The Federal Government has begun sand-filling a portion of Landmark Beach Resort following a demolition notice for infringing on the right of way for the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project.
A video shared by Landmark on its Instagram page captioned “sand filling going on at Landmark #savelandmarkbeach” on Wednesday shows earth moving equipment sand filling sections of the beach.
Landmark sits along the Atlantic Ocean beachfront in Lagos’s affluent Victoria Island area.
Coastal Highway
The planned infrastructure is designed to link the former capital city to Calabar, a port city near the border with Cameroon.
According to a presidential aide, Temitope Ajayi, approval for the new coastal road was given on 27 February by the federal authorities.
Mr Ajayi said on X that the super highway, “when completed, will enter the world record books among iconic coastal routes like the Wild Atlantic Highway in Ireland and the Pacific Coastal Highway in the United States.
“The first phase of the new 700km highway that will run through the nine coastal states is the 47.47km section beginning from Victoria Island. It has five lanes on each side of the dual carriageway and a train track in the middle.”
Some of the sections listed for demolition by the Lagos government are the Beach Resort, Kids and Bay Arena, Members Area and Lagos Beach Club.
Adjustment
Business mogul and owner of Landmark Beach Resort, Paul Onwuanibe, told CNN he had acquired the land in 2007 before the plans for the coastal highway were drawn up and felt a mix of emotions after receiving the demolition order, which also urged him to file compensation claims.
To safeguard its operations, the resort’s management engaged in discussions with federal and Lagos State authorities and other interest groups to propose adjusting the highway’s route.
They suggested rerouting the first 1.5 km out of the 700 km stretch 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,” the business mogul had posted on X.
