Eco Statia NV is a company that was established on Sint Eustatius in 2010 with the intend to start a hospitality business on the island to help bring more tourism to this wonderful hidden Caribbean gem. In 2014, the building permit was issued, without any specific restrictions or warnings about the cliff.
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In May of 2017 the first establishment to open its doors was the restaurant Harbourclub Statia.
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In April of 2018, with some delay due to hurricanes Irma and Maria in September 2017, the first building of the Orange Bay Hotel opened its doors.
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In March of 2019, the first of several planned cabanas was added to the hotel accommodation.
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In November 2019, the First Salute Lounge celebrated its pre-opening because it was nearing completion.
Pictures of the Eco Statia NV businesses when they were still in operation
Cliff erosion
Since opening the doors of their hospitality businesses at the bay, Eco Statia NV has tried to point the attention of the public entity of Sint Eustatius towards several hazardous situations surrounding their property and jeopardizing their businesses: also the erosion problem.
Their numerous attempts to convince the government to take action were unsuccessful. There seemed to be no interest nor any sense of urgency about the matter on the government side.
Risk analyses and cliff stabilization
There have been 5 different reports between 2017 and 2020, written by experts investigating the cliff, that stated the dangers of the areas and the need for immediate action. These were not taken seriously by the government and even hidden from public and stakeholders.
Click here for a document that Eco Statia NV drew up summarizing the findings of the different reports and a chronological list of events relevant for Eco Statia NV's legal plea (in Dutch).
Only to protect Fort Oranje, the company AcrobatX was hired to stabilize the cliff underneath in February 2019. Despite the concerns and questions Eco Statia NV voiced again, the government refused to explain why the rest of the cliff at the bay was not going to be reinforced.
Rock falling incidents
Both the hotel and restaurant were fully and successfully up and running when, on December 5th 2019, a big boulder rolled off the cliff damaging one of the hotel balconies in the back. Luckily no one was hurt. For obvious safety reasons, the hotel was not able to accommodate guests there anymore.
Over the years there have been numerous incidents in Lower Town with falling rocks and boulders, also at the Stuco plant by the harbour when a falling boulder causes an island wide power outage. Citizens (also Alida Francis, current government commissioner) have been voicing their concerns about the roaming goats and erosion problems via social media for years.
Building permit revoked
After the local lock downs due to the Covid19 pandemic, when hotels and restaurants were allowed to reopen, Eco Statia NV could not resume operations because of the proven unsafe cliff situation.
Eco Statia NV could also not continue with the rest of their building plans, when in February 2020, the public entity revoked Eco Statia's building permit. The First Salute Lounge that was nearing completion but has therefore never been finished.
Civil lawsuit
In May of 2021 Eco Statia NV felt forced to take legal action against the public entity of St Eustatius for neglecting their responsibility to take any action in protecting properties in Lower Town against the risks of the unsafe cliff. And for withholding important information, published in several reports by experts, about the dangers of the effects of erosion. They are demanding immediate safety measures to be taken and their loss of business income to be reimbursed.
On December 6th 2022, several of Eco Statia's demands were granted, and the public entity was ordered by Court to put safety measures in place within 3 months. The public entity appealed this verdict, a process during which Eco Statia NV can not resume operations.
On May 5th 2023 the Court ruled again in a preliminary injunction that the public entity must take adequate measures and pay Eco Statia NV a daily penalty of $1000 for every day they do not comply.
The outcome of this case will not only effect Eco Statia NV, but all properties at the top and the foot of the cliff. Hopefully it will lead to a safer situation for everyone on Sint Eustatius.
Read more about the current status of the civil lawsuit.
On the 'In the media' page you can find an overview of related news articles.
