Construction at Fairchild Street Market Village gets going

Barbadians are being urged to continue to support vendors at the Fairchild Street Market Village, as construction work commenced on phase two of the project on Monday.

While some stall operators in phase one of the project lamented that they were not given notice regarding the beginning of construction, Joyann Haigh, whose firm, Haigh Communications is handling the project’s public relations, told Barbados TODAY during a brief site visit, that unfortunately some businesses may be impacted but stressed that provisions have been put in place to minimize the impact.

“As you can see, the entrance still remains open though it’s closed to motorists. Only if you are delivering or you are a vendor will you be able to drop off and come back out. But the public can still come through this entrance. We have people on site that will help navigate people through the site.

“We encourage people to please come and support the vendors because we don’t want them to lose any business as a result. But of course, with progress and with things happening and moving forward, there is a level of inconvenience in order to have convenience.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security Markets Division issued a notice advising the public that phase two of the Fairchild Street Market Village project will commence on Monday April 11, 2022.

Phase two is being constructed on the same spot as the old market and will take an estimated four months if there are no major interruptions. Several fruits, vegetables and variety stalls will be built at the location in addition to a car park.

“We were told this morning that some businesses were not aware. They said they were aware that the project was starting, but they weren’t aware of the date. We sent out the notices via the media and we would have spoken to the markets department to share that information. We have asked this morning for them to continue to spread the word in the market and make sure that they can continue to spread the word and to make sure that they cover everybody.

The first two phases of the Fairchild Street Market Village project have been projected to cost $3.8 million. The facility will cater to 112 vendors, including 48 food and beverage stalls and two bathrooms. anestahenry@barbadostoday.bb