Ever since its demolition on the weekend of February 17th, and the commencement of swift construction work on its grounds on the weekend of March 17th many folks wondered if the redevelopment work on “The Village”, formally known as the Landsome Bowl Cultural Centre, would be completed in time to meet the July 19th, 2024 deadline.
On this date, it is expected that keys for the new state-of-the-art facility would be turned over to the Honourable Minister of Social Development Ms. Dee-Ann Kentish-Rogers so that she would be in a position to declare Summer Festival 50 open – 50 years of Anguilla’s cultural celebrations.
Notwithstanding, when one views the advanced stage at which the work has reached, hope is reinforced. The hope for July 19th, now little over three months away, can well be a reality, especially since the contractors and their teams are determined not to slack on the urgency with which the work was started on Sunday, March 17th.
Looking at the demeanor of the workers on this landmark project, it is clear to see that they are excited about carrying on the work, and they are eager to see how their constant motivation will eventually turn out towards the completion of this mammoth construction task, one of the largest public projects in Anguilla currently.
At ‘The Village’, there are two construction teams who are carrying out its redevelopment. One team is led by Mr. Greig Hughes, while Mr. Leroy Gumbs leads the other group of workmen. Greig is in charge of constructing the booths area, while Leroy is assigned to work on the stage and surrounding areas.
The Anguillian reached out to both contractors for a comment. We were not successful in contacting Mr. Gumbs, but Mr. Hughes spoke to us.
“I have a total of fifty four workers who are determined to get this work done in efficient timing,” he said. “We work constantly on this project. We work seven days a week. On Mondays to Thursdays, we work from 7:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. On Fridays to Sundays, we work from 7:00 to 1:00 p.m. This is how we work. I run my business like the hospitality industry, seven days a week, all the time.”
“Some people are amazed at the speed with which the work is being done here because, of course, they may have never seen us working before,” Mr. Hughes observed. “We work with speed, but we make sure to focus on all of the safety factors: both safety in the quality of our work on the project as well as safety for our workmen. By May 25th, we want to be out of here, as far as our construction and finishing tasks are concerned.”
When asked if he did not find that date to be too ambitious, Mr. Hughes answered. “We are ambitious about it yes, because that is our predetermined goal, and we are working hard to meet it.”
Provisionally, the Dart Group is financing the entire re-development of the facility in the tune of some US$4 Million. This is that company’s social contribution which is linked to its investment in the Four Season’s Resort in Anguilla.
The Honourable Minister of Works Haydn Hughes, who is, in fact, Greig Hughes’ brother, has the reconstruction of “The Village” close to his heart. Ever since its demolition, he has been reporting positively about the progress of the work.
The following are some thoughts he shared at the end of day 22 of the work on Saturday 7th April, 2024.
“And day twenty-two is in the books. It was yet another successful day of construction at the Landsome Bowl Cultural Center. The Hon. Dee-Ann Kentish-Rogers was on site to encourage and motivate the work teams. Columns were poured in preparation for the decking of the stage roof, while preparation for the final pouring of the booth building was completed. Pouring will take place on Monday, God’s willing.
“The interior of the first booths that were poured fifteen days ago will be prepared next week for plastering, while all the exterior walls of the first fourteen booths are now fully plastered. T Beams and roof of the entrance building are being prepared for another major pour on Saturday 13th April. We are marching on to the 50th. Have you booked your flight and made accommodation yet?” he said.
As the image of “The Village” ascends toward prominence, we anticipate with bated breath that indeed its predicted completion by July 19th would be a reality. Like a phenix out of the rubble it will rise as the state-of-the-art edifice that it is designed to be.
