For potential homeowners seeking comfort, style and quality, at a price that is affordable, the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA) may have what they are looking for at the Perseverance Housing Development, East Bank Demerara.
CH&PA Chief Executive Officer Lelon Saul and Project Manager Kennard Dazzel conducted a tour of the project, where new homes are being erected by the ministry and also by private contractors who are being supervised by the ministry to ensure quality control.
According to Dazzel, the objective of the ministry is to deliver affordable housing solutions, while building cohesive communities.
The homes being constructed at Perseverance include ground level duplexes, elevated duplexes as well as single flat homes and single elevated homes, most of which are on almost 600 to 1000 square feet of land. The construction started almost nine weeks ago and is expected to be finished just in time for the upcoming Housing Expo, slated for May 26.
“The ministry is working just to complete 30 of these homes, to showcase the range of the homes to the intended buyer at the expo,” Dazzel said. The Perseverance development, he added, is just one location out of ten spread across six regions in Guyana. He noted that the ministry is expected to construct a total of 758 units over regions Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, and Ten before the end of the year.
Dazzel said that the homes that are under construction are perfect for the young, low income earners or government workers, who are the groups they are targeting. He stressed that the homes are of superior quality as the ministry is monitoring the construction to ensure quality control.
He explained that the ministry is very hands on, including checking the wood supplied, the steel arrangement, and concrete and block arrangement that are used on all the houses. He added that after these are checked, they are then issued to the contractors.
It was explained that prospective homeowners can choose whether they want a home built by private contractors or the ministry.
Some of homes that will be made available by the ministry can also be altered by the homeowner if he or she desires. The single, elevated family homes, Dazzel explained, can be doubled, by means of enclosing the bottom flat, as can the duplexes, which also come elevated.
He also highlighted the great deal of a reasonably sized yard space that would come with the homes as well as facilities such as electricity and water, which are already in place.
Dazzel also explained there are some rules which homeowners who opt for duplexes will have to follow, since it will be a shared space. These rules would include maintenance of the duplexes and maintaining the property value, among other things.
He noted that he is aware of the skepticism about duplex homes but assured that there is privacy, since the wall that separates the two families are 8 inches thick and soundproof.
Dazzel maintained that the ministry is not only interested in building homes but a community. He explained that certain sites have been earmarked for a playground or a recreational park for families.
Saul told reporters that those who are desirous of owning one of the homes must have an application in the system at CH&PA. He said that once the intended homeowner approaches a financial institution to be qualified for a mortgage or if they have cash, they will be eligible for ownership.
