Basseterre, Friday February 9, 2018 – The first phase of the refurbishment efforts, to the tune of $500,000, at the Gardens Housing Project are near completion.
This is an initiative by the National Housing Corporation (NHC) in collaboration with the Tram Unity Government to restore the face of the near 30-year old Government owned apartment properties situated on Bay Road. In attendance were the Hon. Eugene Hamilton, Minister of Human Settlement, et al, Ambassador Jonel Powell, Mr. Valentine Lindsay, Chairman of NHC, Mrs. Elreter Simpson-Browne, General Manager at NHC, other Board Members and staff of NHC and tenants of the Gardens Housing Project.
Speaking during a walkthrough of the property, the Honorable Eugene Hamilton expressed satisfaction with the progress made in refurbishing the three buildings.
“These buildings were built and occupied in the 80s with minimal renovations done over the years. Our government undertook the task of refurbishing this property in order to improve the living conditions of our tenants. Given the proximity to the shore of Basseterre and the entry point of visitors from Nevis and international cruise lines, we felt the need to expedite renovations and restored the ambience,” said Honorable Hamilton.
“Next week we will be installing a new sewage plant on the island. It will be used to produce reasonably pure water that the locals can use to sustain their plants. And I hope that the people around here start looking at planting little gardens around to improve the ambience of the area. We are on hand to support their efforts, “added Honorable Hamilton.
The NHC has launched several initiatives over the past three years to support its commitment to delivering better housing facilities to the people of St Kitts and Nevis. Fourteen families were recently presented with keys to their new homes under Phase 1 of the Unity Housing Solutions Program at Cunnigham Heights.
“We at NHC are committed to family. We are committed to ensuring our people live in respectable homes. We have listened to the feedback from our tenants and responded with bigger and better homes at much more affordable prices. We are encouraged with the progress here at The Gardens Housing Project that upon completion will cost us $2 Million. This is our commitment to the comfort and elevated health standards for our people,” said Elreter Simpson-Browne.
Ambassador Jonel Powell congratulated NHC for this huge undertaking and encouraged the tenants to take care of the property, as NHC is living up to its mandate of upgrading the standard of living for the citizens of St. Kitts, which is evident in today’s activity.
The National Housing Corporation (NHC) was incorporated in 1996 after being renamed from the Central Housing Authority (CHA). NHC was created by an Act of Parliament in 1997 for the purposes of “adding and improving” the existing supply of houses and enhancing the usefulness of the funds of the Corporation by promoting greater efficiency in the housing sector.