New Ambergris Airport: Where’s the Consultation?
Tonight, plans for an international airport in northern Ambergris Caye are raising hard questions. Documents reviewed by News Five suggest the project is already moving through international financing and consultancy stages, with construction targeted to begin as early as 2027. Government officials say any move away from the John Greif II Airport would be carefully managed. San Pedro stakeholders say talks with the community have been limited and far from sufficient. Residents also want a closer look at a major roadway being developed in the north of the island. News Five’s Paul Lopez reports.
Paul Lopez, Reporting
The government is trying to ease concerns on Ambergris Caye over the eventual closure of the John Greif II Airport. Residents say those concerns have grown over the last two weeks and are widely shared on the island.
Jennise Staine
Jennise Staine, Executive Chef, Elvi’s Kitchen
“I think a person who is a good leader of any part of Belize would want to have their constituency and the people in the constituency happy and by consultation that is how you do and you could govern for years if you do the right thing.”
Eduardo Montemayor
Father Eduardo Montemayor, Pastor, San Pedro Catholic Church
“I was following it online, ok a new airport, that is good. But suddenly this one will close in the next two to three years, wow. That would be unwise. That is a whole different narrative, a whole different thing that would be very hurtful to the community.”
According to the government, any transition from the John Greif II Airport to a new airport would be undertaken through careful planning, consultation and coordination with airlines. The question tonight is how much time the Briceño administration has for consultation, and whether meaningful consultation would change a plan that appears to be moving ahead.
The United Nations Development Programme’s website has already listed the Airport Development in Northern Ambergris Caye as an investment opportunity for a new international airport under a concession agreement. News Five also obtained an IDB Request for Expression of Interest for consulting services associated with the New Ambergris Caye Airport, dated March twenty-fourth, 2025. Point 1.8 of that document states that construction of the new airport is planned to begin in 2027, with completion set for 2029. It further states that once the new airport is finished, the site of the current John Greif II Airport could be used to develop real estate projects.
The town council reportedly hosted a presentation on the proposed project earlier this year. Residents say that event cannot be considered a consultation.
Jose Arceo
Jose Arceo, Co-Chair, Ambergris Caye Citizens for Sustainable Dev.
“First thing we heard from these guys is that it’s a six-hundred-million-dollar project for the airport, the road going north. Howe far north, god knows, because there still has to be consultation about that and the new marina at Santa Cruz Laguna which is all the way north of Ambergris Caye.”
The highway being built through the island is also being questioned. At least three miles of the forty-foot-wide highway have already been completed. The Briceño administration has not answered questions about the cost of the project or the identity of the contractors. News Five has confirmed that the Ministry of Infrastructure Development is not involved in the construction of the road. Last week, we asked San Pedro Town Mayor Wally Nunez for information.
Wally Nunez
Wally Nunez, Mayor, San Pedro Town
“We are building this road so that this will be the official road so that they don’t have to go through the beach and it will help, because on the beach area there are so many complaints of turtle nesting that we want to avoid.”
Paul Lopez
“Who is building the road?”
Wally Nunez
“The project for that road is for both government and the town council.”
Paul Lopez
“Is it perhaps to facilitate Mexico to Ambergris Caye in the future?”
Wally Nunez
“I don’t agree with having any connection to Mexico, especially through that reserve. And we would not want to open that gateway to Mexico in this way. We have access through the water. But that is on a personal standpoint that I do believe we don’t need that connection to Mexico.”
Paul Lopez
“Who has the mining permit to build the road?”
Wally Nunez
“To build the road?”
Paul Lopez
“To get material.”
Wally Nunez
“It is through government we are doing that.”
Paul Lopez
“So, you have excavated the material, source the material on your own?”
Wally Nunez
“Yes.”
Paul Lopez
“Not from somebody private?”
Wally Nunez
“No, oh you mean, we are using the quarry. One quarry is limited and the other that is assisting with the material.”
Paul Lopez
“Public quarry?”
Wally Nunez
“No, it is private.”
Paul Lopez
“Would you be open to saying who owns that quarry?”
Wally Nunez
“We can get the information to you afterwards.”
As residents ask for a stronger voice in decisions that could reshape Ambergris Caye, the debate now centers on whether public consultation will influence plans that appear to already be in motion. Reporting for News Five, I am Paul Lopez.
Attention readers: This online newscast is a direct transcript of our evening television broadcast. When speakers use Kriol, we have carefully rendered their words using a standard spelling system.