In four months, Barbadians should be able to witness and experience the refurbished, state-of-the-art Parliament buildings.
During a tour yesterday hosted by the Ministry of Housing, Clerk of Parliament Pedro Eastmond said the work was more restorative and designed to eliminate ventilation and moisture issues which had plagued the building recently.
“We are trying to restore Parliament to its original state. We are going back to the ideal situation for a building of this kind. Water runs under this building so we are placing vents which will take the moisture right out,” he said.
Eastmond said there was no intention of unduly affecting the historical value of the around 150-year-old buildings as the idea was to allow it to breathe.
The Clerk admitted the work was taking longer than previously expected but said they had come across unforeseen damage and since the intention to ensure the buildings would not need further refurbishing for decades, they had no choice but to take the time and fix them.
Minister of Housing Dr William Duguid said they had spent $3.7 million so far on the restoration and expected the final cost to reach $6 million, almost double the original estimated cost of $3.4 million.
However, he said it was worth it as they were “not only designing for the future, but for what civil society would require because this is a Parliament for everybody.” (CA)
