The Secret Fight for Hangar, and Why Every Belizean Should Care

Something big is happening behind those barricades at Hangar and it’s not just about noise complaints or loitering. Over the weekend, the Belize City Council quietly removed the massive concrete planters that had blocked off one of Belize City’s most popular hangout spots for two months. No press release. No explanation. Just gone, days before a court hearing that could have forced the Council to answer some tough questions.

But what’s really going on?

Documents obtained by News Five, including land records, receipts, and court filings, point to a deeper, more troubling story: what is being described by some residents as a covert plan to hand over publicly used seafront land to private owners.

Yes, the same coastline where fishers launch their boats and families gather on Sunday afternoons could soon be gone. Replaced by fences, gates, and “Private Property” signs.

According to land documents, a provisional subdivision approval was quietly granted back in August 2024 for parcels along that very stretch of coastline. The listed clients? Prominent names, businesspeople and insiders with deep pockets. The same area where the City Council suddenly blocked vehicle access just months later, claiming it was all about “crime prevention.”

Really? Or was that barricade step one in a quiet move to decommission the public road, turning what belongs to every Belizean into prime real estate for the few?

When the barricades went up in August, Deputy Mayor Eluide Miller said it was about keeping residents safe and improving quality of life. He pointed to a 2022 petition signed by thirty residents complaining about loud music, drinking, weed smoking, and discarded condoms. But here’s the thing: that petition sat untouched for two years and only resurfaced right when the Council needed a justification to block off the road.

Not everyone bought it.

Rommel Berges, a resident who lives nearby, said he was never consulted and has since taken the Council to court. His complaint? That the Council unlawfully restricted access to a public road used for years by locals. Berges says the move blocked garbage trucks, cut off fire department access to the sea, and made it harder for police to patrol the area. The High Court agreed to hear his case, but just days before that hearing, the barricades disappeared. Coincidence? Or a calculated retreat before the judge could weigh in?

Still, the bigger question remains: why was the Council so eager to fence off one of the city’s last public seafronts? And why do land documents now show plans to slice up and sell pieces of it to private interests?