Min Dharamlall wants tender out soon for City Hall building
Minister of Local Government and Regional Development, Hon. Nigel Dharamlall says he hopes the Mayor and City Council (M&CC) would soon issue the tender for the completion of its administration building.
Last month Minister Dharamlall, along with Minister within the Ministry, Hon. Anand Persaud, handed over a $30 million cheque to the Chairman of the Council’s Finance Committee, Mr. Oscar Clarke, for the project.
“We have already completed the review of the tender document, but I am a little perturbed at this point in time that City Hall has not yet gone to tender for the administrative building.
The staff in City Hall will need to be relocated to the administrative building following the completion,” the Minister told DPI recently.
Minister Dharamlall said he hopes the M&CC understands the urgency of the developmental works, which is part of the City Hall restoration project.
“We hope that this City Council Mayor and City Councillors (M&CC) are going to take cognisance of this to ensure that the tender is published very soon and we can have an award in the next few weeks.”
He said the initiative is in keeping with Government’s commitment to enhance the city, beginning with the repair of the historic building.
Some $60 million (€300,000) was provided by the European Union (EU) for a feasibility study for the long-awaited restoration project. The analysis was completed in 2018 which appraised the rehabilitative works at $1 billion.
DPI was told that the restoration project will be done in several phases, which will allow the entity to generate income through the use of its gallery or museum.
The EU had partnered with the National Trust of Guyana for a comprehensive Restoration and Sustainable Conservation Management Plan, which was later presented to then Minister of Social Cohesion, Dr. George Norton in July 2018.
In the 2021 National Budget, it was announced that a $100 million had been earmarked for the project. The M&CC had launched a trust fund in 2020 for the project and a special committee to manage the fund. The approach included establishing accounts in various banks countrywide for persons to make their contributions.