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Residents live in fear of derelict building
For the past seven years, some residents of Sandy Babb Street, Kitty, have been holding their breath and hoping that they will be spared damage to property, injury or even death from a derelict building that is threatening to come crashing down at any minute.
Recently, the two-storey wooden building located at 36 Sandy Babb Street began to lean further eastward, creating a frightening scenario for nearby residents.
And despite their efforts to get the relevant authorities, including the Mayor and City Council, to intervene, the building remains a huge threat.
The City Council has in the past dismantled several buildings that were in better shape than the house in question.
This newspaper has been highlighting the plight of nearby residents to no avail.
The Sandy Babb Street building is owned by an overseas-based Guyanese who has appointed, Llewellyn John, a power of attorney, to look into her interest. John has also been appointed to handle the legal aspects of the building.
This newspaper has seen several pieces of correspondence to the various government agencies addressing the matter.
Residents have even issued lawyers letters to the owners but for seven years they have remained in fear, so much so that residents living at the back of the derelict building who have to use a passageway at the side to access their homes have been forced to run when passing it.
Cleveland Graham who lives on the western side of the building told this newspaper yesterday that the property has been abandoned and uninhabited, except for a few drug addicts from time to time, for several years.
He said that they first reported the matter to the City Engineers Department in 2001 and residents have been following up the matter consistently since then without any tangible assistance.
“The City Engineer, Miss Johnson, came and put a demolition notice on this building for it to be dismantled. That was in 2006 December. We had anticipated that this would have been done in 2007 but nothing was done,” Graham said.
According to the resident, the building had taken a turn for the worse during the 2005 floods and the recent heavy rains have raised further concern about the safety of nearby residents.
Maude Burrowes, who lives on the eastern side and whose property is directly threatened by the derelict building, told this newspaper that recently she has not been sleeping at nights for fear that the building will come crashing down.
“Last night I could not sleep because ever so often you’re hearing a creaking sound as the building continues to lean further towards my house,” Burrowes told this newspaper.
Already several zinc sheets have fallen from the building, causing damage to Burrowes’s house.
Recently the residents approached the Ministry of Local Government and, according to them, Minister Kellawan Lall designated one of his officers to look into the matter.
The residents said that the Local Government Ministry officer was very helpful.
“He pursued the problem through the City Council to no avail. I think he went back to the ministry and reported that he had little success,” Graham said.
He believes that some more action on the part of the Ministry is being looked at.
But in the meantime, the residents are desperate for some solution.
“All the documents in connection with this property since 2001 are with Mr. (Keith) Burrowes, who is in charge of the Commission of Inquiry into the operations at City Hall,” Graham added.
This newspaper had contacted City Hall on the matter on a number of occasions and senior officials had promised to have the situation rectified.
One City Hall officer had even suggested that the concerned residents make efforts to dismantle the building and bill the cost to the owner.
There are reports that an injunction has been filed against the City Council preventing the dismantling of the property.
This however has not been confirmed by this newspaper.
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