see that there is a need for such investment to further propel Guyana’s tourism,” Aboud said at the announcement of the project.

Trinuyana is among three other companies that will not require EIA’s for their facilities. Those companies are ARS Enterprise that is preparing to construct an apartment building at Providence, East Bank Demerara, Rodrick Melville Wildlife Holding Facility to be located at tract TL, Northern Side, Laluni Road, and Kumari Bowan who is also preparing to operate a wildlife Holding Facility at Yarrowkabra, Linden-Soesdyke Highway.

According to the EPA, it has screened each project’s proposals and determined that these will not “significantly affect the environment. The proposed projects are therefore exempt from the conduct of an EIA…” Notwithstanding, the EPA said any person who is likely to be affected by proposed projects can lodge an appeal against the agency’s decisions within 30 days period of the notice.