Prime Minister meets with Canouan residents

In what can be seen as the start of the ‘Face-to-face with Ralph’ campaign, Prime Minister Dr. Ralph Gonsalves held discussions with residents of Canouan who packed the Canouan Government School last Tuesday, April 1, 2008, for a Town Hall meeting.{{more}}

The Prime Minister outlined several developments to residents of the Grenadine Island, including the Glossy Bay Marina, a $200 million top of the line project in which government and the developers in Canouan will have a 50/50 share.

Residents were also updated on the Canouan jetport, which is scheduled to be

officially commissioned next month. Dr. Gonsalves says a joint venture company between government and the

developers will be building hangers for jets on some

five and a half acres of land and that same joint venture company will manage the airport.

Prime Minister Gonsalves also brought residents up to date on lands for a cemetery on the island. He told residents the lands have already been surveyed and gazetted. The gazetting was done in December 2007 and a six-months period has to elapse before the lands can be used as a cemetery.

Land was one of the touching points of the meeting and Prime Minister Gonsalves assured residents that some 24 acres of land are available for sale to residents, but this would also include community spaces for things such as playing fields. Residents were also told that 27 lots have been surveyed so far.

The Prime Minister promised to speed up work to have Forms 1, 2 and 3 classes added to the Canouan School, so that students can begin their secondary education there. Several other projects, which are at the design stage, were outlined by the Prime Minister, including the playing field, bus stops, and the administrative block.

The Prime Minister also addressed the issue of the repairs to the jetty in Canouan, as well as a study for its possible move to another location. The contentious issue of beach access was also discussed and a commitment was given to clear the public access path to the beach which lines the resort.

The meeting, which ended at around 11.45 p.m, was hailed by all as a success, with residents airing their concerns and getting answers from the Prime Minister as well as the team of government officials, including Housing and Lands Minister Senator Julian Francis. Lead developer Antonio Saladino also spoke and answered questions at the town hall meeting.