A road in the Plan area of Campden Park, West Kingstown, that leads to the home of the Unity Labour Party’s caretaker, Keisal Peters, has been repaved. This development comes despite ongoing calls from some residents in the constituency for road improvements that have persisted for over thirty years.
Originally constructed in the 1970s by the St. Vincent Labour Party administration as part of the Campden Park Housing Scheme, this road has undergone numerous repairs over the years.
Additionally, this road provides access to a property formerly occupied by Jeremiah Scott, the former Parliamentary Representative for South Leeward.
The recent repaving involved replacing the asphalt surface with concrete. It is likely that this project was included in the list of roads scheduled for improvement by the Roads Buildings and General Services Authority (BRAGSA).
The road services approximately twenty homes.
However, residents in neighboring areas such as Plan, Old Buff, Great House, Mahaut, and Buddy Gutter in West Kingstown are wondering when their repeated requests for road repairs will be addressed.
Residents from other communities have also reached out to ANN, stating that their pleas for road repairs have gone unanswered. For instance, one resident from Largo Height has lamented the poor condition of the main road in her community, which she claims deteriorates significantly just past the main gate of the Prime Minister’s official residence.
Of particular concern is the situation in the Great House/Buddy Gutter area.
In a recent program, the local media house One News SVG visited Great House and Buddy Gutter to interview residents who have been advocating for road construction in the West Kingstown communities, with some residents having made these requests for over thirty years.
In a subsequent report, the media highlighted the case of a mother of four who sustained spinal injuries after slipping on a slippery pathway while returning home from work.
It remains unclear why funds are not being allocated to address the urgent needs for roads and drainage in these areas, especially given that residents have been suffering injuries.
However, ANN recognizes that Edinboro Road is currently being paved after years of neglect and several months of contractual issues.
Residents in a new settlement, Lowmans Bay, also have access to roads and drainage facilities.
The demand for the government to address neglected road concerns comes even as new settlements were established in North of mainland St. Vincent for persons displaced by the 2021 La Soufrière eruptions and as the government tried to rebuild the Southern Grenadines after the devastation from Beryl.