If Minister Nigel Dharamlall is remembered for nothing else, his name will find a permanent home in the recollections of future generations for saving City Hall. That is, provided he moves fast enough, before the fragile structure disintegrates into a heap of amorphous debris. He joins a very select group of officials in his decision to save a major example of our material heritage. That group includes primarily Mr Anthony Xavier, a former PPP/C Minister of Works who saved the nineteenth century bridges associated with the first railway in South America, and oversaw the rehabilitation of Castellani’s famous ceiling in the Parliament Chamber, so it was returned to its original state. And if the seat of local government in Georgetown is restored too, citizens would experience a sense of enormous relief.
City Hall, designed by Fr Ignatius Scoles, is symbolic of the capital, and the rather bland architectural descriptions of it being a neo-Gothic structure, hardly capture its decorative features and flamboyant detail. In its heyday, bemused tourists might have wondered whether Walt Disney came down here to get inspiration for the fairy castles in his films. But of course, as we all know, it is no longer the building it once was.
City Hall is associated with Georgetown’s greatest period of public building which took place during the last quarter of the nineteenth century, and Avenue of the Republic supplies the example of another of these great structures – the High Court. Credit is usually given to Baron Hora Siccama for this edifice, but it is unlikely that he was responsible for its design. Since he was primarily an engineer who constructed an important portion of Georgetown’s seawall, it is generally acknowledged that he undertook the drainage of the area – it was a very swampy piece of land – and that Cesar Castellani was the architect. It would be a tragedy, therefore, if this structure came to be the only surviving exemplar of the capital’s nineteenth century public building efforts, just because no authority would go to the trouble of saving City Hall.
But it was last week that Minister of Local Government and Regional Development Nigel Dharamlall told this newspaper that central government would be moving to restore the building. He went on to say that although it is the mandate of the Mayor and City Council to see that this is done, it had been decided that it would be best for government to begin the restoration because the municipality was badly mismanaged. That was a bit of shameless politicking, but perhaps it can be overlooked this time, given that rescuing the capital’s seat of local government is the ultimate objective.
In any case, Mayor Ubraj Narine was gracious about it. While he said that he had not been informed of the Ministry’s plan to undertake the restoration work, he was prepared to support anything that would benefit or develop the city. The Minister should take his cue from this approach and operate accordingly. With a project of this size and complexity, it is important that he work amicably with all those who have a vested interest in the matter, especially the M&CC. The last thing we want interrupting the smooth flow of work is petty squabbles, especially if these have a political tint. This is not about politics, it is about heritage – a shared heritage.
It is not that the City Council did not make attempts to restore the building; it is just that they simply do not have the financial means to take on the task. Under Hamilton Green’s mayorship two consultants from Grenada had come here to give a preliminary assessment of the state of the structure, and had given their services gratis. Subsequent to that the EU had provided $60 million to fund a study on the restoration which was completed in 2018. Their estimated cost of such a project was €3 million, a sum which has now escalated to US$5 million. There is no way with the best will in the world that the M&CC could raise that kind of money.
Their response to raising the financing required was to launch a restoration fund about a year ago. The fund was under the control of a committee which included the Private Sector Commission, the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the National Trust and the Guyana Tourism Authority, along, of course with members of the M&CC. The Mayor gave the assurance that there were safeguards in place and the fund would be audited, including by the Auditor General. In the first flush of enthusiasm the Rev Dil Mohammed pledged $150,000 to the fund, the Deputy Mayor $50,000 and Impressions, $5 million.
But then along came our political dramas and along came Covid, and after that everything seemed to stall. Towards the end of 2019 acting Town Clerk Sherry Jerrick said that people were not making donations to the fund. In any case, it was never a viable proposition to raise US$5 million on the basis of voluntary donations alone, although undoubtedly such donations could make a contribution. Only a government could tap the sources of funding which would be required for such a substantial exercise.
For his part the Minister told Stabroek News that there would be a review of the study done, and work would begin this year, provided they can act on the work done so far. We are tired of studies and workshops and statements from concerned mayors and perturbed government officials, not to mention their excuses; what we want now is action, and Minister Dharamlall says he is going to give us that. If he does, it will be a huge advance on what has gone before and will seal his reputation.
