AFTER many years of being out of operation, the alarm of the Stabroek Market Clock is set to be heard once again, after the US Embassy approved US$41,000 (Gy$8.2M) for its rehabilitation.Speaking at a press briefing at City Hall on Monday, US Ambassador to Guyana, Perry Holloway, announced that after making a proposal to affiliates in the US earlier this year, a sum of US$41,000 was approved for rehabilitation of the clock through the Ambassador’s Fund for Cultural Preservation.

The Embassy, he said, would work in collaboration with the Mayor and City Council (M&CC) to get one of the first of many projects underway in the coming weeks, given that the fund is already available.

“This project comes at a time when Guyana is celebrating 50 years of Independence as well as 50 years of diplomatic relations with the US, hence the initiative will be one to remember, since the clock is also located within the heart of the City and is one of Georgetown’s main attractions,” the diplomat said.

Mayor of Georgetown, Patricia Chase-Green, said City Hall intends to use the clock as a tourist attraction. “The alarm of the clock will be heard once again throughout the area, and Guyanese will be able to experience what it was like when the clock was active in the past,” the mayor noted.

She said the Stabroek Market and the clock were constructed between 1880 and 1881, and remains one of the oldest structures still in use in the country.

The market covers an area of about 80,000 square feet and houses a wide variety of items for sale.

The market and the prominent clock tower are reminiscent of the Victorian era of Great Britain.