NHA to rebuild homes in Laventille and San Fernando

Laventille residents and residents of the Roy Joseph area are to benefit from major re-development which would see the rebuilding of their dilapidated homes.

Housing Minister Martin Joseph announced yesterday that Government agreed to a $100 million Urban Renewal and Re-development programme for the two areas. Speaking at a post-Cabinet news conference at Whitehall, Joseph said the Cabinet agreed that the programme would start in  two areas in the two cities: PoS in the Beverly Hills/Laventille area (which is situated at the back of the John John Towers)  and the Plaisance/Quarry Road/Laventille area and in San Fernando in the Roy Joseph Housing.

He said the Beverly Hills project, which comprises of 25 dilapidated wooden, multi-family apartment units owned by NHA, had been in existence for 50 years. He said 523 persons live there and the intention was to construct 9 three-storey apartment blocks, with 168 three-bedroom apartments on 1,384 square acres. The cost of each unit would be about $180,000. He said the construction would be done in three phases starting in June and ending in January 2005.  He added that there would be an additional 120 units after all the current residents have been placed. He said in the case of Roy Joseph, the intention was to build a mix of two- and three-bedroom apartment units with the construction phases similar to the Laventille programme. He said once this programme was completed, some of  the other areas which would benefit from urban renewal would be Nelson Road, Malick, Beetham Estate, Carlton Street, Jamadar Lane, Rushwood Street, Mon Repos and Pleasantville.