San Pedro Town Council

Belmopan runs the country: immigration, customs, land titles, the police and national taxes. The San Pedro Town Council runs the town. Its own website lists what it handles: property tax, trade and liquor licences, building permits, traffic (driver’s licences, vehicle licences and permits to bring a vehicle onto the island), parking and street use, street and beach cleaning, the cemetery and the town’s events. If you live or do business in San Pedro, most of your dealings with “the government” happen here.

Who is on the council

San Pedro elects a mayor and six councillors. The current council, all from the People’s United Party, was elected on 6 March 2024 and sworn in on 12 March 2024. The San Pedro Sun reported the mayor “signing up to take the job as Mayor for another three years”, so the next town election should fall around March 2027. (Term from the San Pedro Sun, not an official page.)

Names, portfolios and emails below are as listed on the Council’s own The Council page, last updated 8 April 2024.

• Mayor Wally Nunez: finance and revenue collection, local economic development, foreign relations, traffic management, human resources, staff training, trade and investment. [email protected]
• Johnnia Duarte: beautification and upkeep, environment and climate change, special needs, the Building Unit, NGOs. [email protected]
• Dianeli Aranda: human development, women’s affairs, youth, child-friendly municipality. [email protected]
• Marina Kay: education, public health, market management, sanitation and maintenance, small-business incentives, seniors. [email protected]
• Adaly Ayuso: public events and culture, sports, after-school programmes, recreation, parks and playgrounds. [email protected]
• Jose Castellanos: compliance and enforcement, crime reduction and policing, drug abuse, neighbourhood watch, town zoning, cemeteries. [email protected]
• Ernesto Bardalez: tourism, public utilities, public relations and customer service, roadworks and infrastructure. [email protected]

Every member’s portfolio also lists NEMO, the national disaster-preparedness body. The mayor’s full name is Gualberto “Wally” Nuñez; the Council’s site spells it without the tilde.

Who handles what

If it’s about…	Councillor	Office to contact
Golf carts, driver’s licences, parking	Mayor Nunez	Traffic Department, [email protected]
Property tax, trade licences	Mayor Nunez	Revenue: tax@ or [email protected]
Building permits	Johnnia Duarte	Building Unit, [email protected]
Garbage, dirty lots, derelict vehicles	Marina Kay	Sanitation, [email protected]
Market day	Marina Kay	[email protected]
Events, sports, parks	Adaly Ayuso
Zoning, enforcement, cemeteries	Jose Castellanos
Roads, utilities, tourism	Ernesto Bardalez
Women, youth and children	Dianeli Aranda

The office

The Town Council is on Barrier Reef Drive, San Pedro Town. Phone +501 226-2198, 226-2788 or 226-4286. Hours are Monday to Thursday 8 am to 5 pm, Friday 8 am to 4 pm (as listed on the Council’s contact page, last updated 1 June 2023). The Traffic Department is downstairs.

Most departments now take applications through online forms on their page. You pay by deposit to the Council’s Belize Bank account and send the receipt by WhatsApp or email; each page gives the account and the number to use.

How do I…

The Council writes most fees as plain “$”. Its bridge-pass form prices in BZD, and we assume Belize dollars throughout.

…bring a golf cart or other vehicle onto the island? You need the Council’s approval before it arrives. The checklist asks for a Belize driver’s licence, proof duty was paid, documentary proof of land ownership, permanent residence (QRP card or residency), proof of parking, a cover letter, and a landlord letter. It doesn’t say whether the last is an alternative to owning land. Application fee $50, administration fee $50, and you must have a zero property-tax balance before the permit letter is issued. Replacing a vehicle has its own checklist. Applications go in at the Traffic Department office. Vehicle licences and driver’s licences for San Pedro are also issued there; a learner’s permit application is $40. Traffic Department

…get a bridge pass? Apply online, pay, and you’ll be told when to collect the sticker. The Council’s form lists private cars, Polaris and ATVs at $50 a month, $250 for six months or $500 a year; taxis, vans, trucks and golf-cart rental companies pay more. Bridge Pass

…get a building permit? Apply to the Building Unit with proof the application fee is paid, one full set of plans (11 × 17 in minimum), a PUC-approved electrical design, your title or lease, a zero property-tax balance and Health Department approval. Under 1,000 sq ft and one storey, a technician may sign; up to 3,000 sq ft and two storeys needs a registered architect or engineer; above that, both. Fences, pools, piers, retaining walls and demolition have separate applications. The fee isn’t published. Building Unit

…get a trade licence? Any business, including services, needs one before it opens. Application fee $100, new or renewal. The Trade Licensing Board meets in January, April, July and October; a special meeting costs $150. New applicants also need a Fire Department no-objection report and police records for all owners. Foreigners “may need” a work permit or residency card. The annual fee is set at one-quarter of the annual value of the premises, and licences expire on 31 December. Trade License

…get a liquor licence? Application fee $100. Advertise in a local newspaper at least 14 days before the board meets, and copy the application to the police, health and fire departments. The board meets quarterly; a special meeting costs $100. Liquor License

…pay property tax? It’s due on 1 April each year. Fill in the owner-information form to get your statement by email, then pay by bank deposit or by card through Atlantic Bank’s portal. The law caps the rate at 2% a year of value for unoccupied property and 12.5% of annual value for occupied property; the rate actually charged isn’t published. Property Tax

…deal with garbage? Sanitation cleans loose garbage, streets and beaches, and chases overgrown lots and derelict vehicles. Online forms let you request removal of garbage, industrial waste or old appliances, or report a dump. Businesses pay a garbage fee. The page doesn’t cover household collection. Sanitation Department

…sell at market day? The Council launched a monthly market day; the page dates from June 2023. Pick up a vendor form at the office or download it, and email it to [email protected]. It says dates “will be published”; we found none listed. Market Day

Where the town’s money comes from and goes

The Council’s latest audited accounts cover the year to 31 March 2025. Moore Audit Advisory signed them off, unqualified, on 27 March 2026.

Year to 31 March 2025	BZ$ million
Property tax	5.71
Traffic-related fees	3.58
Trade licences	2.11
Other fees and services	1.02
Building permits and liquor licences	0.85
Income from taxes and fees	13.26
Salaries and wages	5.35
Unpaid bills written off	4.88
Depreciation	2.75
Other administration	3.02
Repairs, events, social assistance, fuel	2.37
Interest and finance costs	0.93
Total spending	19.33

Property-tax income fell from $7.80 million the year before. Central government sent little cash: a $69,000 subvention and $150,000 towards road works (the year before, $3.5 million for roads). The accounts show an $8.66 million surplus, but only because land and buildings the government handed over were booked as $14.26 million of income. At year end owners owed $19.0 million in property tax, much of which the Council doesn’t expect to collect.

The Council owed $19.2 million: $11.9 million in municipal bonds (an issue of up to $28 million at 5–6.5%, for roads and bridges) and $6.2 million to Atlantic Bank. It raised $9.5 million more in bonds after the year end. A share of property-tax, licence and traffic income now goes to a fund to repay them.

The Boards page names the Liquor Licensing Board and the Ambergris Caye Traffic Control Committee, which decides vehicle permits; its member lists date from 2021.

For national government, see How Belize is governed. Moving here? Settling in covers carts and utilities.