From as early as 7 am on Monday, more than a dozen vendors who ply their trade from the Central Kingstown Market staged protests following a weekend clean-up, conducted by the Kingstown Town Board.

The vendors allege that officials from the Town Board had removed their fruit, vegetable produce, goods and other stall materials and discarded them in two of the market’s garbage rooms.

A notice from the Town Board was posted inside the market informing shop operators, vendors and boutique owners that there will be a power washing, cleaning and clearing of the market from Saturday October 15 and “will continue until the market is back to its original state when it was first opened”. The notice also said vendors are expected to remove all items that were not built-in from the stalls.

“Any items such as tables, benches, racks, pallets and carts which are left in the market will be discarded,” the notice concluded.

However, Bertland Joseph, a produce vendor, tells SEARCHLIGHT, that the information coming from the Town Board has been inconsistent.

“They came back after and said they are going to change the date for cleaning. They said to us on Saturday that they never ready to do anything. We abide by the rules and do what they tell us to do. All our produce that we use to make our money, they say we can store them in here cause they not ready yet. Even on Saturday they tell us that. But as we came in this morning, we met everything in the garbage room.”

Joseph said he estimates he has lost around $30,000 as the garbage room is infested with rats and cockroaches and the goods and produce will now be unfit for sale.

Another vendor, who spoke to the media, said the situation is frustrating as she called for there to be better management of the  market by the Town Board.

“Since morning now we can’t pack out. Since my trolley go in the garbage room, it flat. I had five pair of shoes that I leave [in the market] and they disappear. And them shoes is all $250 and $300.”

Around 10 am, tensions escalated inside the market and vendors made their way to the Town Board office to seek an audience with management. They were blocked, however, by two female security guards stationed at the gate.

Shortly after, Clayton Burgin, Warden of the Kingstown Board, arrived to an angry group of vendors calling for compensation and the return of their goods and produce.

Burgin later left the office and was escorted back to his vehicle where he shared a brief comment with members of the media, explaining the vendors were given a week’s notice that cleaning was going to be done.

“Some of them decide that they not moving their stuff for we to clean. I never knew that people don’t like cleanliness. Inside [the office] can give you flyers that we give to all of them about the cleaning but they never adhere to it,” Burgin said.

He also denied the claim by vendors that goods and produce were destroyed by officials of the Town Board during cleaning.

“That is not true. Only their furnishings were moved.”

The vendors continued the protest action on Tuesday, renewing their calls for the Town Board to compensate them for their losses.

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