The Barbados Chamber of Commerce and Industry is committed to embracing the rich history of Bridgetown as it presses ahead with its Bridgetown revitalisation initiative.
That’s according to president of the chamber, Andy Armstrong, who made the remarks at the conclusion of an historic walk through Bridgetown last Sunday as part of the chamber’s 185th anniversary celebrations.
“We wanted to do something that would really push Barbados forward. There was a challenge from Government to make Bridgetown the shopping mecca of the Caribbean. Coming out of that challenge and the recent nomination to make Bridgetown and its Garrison a world heritage site, we felt that we needed to do something to really stimulate some interest in Bridgetown,” he said.
Armstrong also noted that about two years ago the chamber had embarked on the project and were now “really delighted by what we’ve been able to achieve up to this point. We’re very excited about the plans we have for the future”.
He said while tours and walks similar to Sunday’s walk were not officially planned as part of the Bridgetown initiative, “after experiencing the tour and how fascinating it was, that’s something we will incorporate into it”.
“One of the things we really want to do is make Bridgetown the kind of City where people don’t just want to leave when work is finished. We want people to be able to stay afterwards, to have a meal, to enjoy some entertainment. . . ,” Armstrong said.
Noted historian Professor Henry Fraser led last Sunday’s two-hour walk for a specially invited group that included some of the chamber’s past presidents, executive directors and general members, along with Armstrong, senior vice president Lalu Vaswani, and head of the chamber’s anniversary committee, Roger Bryan.
Starting at what is now Jubilee Gardens, the original site of a slaughterhouse, the walk included St Mary’s churchyard, where the tomb of former Mayor of Bridgetown, Ernest D. Mottley, and National Hero Samuel Jackman Prescod were highlighted. Other stops along the way included James Street, the Jewish Synagogue, St Michael’s Cathedral and Broad Street. (PR)
