Cruise Ships & Passengers in time for Christmas

#TurksandCaicos, October 22, 2021 – Grand Turk residents will very soon begin to notice ships in port.  These ships will not be laden with the typical happy-go-lucky, tour-taking, souvenir-buying and lunch-eating cruise passengers but instead gritty get-down-to-work dredgers who are now hired to clear the path for cruise ships to return to the island.  It has been 18-months since a cruise ship has docked in the Capital of the Turks and Caicos Islands ad a Development Agreement signed on October 13 will end the drought in time for Christmas according to Washington Misick, Turks and Caicos Premier.

“The Turks and Caicos Islands Government signed an amendment to a contract with Carnival. Because we have had a contract, since 2006, with Carnival.  WE have had 11 meetings in person and over the internet since May of this year to get to where we go to.  We now have an agreement which we intend to consolidate at some stage, shortly.  That agreement sees and extra $25 million in the Grand Turk Crusie Center and that includes expansion of the current facility, including the dock facility.”

The new Development Agreement went unexplained prior to and during the signing ceremony.  There was criticism for the PNP Administration for missing the opportunity to inform residents of the contents of the document and what benefits there were, more specifically, for the Turks and Caicos.

The new agreement was characterized as “superior” and outlines a sizable investment from CarnivalCorp to elongate the dock and from it, the TCI Government gains some autonomy.

“…a Community Enhancement and Sustainability Fund for Grand Turk to make sure that we can protect the environment, we can investment money into the urban redevelopment of historic districts, we can improve what I will call the down town, because what we will have to do is almost to enhance and create a down town.  This money will now be available to those who are driving this fund and the decisions will be made by those Trustees.  Carnival (Cruise Line) will now have no input or control over how that is spent or any decision making relating to it; to me that is a huge step forward,” said the Premier in a press conference designed to expound on the Agreement.

The Turks and Caicos Islands will finance the projects of the new Fund from its portion of an increased passenger fee of $16 per person; at least $9 of the fee will belong to the Turks and Caicos, the balance is for Carnival.

“The government will receive the majority of that …” explained the Premier as he announced the new Community Enhancement and Sustainability Fund will not suffer from the complexities of the previous Infrastructure Development Fund.

Decisions, action and spending can be more promptly executed in order to improve the aesthetics of the island which has struggled to rebound to its grandeur since Hurricane Ike of September 2008; damages and destruction was compounded in 2017’s hurricanes Irma and Maria.

“The dredging is a substantial part of the work and ships cannot arrive when that is happening.  The dredging is on its way and it will take about three weeks to complete.  Once the dredging is completed the ships can start coming in.  And the rest of the work can take place while the ships are coming in.

We expect to welcome cruise passengers as early as the first week of December 2021.”

The Premier said the cruise industry of Grand Turk is responsible for 30 per cent of employment in the capital of the Turks and Caicos Islands.