A walk through Port of Spain, Newtown and Woodbrook can take you to some beautiful green spaces called parks and squares. All of these are in danger of disappearing, to be replaced by asphalt surfaces and buildings.
Two examples to support this statement are the fact that approximately three acres of the Queen’s Park Savannah are now paved and a building is being constructed in Adam Smith Square on Carlos Street.
Our ancestors understood the importance of green spaces. Many of us have childhood memories of playing in Tamarind Square on the way to and from school or playing in Adam Smith Square or competing in the horse races at the Queen’s Park Savannah. These are just three examples of the number of green spaces that must be preserved for future generations to enjoy.
An Express story (September 9, 1999, by the late Terry Joseph) quotes former Works Minister in the United National Congress (UNC) government Carlos John as admitting that he decided on his own and without consulting the government to pave three acres of Savannah. This was done in preparation for the Independence Day parade so that members of the military would not be marching in the mud.
The minister boldly advised that due to the urgency of the work, it had not been put out to tender, but he did not share the cost of the work with the public at the time.
The late environmentalist and National Alliance for Reconstruction (NAR) government minister Eden Shand staged a one-man protest and almost buried himself in gravel.
Olga J Mavrogordato, the author, writes: “Savannah is ranked as one of the largest parks in the Western Hemisphere and also, by the Guinness Book of World Records, the largest roundabout in the world.”
In 60 short years, citizens have allowed the gradual encroachment of the lungs of the Port of Spain. Now the government has trained its construction guns on Adam Smith Square and we don’t know what other green spaces. Barbados has Garrison Savannah, London has Hyde Park, New York has Central Park. We must ensure that our parks and green spaces are preserved.
If we do nothing, it will be a matter of time before the Savannah plans are back on the shelf.
Here’s what was planned for Savannah, as revealed by former culture minister Joan Yuille-Williams: “a facility below ground level, with only entrances and exits visible from the streets, will have a seating capacity for up to 18,000 people. and will house a museum, offices, training rooms, studios, carnival offices, event management rooms, security booths and parking spaces for 3,500 vehicles. A ten-level retractable roof will provide all weather conditions to protect customers.”
“Construction will be carried out by the state-owned Urban Development Corporation of Trinidad and Tobago (UdeCOTT) and will be carried out on a 24/7 shift, as labor becomes available, so that the facility can be completed by 2008 .” This is an interesting concept, but if we can’t manage surface flooding, how are we going to manage potential underground flooding?
The American writer and novelist Sai Zhenzhu or Pearl S Buck is known to say: “When good men in any country rest their vigilance and struggle, then bad men prevail.”
Dennis Demming
Diego Martin
