The Democratic Labour Party (DLP) headquarters in George Street is in dire need of extensive repairs.
President Verla DePeiza revealed that the Errol Barrow Gallery, which was used to house the DLP’s popular Astor B Watts Lunchtime Lectures, had completely collapsed, forcing them to relocate to another section of the building.
However, she said thanks to the support and donations from members of the party, work had already begun to repair the aging structure.
DePeiza, who was re-elected last weekend as DLP president, admitted to Barbados TODAY that the last DLP administration had neglected the facility.
“It was dilapidated. There was no way that you could pretend otherwise. If you drove past the building you would see the windows hanging off, the peeling paint; it really was in a significant state of disrepair,” she admitted.
“On top of that, our staff was not in the best of conditions. The old building was taking in water, including in the walls, and we know what follows from that in terms of mould and health issues, so we had to be prudent. We have created a new Errol Barrow Gallery, a new office downstairs; upstairs has two offices and a library as well as the balcony space.”
DePeiza pointed out that following their 30-0 defeat at the polls in 2018, the DLP had lost the yearly $300 000 subvention given to political parties by the Government.
She said it meant that now more than ever, it was critical for the property to be able to earn some form of income for the party.
The DLP president maintained that its location at George Street was “prime property” and was in high demand.
She recalled that the headquarters had been used to host events such as Richard Stoute Teen Talent Competition, boxing matches, and had even been used to house schools.
“Our position was that the auditorium was built with the intention of making money for the party. Parties don’t work anywhere, they are dependent on donations and that is becoming an increasingly precarious position to be in…. It is better to have a means of income.
“This is also prime real estate. We are in the heart of the business community of Belleville, which has no real conference room facilities, and we need to get it back to that level, commercial grade,” DePeiza insisted.
“I’m at pains to say that the auditorium was built on donations of time and kind and the renovations to the auditorium are going ahead in similar vein. We get donations of material and we do what we can. Our members come and volunteer their skills and their time and I think that’s the best way because you also build camaraderie and that is important in any organisation.”
She added that so far she was pleased with the progress being made.
The DLP president said work initially was to be finished by Crop Over 2021, but that timeline had been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
DePeiza said it was difficult to put a figure to the total costs since most of the work was being done through donations. (RB)
