$8.9 million that was earmarked to pave ten miles of road between San Estevan Village and Progresso – will be used to improve 10 miles of road within the city. Minister of Works Boots Martinez announced his decision today. And sure, $8.9 million can’t pave the streets with gold but Martinez says it will come close.
Keith Swift Reporting,
This is the downtown Belize City of today – an area with more than its share of potholes, traffic jams, and double parking. And this is how downtown Belize City will look after what Minister of Works Anthony ‘Boots’ Martinez says will be a complete makeover.
Hon. Anthony ‘Boots’ Martinez, Minister of Works
“We are getting ready to remodel Albert, Regent, North Front Street and leading up to the Tourism Village, Central American Boulevard all the way to Port. And I think we always complain about it, and it is a legit claim for us to fix up downtown Albert, Regent, and where the tourism is. So I think it is a perfect opportunity, it will be properly fixed, it will be upgraded with proper sidewalks and trees and proper lighting. So I think it is a tremendous project for the city of Belize.”
It is an $8.9 million project – and to find that money, funds will be diverted from another project.
Hon. Anthony ‘Boots’ Martinez,
“As the Minister of Works we saw that recommendations were made on a project to pave ten miles between San Estevan and Progresso of which the engineers, the project’s engineers unit had recommended that the paving was to be done with the hot mix and the project execution unit had made a report that the hot mix is too expensive for the highway, much more for the feeder road. So we are using the hot mix now in Belize City in place of that hot mix on that feeder road.”
This afternoon Martinez along with his CEO Cadet Henderson and Deputy Mayor Anthony Michael toured downtown Belize City. Henderson says the $8.9 million will be used to coat Albert and Regent Streets with what’s called a “hot mix.” It can be done in one weekend and Henderson says it will be durable.
Cadet Henderson, CEO – Ministry of Works
“The methodology of doing the hot mix for the asphaltic overlay is
a very mechanized operation that is a one off process where a single machinery crawls slowly in the vicinity and places compacts the material. But whatever corrective work is needed, will be done in advance of that machinery coming in. The material is more durable and being of a thicker layer, most areas will have about forty millimeters which is just under two inches, but this is a minimum thickness that as you know it is quite irregular as it is right now. And so at the end of that procedure we will have a smooth surface that is sloped about two and a half percent in either direction.
We will transform this area by making it more pedestrian friendly. We will have wider pedestrian sidewalks. On one side there will be ten feet sidewalk, the other side will have five feet sidewalk and fifteen feet one way lane for this one way flow of traffic and another ten feet for a lane of parking on one side of the street.”
And as Henderson mentioned, along with the newly paved streets – there will be new rules. One of them is only parking on one side of the streets but vendors and taxi drivers will also be ‘regulated.’ And that’s what has one fruit vendor concerned.
Fruit Vendor,
“I really want to know where they will put us because they haven’t told us anything and they just decided to do this. They haven’t even come and told us what’s going on, if we have to move or if we will stay here.”
Keith Swift,
You pay money to be out here?
Fruit Vendor,
“Oh yes we pay $25 every month. So I don’t know if they are trying to move us but they haven’t told us anything so we want to know what’s going on.”
Deputy Mayor Anthony Michael says the City Council is working on a plan for vendors and drivers.
Anthony Michael, Deputy Mayor
“We want to have parking on only one side of Albert and Regent rather
than double parking which is illegal anyway. We only want parking on one side of the street. It allows for better flow of traffic, it allows for the pedestrians to be safer, for the motorists. When you have double parking, you don’t know what side a kid or an animal or whatever, a dog will run out. So when you have parking on one side it is better for the motorists and stuff.”
The project for downtown Belize City was drawn up in the two weeks since Boots Martinez assumed control and Cadet Henderson returned to the Ministry of Works. Boots Martinez says his this is just the start.
Hon. Anthony ‘Boots’ Martinez,
“We have been doing a lot of work. We have done over 162 miles of feeder roads in Corozal and Orange Walk since assuming as the Minister of Works. We are doing some upgrading on the Old Northern Highway, we’re getting ready to do all the streets in the Crooked Tree area, we’re doing work in Willow’s Bank – we’re working countrywide. My Ministry is up and running.”
Keith Swift,
As the area representative for Port Loyola, I guess this was the perfect Ministry for you.
Hon. Anthony ‘Boots’ Martinez,
“Well of course, charity begins at home. After here we will be heading there to see how we can take down all the london bridges that exist in Port Loyola and looking on paving Neal’s Penn Road from its junction to Faber’s Road in the next two months so charity begins at home and there is no fault in that.”
And while our story focused on downtown Belize City, this afternoon Boots Martinez visited Neal’s Penn Road and Central American Boulevard which will also be paved. Plans are in the pipeline for North Front Street and Queen’s Street.
