Construction of seventy affordable apartments in Hope Estate is much closer to realisation with the signing of work agreements between contractors and Public Housing Commissioner Theo Heyliger Tuesday afternoon on the site, after more than five years in the pipeline and numerous hurdles.
NAf. 7.9 million, the bulk of the project funding, is from the harbour shares buyback funds, while the Island Government has contributed NAf. 360,000.
General contractor Liccom will receive NAf. 7.3 million for the four buildings comprising one- and two-bedroom apartments in the first phase set for completion in December. Windward Roads Infrastructure will take care of the infrastructural part to the tune of NAf. 960,000. The project spread over 7,000 square metres of land will be overseen by Civil Engineering Windward Islands.
Heyliger said it was good to reach this point of actual physical work on the site after all the ups and downs the housing project had encountered. One of the issues that held up the project was a necessary change of contractor after the one selected by public bidding last year had to withdraw. Paradise Design and Development N.V. had some financial problems last year, causing its withdrawal from several projects.
Liccom, one of the original bidders, was approached to take up the job. Lengthy negotiations to have the price mirror the budget amount and ultimate agreement led to Tuesday’s signing by Heyliger, Andre Sneep of Liccom and Janhendrik Boekaar of Windward Roads. Sneep, Boekaar and Rupert Arrindell of the project supervising firm said their companies were happy to be associated with the project.
Heyliger expressed pride in having homes built for the island’s people. He pointed out that, like him, Lt. Governor Franklyn Richards and many elected officials had pressed the need for more affordable housing, particularly with the island striving for country status. "This is a very critical issue."
Describing how critical the situation is, St. Maarten Housing Development Foundation Director Michael Fowler said the foundation had a list of more than 1,000 people in acute need of proper housing. The 70 apartments, 10 of which are earmarked for senior citizens and 10 for special needs groups, are only a drop in the bucket to reduce the stacks of acute case files at the foundation’s office.
Determined to reduce the pile further, Heyliger already has his departments working on Hope Estate phase II, a 12,000-plus square metre project of some 100 units. Financing for this phase is being sought. In addition, a sale and purchase agreement for another 80,000 square metres of land adjacent to the first two phases will be signed by Heyliger and the landowners in the coming weeks. This land will be used for Phases III and IV.
The commissioner’s intense concentration on public housing this year is in keeping with his goal to build more homes expressed when he took up the portfolio of Public Housing in 2007. "After seeing some of the conditions our people are living in, it’s a very important goal for me to see an improvement as soon as possible. I am looking forward to handing out the first 70 keys in December," he said.
The entire Hope Estate project will be more than just a housing project, Head of New Projects Development and Planning Kurt Ruan told The Daily Herald. "It will be a pleasant neighbourhood with an upscale feel. There will be underground sewage lines and utilities cables, streetlights, a proper drainage system and concrete paved roads."