MINISTER within the Ministry of Communities with responsibility for Housing Valarie Patterson, on Tuesday commissioned a new office for the Region 10 Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA) office.
The minister was joined by several staff from CH&PA and regional officials including Member of Parliament Jermaine Figueira, Mayor of Linden Carwyn Holland, Regional Chairman Renis Morian, Deputy Director of the Community Development Council Sandra Adams and several municipal councillors.

The new building is located in Crab Wood Street, Mackenzie and is deemed an upgrade in space and accessibility compared to the old office that was crammed into a multi-purpose office centre in Wismar Street, Mackenzie. The new office will be furnished with the same three staff members, including the Regional Housing Officer Ann Drakes. Minister Patterson in her address to the audience expressed joy that the office is finally ready for use, since she had been pushing for a new one since her elevation to a minister. She explained that the previous office was cramped and her staff could not function as effectively as they should. This new office however will allow for a more conducive environment which will not only benefit her staff, but the residents of Region 10.

In March, 70 Lindeners were allocated low-income houselots and in a matter of weeks, the construction of 70 duplex apartments will commence in Linden; 40 will be built in Amelia’s Ward, while 30 will be built in Wisroc. The duplexes will cost between $6-8 M. The duplexes have three designs; one design will be two flats, the other will be on stilts, giving the owner the choice of enclosing their bottom flats, while the other will be two storeys. There will be duplexes constructed of both concrete and timber and these will carry varying costs. The apartments carry a measurement of 30 × 40, while the land will be 75 × 75. Each duplex will carry two bedrooms and the separating wall goes from the front of the yard to the back, allowing each owner to have their own yard space; they will be both fireproof and soundproof.