COUNCILLOR for Constituency 10 (Albouystown/Charlestown) Heston Bostwick is hoping that the authorities will soon look into significant road works and bridge repairs, among many other needs of the communities, to bring some relief to residents.
Drainage works are top on Bostwick’s list as he noted how Albouystown becomes like a pond when it rains. In times past, an arrangement, whereby residents of the community were paid to clean drains, worked efficiently.
Now, though, Bostwick said that arrangement had changed somewhat, resulting in the works not being executed properly. Consequently, the streets are quickly flooded as soon as it rains.
The revetment of the Sussex Street canal was long touted as an area of sore concern since it is a significant drainage canal for Albouystown and surrounding communities, Charlestown and La Penitence.
Bostwick believes that once this project is undertaken and the canal is dug, this would bring “a total end” to the flooding in Albouystown.
At the moment, he said he feels disappointed that his requests regarding the constituency have not been heeded. He hopes that some attention will be paid to the community soon or otherwise, he said he may have to organise alternative means of fixing the problems, such as reaching out to the private sector.
Several of the bridges in Albouystown require urgent repairs. The one at King Edward and Sussex Streets, for example, is what many of the elderly folks at the Dharm Shala use daily. The boards on the bridge are loose and make a petrifying sound each time a vehicle crosses.
According to Bostwick, the Non Pariel and Calendar Streets bridges are in worse conditions. Sussex Street is rapidly being destroyed with huge potholes, making east to west traverse extremely difficult, and soon, it seems likely that there will be no road there.
“Nothing is being done in the constituency; not that things cannot be done, but these are not the days that people are volunteering. Volunteering in a depressed community is hard,” Bostwick pointed out.
The constituency situation concerns residents, and, according to Bostwick, is a reason for discussion in the streets each day. However, he said he was not going to give up his efforts to make the constituency a better place.
“As a Councillor, it is my duty to lead and look out for the community’s interests. I channelled our concerns through the right channel, but it’s time for us to organise and start soliciting to have these things done.”
