St. Maarten Private Eye

Hi
I wrote in earlier about planning my husband's birthday trip and changing my travel plans to the Westin Dawn Beach. I checked into some other islands but decided that I still want to come to St Martin (even though it’s costlier; I know he likes it there) however I have no plans to stay at the Westin. I am very much against supporting those who don’t consider the environment in their construction plans. I think if they were in the US several environmental groups would have been out there protesting daily. Folks in America know they can't get away with certain things why take it somewhere else. It’s like development anywhere with trees; they mark and protect the trees they want to preserve. There are ways to restore the beach and I am sure that Starwood (owners of the Westin hotels) can afford to do so (and hopefully they will).
Could you tell me if there is a lot of construction near the orient beach area and if traveling all over the island by car is challenging. Thanks in advance. In addition I have heard several mention of crime…. How bad is it? I know there is crime all over and one must always be aware of that, but I felt very safe on the island in the past. For example I know I would never rent a car and travel in Jamaica because I would be afraid to be robbed at gun point and possibly killed. When I was in Trinidad the locals were afraid of the crime and talked about protecting your jewelry and thieves identifying rental cars, so they made me afraid (not so in Tobago). However I didn’t have these fears in St Martin should I be concern for my safety or is it like other places where crime is not overwhelming but it does exist.