SINT MAARTEN (GREAT BAY) - Acting Minister of Public Housing, Spatial Planning, Infrastructure and Environment Melissa D. Gumbs issued a clarifying statement on Friday night regarding an announcement of closure by the Department of Permits for the period of July 28 to August 22, 2025.
“Firstly, I would like to apologize to the media and the general public, as I believe the statement that was issued did indeed lack some clarity about the Department of Permit’s plans for that time,” Gumbs stated in her release. “I understand that the message may have been confusing and as Acting Minister of VROMI, I take responsibility for that confusion.”
Gumbs further clarified that the Department’s planning does not involve a “stop” order for the intake of new permit applications. Rather, the Department of Permits will be accepting new applications via scheduled intakes as per usual. However, for the period of July 28 to August 22, 2025, the available days for intakes will be limited to Tuesdays and Thursdays. This is to allow the department the opportunity to, as best as possible, focus its resources on finalizing a portion of the considerable backlog across this particular block of time.
“The Minister of VROMI, Patrice Gumbs, has stated publicly to the media and to Parliament that the backlogs facing VROMI departments are considerable,” the Acting Minister continued. “There have been times in the past where scheduling has been put on a tighter leash to allow for better human resource allocation internally, to mitigate the burnout risk for civil servants.”
Gumbs noted the chronic understaffing issues facing most ministries in Government but that are particularly prevalent within VROMI. She commented that, unfortunately, the issue is a systemic problem and admits that solving the it is nothing that can be done overnight.
“Again, as Acting Minister, I apologize for the confusion caused by today’s earlier messaging,” Gumbs concluded. “And I look forward to the public’s cooperation as the Department of Permits focuses on chipping away at the backlog while continuing to receive new building permits for the coming month.”
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