GEORGETOWN’S Deputy Mayor, Patricia Chase-Green, told a press conference Friday that while the Mayor and City Council (M&CC) is unhappy with the current deplorable condition of Le Repentir Cemetery, it would take about $200M to perform an acceptable level of rehabilitation there.She said the present situation at Le Repentir is that besides being overwhelmed by bushes and large trees, widespread flooding, and the pile-up of garbage have caused several burials to be postponed of late.

Chase-Green said the M&CC Committee, headed by Councillor Ranwell Jordan, has tried to improve the aesthetics at the cemetery, but needs the cooperation of other agencies.

And, touching on a new development at the cemetery,this being the erection of a crematorium at the Princess Street entrance, Chase-Green she doesn’t understand how this could be, given that no improvement had been effected to the place since she last paid it a visit.

Councillor Jordan told reporters that prior to a recent visit to Le Repentir, the committee did not know that a crematorium was being constructed there, and is still awaiting word from Town Clerk, Ms Carol Sooba, as to who authorised the construction of such a building in the cemetery.

According to Mayor Hamilton Green, of the $17M allocated last year to the rehabilitation of the cemetery, M&CC utilised $1M to carry out preliminary works.

Said he, “You cannot put a budget of $17M to fix a cemetery… Unless Government broadens the revenue base, which wasn’t done since 1994, we wouldn’t be able to do much.”