Grotto residents want Minister to see ‘unsafe, neglected’ complex

Residents of The Grotto at Beckles Road, St Michael, say they are living in fear amid worsening structural decay, widespread leaks and poor lighting at the urban high-rise apartment complex.

They have called on Minister of Housing, Chris Gibbs to see the problems for himself, amidst claims that neglect has turned the development into a daily hazard, barely a decade after it was built.

For many residents, especially women living alone, returning home after dark has become a traumatic experience. Because of “atrocious” lighting and a chronic shortage of parking, residents are often forced to park far from their buildings and run to their front doors.

Uwine and Charmaine Dominique, long-time residents of the 76-unit public housing complex, described years of unfulfilled promises from the National Housing Corporation (NHC). Their concerns range from structural hazards to a lack of basic lighting that they say emboldens criminals in the area.

“My wife tells me when she parks she has to sit in the car first, look around to see if anyone is looking to rob her, and then run to get inside,” Uwine told Barbados TODAY.

Charmaine echoed these fears, noting that the lack of adequate fencing has allowed vagrants and prowlers to enter the premises. 

“We have people coming off the road, jumping the fence, and trying car doors. It isn’t working for citizens who pay a monthly fee,” she said.

Inside the units, the situation is equally dire. The Dominiques showed “consistent dripping” from the ceilings, which they believe stems from leaks in the units above. The water damage is so severe that they have been forced to move furniture and line floors with towels to soak up the rainfall.

Most alarmingly, Charmaine pointed out water dripping directly onto an electrical panel, creating a significant fire hazard.

“I told them about that… the water is actually wet on the panel. Up to now, nobody has come,” she said.

Despite a meeting with National Housing officials in May last year, residents say no progress has been made. The couple noted that while their Member of Parliament, Kirk Humphrey, has been working hard, he cannot solve the systemic maintenance failures of the Ministry of Housing alone.

The residents are now publicly appealing to Minister Gibbs to visit the complex personally.

“If you doubt me, come and hear the concerns,” Uwine challenged. “We are paying our fees, but the maintenance of the trees, the lights, and the buildings is nonexistent.”

Calls to the Housing Minister went unanswered.

The 2026–2027 Estimates of Revenue and Expenditure, laid in the House of Assembly on February 24, allocated $13.3 million for the National Housing Corporation.

This funding is part of a larger $137.5 million appropriation for the Ministry of Housing, Lands, and Maintenance, intended to drive infrastructure reform and property upkeep. 

Provisions in the recent budget include a $56m Resilience and Regeneration Fund aimed at climate-proofing state properties and completing the final phase of repairs for homes originally damaged during Hurricane Elsa.

Residents there may also get to own the space they occupy after government passed the State Acquisition and Vesting of Property Bill that will bypass decades of bureaucratic red tape and immediately grant home ownership to thousands of long-term tenants living in National Housing Corporation (NHC) units.

The rollout of the bill is set to be phased, with the first schedule affecting approximately 200 units in areas such as Deacons Farm and Haynesville. A second phase will target more than 600 additional units, eventually reaching nearly 3 900 eligible homes across 27 housing estates.