(CMR) Vendors on Seven Mile Public Beach were issued cease-and-desist orders during a raid by officers last week and warned they could be arrested and their wares confiscated and destroyed if they failed to comply.
Alcohol being sold illegally was seized when the police, along with the Department of Commerce and Investment, WORC, and Customs and Border Control, raided the beach.
The raid comes after numerous complaints about illegal drugs and alcohol being sold on the beach and after Premier Panton promised last year that something had to be done to address the situation at the beach.
Following an inquiry from CMR last month, the Public Lands Commission (PLC) said since it was formed in 2017, only one approval to vend from Old Man Bay Parking Lot has been approved. This means vendors on the beach do not have the authorization to operate.
The Commission said it received approximately 10 applications before 2022; however, none were approved. Fifty-four (54) vendor applications were received for the period January 2022 to January 10, 2023, the cut-off period for applications to vend from Seven Mile Public Beach (SMPB). However, to date, only the Old Man Bay application was approved by the Board as the PLC is awaiting Cabinet’s approval of the Seven Mile Public Beach Park Vending Policy prior to processing vendor applications for Seven Mile Public Beach.
Earlier this year, Chief Inspector Winsome Prendergast said, “We are aware that there are some pre-approved persons who have pending applications or have conditional approval based on having a valid trade and business license. These vendors are to operate ONLY from the designated kiosks at the Seven Mile Public Beach.”
The Public Lands Commission was established in 2017 by the Public Lands Act (2017). The mandate of the PLC includes regulating the use and enjoyment of public land and protecting the right of access to public land. This includes registered and unregistered public rights of way to the beach/shoreline and enforcement of public rights of way over private land.
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