Bartica’s first “green” recreational park is expected to be completed by October 31 at a cost of $31M.

According to Bartica Mayor Gifford Marshall, the project is moving apace. When completed, the much-anticipated recreational facility, which will be powered by solar energy, is expected to enhance the general aesthetics of the West Indian Housing Scheme, provide a source of revenue, and improve community relations among residents.

Upon completion, the park will be managed by a financial committee in order to ensure its sustainability and maintenance.

“This entire area was a swamp, and at first persons were critical of the project. They were questioning our reasoning behind such an initiative; but now many persons are beginning to see what we have in mind,” the Mayor said.

The park will feature a three-tier fountain and there will also be a playground with walkways, benches, benabs, arched (kissing) bridges, and a green space for trees.

The water for the fountain will be sourced from a natural freshwater spring that was found at the backlands, and a waterfall concept will be created.

The park will also allow for spaces where residents can hold barbeques, receptions, weddings, anniversary celebrations and other public events.

Coordinator of the Community Infrastructural Improvement Project (CIIP), Karen Roopchand, said the intention was to create a space where people can exercise, relax, and also use for recreational purposes.
“We want to ensure that there are green spaces, so we will factor in the landscaping with trees, flowers and plants,” Roopchand said.

She disclosed that the park will increase the value of properties in the area, and will also serve the purpose of beatifying the environment, creating a green space, improving the aesthetics, and providing an income stream.

However, Karen Bishop, a resident of Bartica, in a recent letter to the editor, not only complained about the “attitude” of the mayor, but questioned the decision to construct the multi-million-dollar park.

According to Bishop, no proper consultation was done with residents before the Council decided to move ahead with the project. “We, the residents of West Indian Housing Scheme, Bartica, are not engineers, technocrats or persons with the ability to manage major construction; but from our own common sense, it could have been observed that the undertakings of the Municipality is without any proper consultation with person(s) of engineering skills and governmental expertise,” the resident said.

Bishop is contending that the project will affect residents with “values to properties worth hundreds of millions.”

In responding to concerns raised by Bishop, Marshall said on Saturday that the park will enhance the value of properties in the West Indian Housing Scheme. “Before, it was slush; people were dumping garbage in the area, the place was infested with mosquitos. Now it will be transformed into a green space, the values of properties will more than likely go up,” he told this newspaper.

It was explained that when the scheme was developed in the early 1990s, provision was made for a park in the area. As such, he said, the Council is only fulfilling the plan that had been started more than 15 years ago.

“If you look at the map for that area, you will see that there is spot designed for a community park,” he posited. The project is being managed by three engineers, one employed by the contractor, S. Jagmohan Hardware Supplies and Construction Services, and two within the employ of the Government.

The Mayor also denied the claim made by Bishop that consultations were not held. It was explained that when the project was initiated by the Council, consultations were held with the residents, during which the Mayor and one of the councilors, Karmel Williams, discussed the many benefits to be derived from the project.

Williams had subsequently returned to the community and held additional talks with residents.

Turning his attention to the “issue of attitude,” the Mayor explained that when Bartica was hit with floods on August 7 and September 11, he had made contact with several residents, and Bishop was among those contacted on August 7. According to Marshall, when Bishop was contacted via the telephone, she was “obviously upset,” and as a result he called her later that day.

When the second call was made to Bishop, the Mayor said, she became very abusive and began to issue threats, resulting in him terminating the call. He said that while residents have concerns, those concerns ought to be conveyed in a respectful manner.