The Mayor and City Council is urging ratepayers to settle their accounts as it is currently undertaking major drainage works estimated at over $75M.
In a press release, the Council said major works are ongoing in the Dennis Street canal from Eastern Highway to the Lamaha outfall and a number of areas including Campbell-ville, Prashad Nagar, Lamaha Gardens, Newtown, Kitty and Queenstown, will benefit. Works are also being done in the Sussex Street Canal in Albouystown from Vlissengen Road to the Sussex Street outfall where Albouys-town, Charlestown, Castello Housing Scheme and North East La Penitence are expected to benefit. In addition, work will be carried out on the Cane View and Downer canals in another two weeks.
Meanwhile, the Council is engaging contractors to de-silt the East and West Front Road canal, though it expects squatter settlements located along the embankment to present a major challenge. In the past, the City Council said it was forced to spend more money for special equipment to clear that canal as the encumbered embankment prevented the drainage machines from reaching the canals.
The Council is also calling on the public to desist from dumping plastic, Styrofoam and other waste materials into the canals. “The excessive use of plastic and other non-biodegradable materials continue to blunt the efforts of the council to improve drainage of the city,” the release added.
