West End is well on its way to being restored to the glory days when it was the hub for social and economic activities on the island of Grand Bahama. That was before the signing of the Hawksbill Creek Agreement in August of 1955 opened up the avenue for the development of Freeport from a pine barren to the second most populous city in The Bahamas.

People not familiar with the rich history of West End are not aware of the fact that long before all-inclusive vacation resorts such as Sandals and Breezes became popular in The Bahamas, West End had what was essentially an all-inclusive resort in Butlin Village, which operated from 1948 to 1950.

West End native Dennis Martin, a couple years ago, wrote an excellent historical paper on the history of the settlement that documented some highlights of West End's history. For example, Martin noted that during the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century, there were "several industries that spring up in West End and created short-lived boom periods.

"The most exciting of these boom/bust industries was no doubt the rum-running era," Martin wrote. "With West End being only 55 nautical miles from mainland America, West Palm Beach in particular, and an abundance of able seamen readily available, it became the natural centre for the rum-running activities to America."

One of the most meaningful industries that came to West End during this period, according to Martin, was the Cape and General Seafood Company Canning Factory. "They built a big factory in the middle of West End, with machinery that was not known to people prior and started canning seafood, mainly fish," Martin writes. "Almost everyone that wanted employment, from as far as East End Grand Bahama, was employed by the factory in its construction, then the operations and the supply side of the company."

The purchase of the old Butlin Village in 1950 by Texas millionaire Charles Sammons ushered in what Martin describes as the "modern tourism era." Butlin Village was transformed into a thriving tourist mecca known as the Jack Tar, which at its peak employed as many as 700 persons full time. Jack Tar operated until 1990. Freeport's remarkable growth and development in the 1960s precipitated a gradual decline in West End's importance as the capital of Grand Bahama, although officially it still retains this designation. A population drain hastened its demise, as Freeport continued to evolve as the island's centre of commerce and later tourism in the 1970s and 1980s.

Old Bahama Bay Resort and Yacht Harbour, a successful operation located principally at the old Jack Tar site, ushered in the start of the renaissance of West End back to its glory days, and the $4 billion dollar Ginn development that got the green light earlier this year is expected to permanently establish it once again as a major centre of economic and social activity on Grand Bahama.

In the process, however, some concerns have been raised by High Rock Member of Parliament Kenneth Russell that should not be taken lightly. Russell's fears centre around some aspects of the work being done by Ginn that he claims may have "long-term health risk" to the residents of West End.

Obviously, a company with Ginn's highly respectable reputation as a property developer will not risk doing harm to that reputation by knowingly doing something that would be harmful to residents of West End. Nonetheless, Russell's concerns deserve to be thoroughly investigated, and if necessary, the appropriate measures taken to allay his fears.