City Council permits National Hardware to erect building on reserve for a fee

Sep 22, 2013 News

Details are not forthcoming on a construction currently underway at the Ruimveldt Industrial Site.
A steel structure is being erected on what had been described as a plot of land reserved for the city.
That land had reportedly been released to National Hardware, a hardware supplier, for use as a parking lot. National Hardware currently operates in the former Lysons factory, located opposite the land.

There are questions about the circumstances under which permission was granted by the Mayor and City Councillors of Georgetown to have construction on what is reportedly reserve lands.

However, the land has now been fenced and construction is in full swing to put up a building.
According to City Mayor, Hamilton Green, permission has been granted for the building. He referred Kaieteur News to City Engineer, Colvern Venture, for more details.
Venture disclosed that permission has indeed been granted for the building by the City Council. This was based on an application, he said. He did not give details of the application.
Questioned under what circumstances permission can be granted for buildings to be erected on reserve lands, Venture referred this newspaper to Town Clerk (ag), Carol Sooba.
However, calls to her went unanswered and messages to her office were not immediately returned.
Government has expressed a growing intolerance for squatting on reserves along with illegal occupation and construction.