The management of Landmark Africa has stated that discussions are underway with both the Federal and Lagos State governments to prevent the proposed demolition of some portions of Landmark Beach Resort.
The CEO of Landmark Beach Resort, Paul Onwuanibe, conveyed the statement through his X handle, addressing concerns raised by Nigerians regarding the demolition notice served to the resort in relation to the construction of the 700km Lagos-Calabar coastal highway.
Naija News reports that the Lagos State Government recently issued a seven-day notice to the CEO of the Landmark Group, indicating its intention to demolish a section of the Beach Resort to facilitate the construction of the coastal highway.
The Lagos State Government identified sections of the property earmarked for demolition to accommodate the road, including the Beach Resort, Kids and Bay Arena, Members Area, and Lagos Beach Club.
The Lagos State Government clarified that the areas housing the facilities are situated within the Right of Way of the proposed Coastal Highway project by a distance of 50 meters.
However, amidst concerns and controversies surrounding the planned demolition, Onwuanibe stated on his X handle on Saturday that his management is engaged in discussions with federal and state government agencies to prevent the demolition of the Resort for the road project.
He also mentioned that one of the options under consideration is rerouting the initial 1.5 km out of the 700 km stretch of the road to its original location along the undeveloped Water Corporation Road median.
Onwuanibe statement read: “I wish to confirm that we are in active talks with various arms of the federal and state government including the Lagos State Government, the Federal and State Ministries of Tourism, and the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing as well as several interest groups and have received firm assurances that there will be no disruptions to business while we work to agree win-win solutions including rerouting the first 1.5 km out of the 700km stretch of the Road to its original location along the undeveloped Water Corporation Road median.
“We believe that with careful collaboration and consultation, a small number of other minor reroutes may be required to sustain the existing socioeconomic activity along the course of this Road.
“I believe the Coastal Road is a commendable project by the government which will significantly boost the economy, and engaged consultations (as are ongoing) will help determine ways of developing the Road while preserving the Landmark Group ecosystem businesses that are remitting billions of Naira in taxes annually while employing thousands of Nigerians.
“These over 80 diverse businesses (over half of which are SMEs) operate from a worldclass integrated location along the Water Corporation Road and in synergy, provide a variety of corporate, leisure, hospitality and tourism services to the over 3 million local and international visitors who come our ecosystem yearly. We are in conjunction spotlighting Lagos as a viable tourism destination on the global stage and our location is arguably the most visited waterfront destination on the West African coast: OWNED BY NIGERIANS, FOR NIGERIANS, AND IN NIGERIA.
“The Landmark Group began its corporate life in Europe in 1998 but pivoted to Africa in 2003 with debut operations in Lagos, Nigeria. We have invested over US$100 million in the last 20 years in this economy because of our deep faith in the possibilities of this country and have consistently proven that Nigerians working together, irrespective of tribe or creed, are capable of delivering worldclass leisure, hospitality and tourism service to millions of Nigerians, the diaspora and foreigners alike.
“Our success story would not have been possible without some government support and particularly that of the Lagos State Government. I take due note of the concerns of our over 3m ecosystem visitors and customers and I’m confident that a solution which sees to the development of the Road while preserving a proudly Nigerian business can be achieved.Thank You all for your support.”
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