By Shauna Jemmott

THE Mayor and City Council is working to implement recommendations by expert Pakistani Town Planner, Akhtar Khan in his Greater Georgetown Development Plan (GGDP) to upgrade the capital city, while preserving its colonial heritage.The plan, which was funded by the Commonwealth Fund for Technical Co-operation, was submitted to the Government of Guyana over 15 years ago, while he was a consultant employed with the Central Housing & Planning Authority (CH&PA).

It suggested ways of redesigning the city to return to the initial position of being the Caribbean’s ‘Garden City’. The plan was expected to be implemented before 2010.

STABROEK MARKET
Deputy Mayor of Georgetown, Sherod Duncan told the Guyana Chronicle in an interview Sunday that the move by the Mayor and City Council (M&CC) to reorganize the Stabroek Market bazaar is perhaps the single largest undertaking in that vicinity, since the market was constructed in 1881. He said this undertaking is one way in which the M&CC embraces to an extent, the GGDP.

He said this rehabilitation of the square is part of a greater plan to restore the Stabroek Market and ferry stelling behind it to modernise the area.

According to Duncan, Professor Khan believed, “The vitality of the town centre and other shopping parades is also very much dependent on the diversity of uses located there, including retailing, offices, service uses and residential. These generate different activities at different times of day and night, which in turn can help to deter criminal activity.”

The Deputy Mayor said that the Stabroek Market area, in that crowded and confusing state, created an environment for some amount of criminal activity, and many residents of Georgetown are scared of wearing jewellery or using expensive cell phones in the vicinity.

Duncan also quoted Professor Khan as saying in the report that the quality of public spaces is a major determining factor in an area having either an attractive or unattractive image.

“Within the town centers in particular, the quality of public spaces can have either a beneficial or detrimental effect on the vitality of the centre. Spaces need to be designed to support a wide variety of activities, including eating, sitting, street entertainers, etc.,” the expert had stated.

Khan also pointed out that adequate funding should be set aside to sustain a high quality environment within the city, as a “well-maintained, high quality environment would also safeguard the commercial value of adjoining properties.”

CHANGES
Meanwhile, the Deputy Mayor told this newspaper that if the council and citizens are to move Georgetown forward, “tough decisions have to be made.”

“If Georgetown is to be competitive as a modern, international city,” Duncan stated, “changes have to be made, striking the right balance between the rights of our vendors, the expectations of the residents of Georgetown and the national interest.”

M&CC Public Relations Officer Debra Lewis told Guyana Chronicle Sunday that the city has launched an extensive cleaning exercise, which will affect the Stabroek Market area, as well as Regent Street, the main shopping area in Georgetown.

She said the exercise, which involves vendor participation is ongoing and will be held monthly. On Sunday hundreds turned out and cleaned from the head of Regent Street to Stabroek Market, clearing clogged drains and leaving the area looking tidier.

Lewis said the city is thankful to those who supported the collaborative venture, which also included private businessmen who provided a number of trucks for free service.

“The business community is playing a critical role in the restoration and beautification of Georgetown,” Lewis said, adding that the area must be cleared often, “because of the nature of (that part of) Georgetown being a purely commercial area (and) the generation of waste pass the residential community.” She said the council has also launched programmes to enlighten citizens on proper waste disposal practices.