AmbergrisCaye.com Home Forums The Cayes Ambergris Caye Taxis over the bridge up north...

Sorry Byron your are simply wrong in your interpretation of this regardless of how your argument make seem it just is not so. I would also like to mention to everyone that if you continue to allow the illegal road to transverse your properties you will be in danger of loosing them to mandatory land acquisition law (eminent domain) in the foreseeable future. It is inevitable and beneficial for all for there to be a road up north. I have forced the road of my property, for that reason, legally, regardless of what bywarren may think or believe and you can too.
My conversations with attorney today indicated that it would not be difficult to get a Writ of Mandamus against the Town Council requiring them to adhere to the law. If they are politically so foolish that they will change the law (which they have not) without public consultation they will have to accept the consequences of that come election time next year.

I am not trying to argumentative, Mike. I am just trying to understand this issue. Some of you say there is no road, but then you say there is a law prohibiting some vehicles from driving on this road that does not exist. Then some say that it is private property and only those that you allow should be using the right away. If that is the case, then does each property owner decide who can use it? Just seems confusing to me.

It is very confusing because it is so ridiculous. It is a law that there are no vehicles allowed up north or on the beach. This was published in the Gazette in 2005 and in the newspapers recently. In fact there is no road dedicated up north. As to the immediate area of the bridge I am not sure but to the best of my knowledge that is also not a legal road. Up here I know for fact there is no road. Everyone has let golf carts and bicycles and motor bikes pass as a courtesy since the town has never gotten it together to declare the road. I had no problem myself with that. When the mayor allowed heavy trucks on the road up here it all changed and I prevented the trucks from passing and caused the "road" to be moved off my property. As a property owner you do have the right to choose who comes onto your property. Taxis and trucks change the game, you do have an absolute right to keep them or anyone for that matter off your property unless there is eminent domain and then it is not your property anymore. All the confusion comes from the way the town board has handled it. When town board give someone permission to do something that is published as being contrary to the law it confuses everyone. Now this.

Belize property law is different from the US.Easements for access are usually not a problem because they address them with subdivision permits. You can not be be approved legally to divide a property without a road access on the plan.

To clarify for you, across the bridge there is only private land, there is a road but it goes over people's private properties. The law is about nothing bigger that golf cart crossing the bridge, except for emergency and utilities vehicles. That was the condition for building the bridge.

Thanks all for the "clarification". It appears to me that it goes back to the lack of planing on the part of whatever goverment entity is responsible for that area. Common sense would dictate that if you are building, especially commercial businesses, that public access to those would be essential. It would seem unmanagable and unfair to have each individual propery owner decide who he would allow to pass.
That means when I go up to see Jan or Mike I would be trespassing and probably half of the owners, knowing me, would not want me crossing their property.

Also, my inquiring mind would ask of Amanda, Diane, Chris A, Chris B and any other real estate agent reading this: When you sell property up North, do you feel an obligation to disclose to the buyer that if they attempt to access their property by land they will be trespassing?

Has anyone actually looked at the official land documents?

For what its worth .I believe that on our plot map there is a road .I also see a public access to the beach from the road next to my naibors lot . Last winter I ran into a man that was measuring the road behind our lot . I stopped to talk to him and he pointed out the difference of where the road is to where its supposed to be. Isn't there a master plan with a road. The power poles should be on the road (right of way ).

How do citizens call for a meeting of government to explain/defend thier actions?

For what it's worth - yesterday the taxis were ALL traveling at a reasonable speed. Myabe they got the message that thier "temporary" permit would not be extended if there were too many protest.

Some one told me that the ropes in front of my Birdland had been removed. I did not put the ropes there and didn't like them. Carts would come almost to a stop and my dogs thought they were entering my property and this caused them to go crazy, Funny thing but with the ropes gone most people are driving saner. Those guys on the ATV used to tear across the ropes and have now slowed down.

We desperately need a public meeting.

"Remember a Meeting in no Substitute for Progress."