The Georgetown Mayor and City Council (M&CC) have secured the support of the European Union (EU) in their efforts to restore City Hall to its former glory.
On Thursday, Mayor Hamilton Green met members of the local EU delegation who have committed to assisting by securing “a team of experts [who will] say what has to be done” in order to restore the building.
Deputy Mayor Patricia Chase-Green and staff of the National Trust, which has responsibility for the preservation of sites of historical interest and national importance, were also part of the meeting.
Green explained that the M&CC has also secured the support of the new Minister of Finance Winston Jordan as well as the head of the Ministry of Communities (formerly Ministry of Local Government) Ronald Bulkan in these most recent efforts. He noted that while the previous government had released monies for improvement of the structure, those monies were for a “cut and paste operation. City Hall is not a place where you can remove a board and replace it, it can’t just be repaired, it must be restored.”
Speaking with Stabroek News, Nirvana Persaud, Chief Executive Officer of the National Trust of Guyana, said she is extremely happy about these new developments. “I can’t express my happiness enough in words,” she said, before adding, “the National Trust as the state entity responsible for promoting and advocating preservation of historical sites has always been committed to developing respect and admiration for our historical heritage so that we all together can work to protect it.”
She added that the World Monument Fund (WMF) had previously taken an interest in the restoration of City Hall as it was part of its 2014 Watch List.
WMF describes this list as “a call to action for cultural heritage around the globe that is at risk from the forces of nature and the impact of social, political, and economic change.” The website adds that the “2014 Watch highlights 67 sites from 41 countries, each an irreplaceable testament to human aspiration and the diversity of cultures around the world.”
Previous efforts to restore the architectural landmark include a 2010 call from the Mayor for members of the public to assist him in raising $400 million by making donations to a restoration fund. This idea was later abandoned.
In 2013, one of two international consultants who travelled to Guyana to assess the building described it as being in “cardiac arrest.”
Ihosvany De Oca Morales and Nigel Renwick, two architects from TVA Consultants, a Grenadian company, travelled to Guyana and assessed the building. After a preliminary assessment, Renwick stated that City Hall was suffering from a cardiac arrest. He added that some of the issues observed needed to be addressed immediately.
Since that time no major works have been done on the building though in April 2014, the then government had pledged $200 million for restoration of the building.
In March of this year, Fire Chief Marlon Gentle declared the building a fire hazard and warned that it was unsafe for mass gathering.
In a letter to acting Town Clerk Carol Sooba, dated March 20h, 2015, Gentle referred to a fire prevention inspection that was carried out the same day by the Guyana Fire Service.
The inspection, according to Gentle’s letter, revealed 18 major issues of concern. These issues included loose and hanging electrical wires in various parts of the building, a southern fire escape staircase that is out of order, and an aging cracked metal staircase leading to the Council Chamber.
The letter also identified hazards, such as a porous roof, severely deteriorated sections of flooring in the Council Chamber, visibly deteriorating support beams and a wiring system which has not been upgraded in over 100 years.
At the time the M&CC was preparing to host pre-elections Nomination Day at the historical building. After minor repairs, which ignored most of the 25 recommendations that Gentle made, Nomination Day was successfully held.
The Mayor, who blames the unchecked deterioration of the building on the previous central government, assured that with the recent removal of “those cultural barbarians” from power City Hall can now be fully restored.
