Published 13 April 2017
Basseterre, St. Kitts, April 13, 2017 (SKNIS): The Team Unity Administration’s highly acclaimed Unity Housing Solutions Programme is moving apace with the construction of the first 15 of the 300 homes that are set to be built throughout St. Kitts.
Touring Cunningham Heights in Cayon, where the first 15 homes will be built, Minister of Human Settlement, the Honourable Eugene Hamilton, assured that he will be visiting the construction site regularly to monitor at the progress. He added that homes will also be constructed in other areas, namely, Sandy Point, Newton Ground, Tabernacle, Dieppe Bay, Mansion, Saddlers, Stapleton, Conaree, Molinueax, Challengers and Basseterre.
“Within a short time, we should have over 100 such projects on stream. I know that in Pine Gardens, Taylor’s and [Buckley’s], they have already done some excavation work there to do some town houses,” said Minister Hamilton, adding that nine contractors were hired to construct the homes at Cunningham Heights.
Project Consultant, Warren Thompson, revealed that construction activities in the next month should begin in Sandy Point, Challengers, Saddlers, Mansion, Tabernacle and Molinueax. He outlined that town houses will be built in the Basseterre area, while the rural area will consist of bungalows.
Mr. Thompson said that outside of acquiring a house, a number of other persons stand to benefit from the programme.
“We have job creation and of course a boost for the economy. Business owners are now able to boost their businesses [such as] TDC and S.L. Horsfords. Even small suppliers are now gaining from this initiative, and not just the suppliers, but equipment owners, truckers, backhoes – they are all gaining presently from this programme,” said Mr. Thompson. “Within the construction industry, you have professionals [surveyors] who are also gaining from the initiative. Most of all, it is something that helps to grow the economy. Generally, that is the biggest thing for us.”
The project consultant stated that an important aspect to note is the bigger size of the houses in terms of designs and layouts.
“Major positives based on the designs and the costs of the homes [are the fact that] the bedrooms, kitchens and bathrooms are bigger, and owners will be paying less. So it is quite a lot of positives and to see the actual work now progressing, I think it really raises the interest of people who have been waiting so long, and it also raises their confidence in the government in terms of delivery,” he said. “The way the construction is being done, having supervisors on site at all times, ensures quality and durability on the construction.”
The housing initiative kicked off on March 01, 2017, with a groundbreaking at Cunningham Heights. The style of the new homes will remain the same as previous NHC homes. However, the significant difference is in the size. The dimensions have increased from 780 square feet to 862 square feet. The bedroom sizes have increased from 12×9 to 12×14. The bathroom sizes have also increased from 40 square feet to 56 square feet. The houses will be painted and tiled, and kitchen cupboards and other features will be installed.
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