Old primary school land set for 36 new homes

The House of Assembly has approved a resolution to vest 2.01 acres of land at Pilgrim Place, Christ Church, in the National Housing Corporation (NHC) for housing development.

The former St Bartholomew’s Girls’ School site is set to provide 36 new homes, addressing a fraction of the country’s pressing housing needs.

Minister of Housing Dwight Sutherland introduced the resolution, describing it as “a significant step towards addressing the housing needs in the country”. He revealed that the land became available after the closure of St Bartholomew’s Girls’ School in 1995 and was transferred to the state by the Ministry of Education in 1996.

Sutherland highlighted the urgent demand for housing, citing over 10 000 applicants at the NHC. Recent disasters, including fires and Hurricane Elsa in 2021, have necessitated the rebuilding of approximately 1 400 houses. “The 36 housing solutions that St Bartholomew has are just a dent in the ocean,” he said.

The minister outlined other ongoing projects, including Concordia Gardens, Ginger Works, Searles, and Lancaster, which aim to provide hundreds of new homes. He reported progress on existing developments: “We have finished some 85 houses, 100 per cent. And we are working on homeowners accessing these mortgages in a shorter time frame. We recognize what our challenges were,” he added.

Christ Church East MP Wilfred Abrahams expressed strong support for the resolution, praising the chosen site in his constituency as “a perfect place” for housing. He emphasised the community’s desire to remain in familiar surroundings: “People don’t want to move from where they are… They want to move within their own area of familiarity.”

Responding to Abrahams, Sutherland provided updates on additional projects in Christ Church East, including 70 completed houses at Atlantic Reefs and plans for 36 affordable homes in Coverley. He projected a total of 339 new housing solutions for the constituency in the near future.

“So the Member for Christ Church East is well endowed with housing solutions for this year and into next year,” he said. “If you add the 267 that you will get and 72 if my math is correct, that’s 339 housing solutions going to Christ Church East.”

Sutherland acknowledged the challenges but assured progress across the island: “We are on our way to ensuring that we achieve our target. It is a challenge, of course. We are trying to choose sites where we have infrastructure. Services are present. And that will minimize the length of time we take to construct our houses.”