NHC on house-building mission

Government has embarked on a programme to remedy a worrying case of over-population in its housing estates.

General Manager of the state-run National Housing Corporation (NHC) Ian Gill said the government is examining new housing solutions to try to correct the trend.

“We have a situation now where the estates have become over-populated and the government has set out a programme where we are now going to start thinning out the estates. We have to find housing solutions for many of the persons now, who live in very over-populated communities,” Gill told Barbados TODAY.

He said government was about to start the project which would partly address Prime Minister Mia Mottley’s promise made in January this year, to build 10,000 new houses over the next five years.

Gill disclosed that while government prepares to address overpopulation across its estates, it was also making significant strides with its house relocation initiative.

“We have done very well, because Farmer’s in St Thomas is a relocation project. The government had asked us to complete four houses for them and we have completed those. Todds has been completed and Rices where we have 11 houses under construction, I would say that two are practically completed and the others are within the 50 to 90 per cent range of completion,” he revealed.

He said that 20 units are being built at Alleyne’s Court on Whitepark Road, named after the corporation’s late acting general manager Garvey Alleyne.

Gill disclosed that these two-bedroom ‘quads’ should be ready for allocation by the end of July.

He also identified other areas where relocation housing projects are being implemented.

“We have completed just around 20 homes to be turned over to persons who live in the Rock Hall, St Philip area who want to be relocated because of the dangerous nature of the combustion that can occur at the dump,” Gill pointed out.

He said these families are being relocated at various places across the island on lands owned by the state.

“At present, it is going on at Parish Land Extension and Nightengale in St Philip. Some persons have already been relocated to Carpenter’s Glade, St Philip. We are also building at Lead Vale, Christ Church which is also for the relocation project. We have built a duplex there and we have also built four more houses at Lead Vale,” he added. (EJ)