San Fernando Hill is for everyone

EVEN while San Fernando West MP Diane Seukeran has publicly given her approval for the implementing of a visitor fee for the landmark San Fernando Hill, San Fernando Mayor Gerard Ferreira is sticking to his guns and insisting that the fee did not make sense since the Hill was not a “private sector” concern but belongs to the people. Ferreira drew reference to the Queen’s Park Savannah, which he said takes more money than the San Fernando Hills to maintain yet there was no user fee for the Savannah. He also told Newsday of his intention to speak to Prime Minister Patrick Manning and Public Utilities Minister Rennie Dumas on the controversial issue. Meanwhile, Dumas confirmed that the fee would be imposed on persons wishing to tour the National Heritage site but could not give the timeframe before the fee goes into effect. Speaking to Newsday yesterday, Minister Dumas sought to justify the user fee system saying, “There must be a shift in the way we treat our natural reserves. The maintenance of these facilities is costly.”

He said the main argument for the fee was because “there was neglect in caring and maintaining the Hills.” As a result, the proposed visitor’s fee would be used to rehabilitate, maintain and manage the National Park site. The San Fernando Hill, Minister Dumas said, is a “Government facility.” The Minister went on to say that the public would have to see and understand the context in which the recommendations for a visitor’s fee are being made and the role these recommendations play. The Minister said he thought the decision would be understood and accepted by the wider public since the aim was to make the landmark a location of “safety and comfort.” The Minister then asked, “Have you gone anywhere in the world and walked into a park without a user fee?” However, he could not say when the fee system would be activated.