Cayman Island voters delivered a firm ¡°no¡± vote this past week in a national referendum on whether or not the Caribbean territory should construct fixed cruise ship piers.

Slightly more than two-thirds (64.5 percent) of voters (or 11,973 people) voted against the controversial plan in a public referendum that accompanied the country¡¯s April 30 general elections. Only 28.8 percent of Cayman voters, or 5,417 people, supported the pier proposal.

Plans to build cruise piers in the Cayman Islands extend back more than a decade as the destination remains one of the Caribbean¡¯s most-visited cruise ports without a fixed pier. The most recent referendum did not include a specific plan but simply asked voters if the Cayman Islands should develop cruise berthing infrastructure.

Local sustainable tourism group CPR Cayman, which campaigned against the pier proposal, said the vote sent a ¡°loud and clear¡± message.

¡°The new government has to honor the result,¡± the group said in a statement reported in the Cayman Compass. The proposal was never ¡°a top-five priority¡± for voters and was too vague, the group said.

The referendum lacked ¡°pertinent details, cost projections and failed to address the concerns the public expressed regarding the legitimate environmental, financial and socio-economic concerns,¡± said CPR Cayman officials in the Compass report.

In a Facebook post, The Association for Cruise Tourism (ACT), which lobbied for passage of the referendum and the construction of cruise ship piers in a series of public meetings, said it was ¡°unhappy¡± with the verdict, but respected voters¡¯ choice.

¡°While we are deeply disappointed by the result and concerned about the likely negative impact this will have on our sector, we remain committed to advocating for a sustainable and competitive cruise tourism industry,¡± the group said.

¡°The livelihoods of many Caymanians are tied to this vital pillar of our economy, and ACT will continue to work toward securing long-term opportunity for our people and our country,¡± they added. ACT¡¯s membership includes tour operators, retailers, restaurants, bars and transportation providers.

It now remains to be seen how the destination¡¯s cruise ship calls progress in future years. Cruise lines have increasingly been?reluctant to?transport guests to shore aboard ever-larger ships ashore via tender boats.

As a result say cruise industry figures, Cayman Islands cruise arrivals have declined sharply since 2022. Fewer than four years ago, local voters defeated a referendum to construct the country¡¯s first fixed cruise pier.

Cayman Islands voters also approved the decriminalization of personal-use amounts of cannabis and establishment of a national lottery as part of the April 30 referendum.

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