Latest update February 5th, 2025 11:03 AM
Mackenzie Market gets new sanitary block
The new sanitary facility located on the northern side of the Mackenzie Municipal Market was on Friday last thrown into operation, even as construction workers sought to complete the project in time for the grand Linden Town week opening.
Though not yet complete, and certainly not officially commissioned, hundreds of people have already begun using it, according to proprietor Ivan Barton.
Barton said that because of the demand with the Futsal (Guinness in the Streets) competition, which is currently being played on the Wisroc/ Amelias bus park in front of the market, there has been an influx of patrons having to use the toilet facility nightly.
“We had to offer this service to the people, because where else would they have gone-nobody wants to go to the toilets at the back of the market, because the place is very desolate, and persons run the risk of being mugged. People welcome this service, and don’t mind paying the small fee that we charge, because they feel safe.”
The new sanitary facility offers five toilets, one shower, and one changing area for females, while the male section, carries four toilets three urinals and one shower.
In an earlier interview Barton had explained that the facility will also provide a vital service for those persons who pass through Linden on their way to Georgetown, or are on their way to the interior and other remote locations.
“ Now they have people that maybe don’t have relatives in Linden, and they probably cannot afford to pay a hotel to go and have a shower and so on- they can come right here and do that. There is even a changing table for mothers with babies. This place was established to cater for the sanitary needs of people coming from any part of Guyana- not just the residents in Linden.
Ivan Barton, a remigrant and Linden entrepreneur, had threatened to take legal action against the Linden Mayor and Town council after there was talk of demolishing the structure.
The new facility
According to Barton, he had only commenced building the facility after approval was granted by the former Council. Initially budgeted to cost some $6M, Barton said that he has long since exceeded that amount. Only yesterday, the businessman said, he had a water tank installed, after there was a disruption of water from GWI.
Barton noted that the tank, along with a pump and other components cost him almost sixty thousand dollars.
“But I had to do it, because the toilets have to be flushed and the place has to be maintained hygienically at all times.”
Barton had applied for permission to build the sanitary facility since last year October, but was only given the green light to build earlier this year.
After the project commenced, Barton said that he was sent a letter from the Linden Town Council ordering him to cease all works, as there had been infringements. He had however refused to obey the order, saying that he had the permission to build.
Charles Sampson, a councilor with the former council, in an invited comment regarding the facility had pointed out
“They are talking about infringements- well there are infringements all over the place- if they are saying that the building is too close to the transformer- all of these buildings, about ten of them, are close to the transformer, and anyhow that could be fixed- as a matter of fact, LECI has indicated that adjustments can be made.
This facility is necessary. If we are about to celebrate fifty years of independence, we need more than this facility and this man has plans to build a similar one by the Wismar Market.
We have members of Parliament that come here-so we need a decent and modern facility like this!”
Although a few persons had questioned the wisdom of building the facility in front of the market, several people have applauded the initiative.
“We needed this like decades ago- is about time that Linden go back to being a place of high standards-this is going to lift the morale of citizens,” one resident posited.
Another pointed out, “This is a good thing to happen with our upcoming Town Week and Jubilee celebrations. We need public facilities like these, so that persons wouldn’t be forced to expose themselves in public. A lot of activities happen here in the nights so we need this facility.”
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