Enhancement project for Bel Air community ground approved

The Mayor and City Council (M&CC) recently approved improvement works for a plot of land in the Bel Air Park community in Georgetown.

This was confirmed by Acting Town Clerk Sherry Jerrick yesterday. Within the community of Bel Air, just along Eping Avenue, a sign was recently erected which indicated that a group, Community Enhancement Initiative, will work in association with the Georgetown M&CC on a project to enhance the “Bel Air Community Park.” When Stabroek News visited the area, no work had yet been done. According to Jerrick, it was a collective decision of the council to give the organisation permission to conduct enhancement works to the plot of land, which, she said, is a designated

“green space.” For the M&CC, the project is expected to be overseen by Deputy Mayor Alfred Mentore, who is the constituency councillor for the area. However, attempts to contact Mentore for further information on the project proved futile.

The plot of land was once the centre of a controversy as it was reported that then Town Clerk and the Central Housing and Planning Authority in 2016 were attempting to convert the recreational space into residential house lots for the Mayor, Town Clerk, City Engineer and Medical Officer. As a result, residents of the area challenged the decision and following a two-year legal battle, the High Court ruled that the community playground is to be used specifically for community purposes and no other.