The Red Frog Market provides an essential service to not only residents and guests at Red Frog Beach but also to the surrounding community. It is the only place where people can buy essential goods without having to go all the way into Bocas. It is privately owned and operated and leases the location from OGI.
In late July it came to light that the lease was up for renewal and that Joe Haley was trying to use that to squeeze the store for more money. Haley was demanding a doubling of the electricity rate which would have made it impossible for the store to continue operations. When Red Frog residents learned that the store was planning on closing and that the reason was Haley’s unreasonable demands they made their voices heard by expressing their outrage to OGI staff at the Welcome Center, writing to Casco Capital and SVF and stopping by the store to express their support. Eventually Joe Haley got the message and a more reasonable agreement was reached. The store is apparently forbidden from disclosing the details of the new lease agreement.
We wish to commend Joe Haley for choosing to be more reasonable. That being said, it is unfortunate that it takes an outcry from the community to prompt reasonable behavior. We must ask ourselves: What was Joe Haley’s plan for providing an essential service if he drove the only provider of that service out of business because of his greed?
We have a dream. We have a dream that the day will come when Joe Haley chooses to behave responsibly all on his own instead of being pressured to do so. We have a dream that one day Joe Haley, instead of waking up each day and asking himself “who can I squeeze for more revenue?” will instead ask himself “How can I change my pattern of behavior for the better and create win-win situations?”. We have a dream that someday residents and guests at Red Frog Beach will have enough water for daily living and won’t have to tolerate the smell of raw sewage being discharged onto the ground near the villas. We have a dream that someday the property owners will be encouraged to install their own solar, water catchment and sewage processing systems. We have a dream that the day will come when those who wish to buy new properties at Red Frog Beach can be confident that their deposits will only be used for the construction of their homes. We have a dream that Steve Bolton, the senior investor in Red Frog Beach, will have the courage to either prevail upon Joe Haley to act with integrity or replace him with a manager who will. We have a dream that one day those who call Red Frog Beach their home will finally be able to exclaim “Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!”
