Eleuthera: Minister Sears comments on plans for government led projects still in the pipeline

While in Eleuthera in February, Minister of Works, the Hon. Alfred Sears highlighted several government led infrastructure projects at different stages of planning, set for the island.

Commenting first on the ongoing work being done to bring resolution to Eleuthera’s water supply challenges, he said, that in addition to the extension of the water mains on Russell Island, which were commissioned on February 10th, the government had already committed to roughly about 6.5 million dollars to upgrade the storage tanks in Spanish Wells, in Harbour Island, in Lower Bogue, as well as at the Naval Base in Central Eleuthera - so, that the water supply system in The Eleutheras could have greater resilience in terms of the available supply of potable water - in the event there was an interruption, there would be a standby supply in storage.

Updating on near term actions in aviation in North Eleuthera, he shared, “We are also nearing the completion of plans for the North Eleuthera airport. However, before the major redevelopment, we are preparing to do some improvement of the runway, the need for which had come to our attention through the Department of Aviation. So, that will be given urgent attention.”

He then talked about long term plans to redevelop the road network in Eleuthera, saying, “Additionally, we are in the process of negotiating an arrangement, a PPP (Public Private Partnership) for the paving of the roads in Eleuthera, and that should commence within the course of this year. We know that this is a long-standing concern, within Eleuthera.

“It will be an asphalt road, this redevelopment project, because the asphalt gives a longer life, a minimum of twenty years. It also is environmentally better in terms of the reduction of dust, better in terms of ride ability, and efficient use of the road. It will be an asphalt road redevelopment project.”

Providing further detail on how the road redevelopment project would proceed on the island, Minister Clay Sweeting, who stood next to Minister Sears clarified, “Central and South Eleuthera highways would make up the first phase, the settlements would be the second phase. North roads are better, and would be the third phase... The quantity surveying has been done, and we have to now finalize the MOU (memorandum of understanding), and the construction contract. All the analysis has been done.”

When asked about the timeline for the phased road redevelopment project, Minister Sears, said, “We have a very aggressive program, with eighteen months to two years to complete these projects, and this is why, in the context of the PPP, the incentive to complete either by completion deadline or before completion deadline is greater.”

Updating on the Glass Window Bridge project, Sears supplied, “We also have a number of docks and of course the Glass Window Bridge. We are nearing the completion of the design work. We had a town meeting in Hatchet Bay. We secured feedback from the community, and the feedback is being incorporated by the designers. We are speaking with the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB), as well as the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), and also looking at certain expressions of interest in terms of a PPP arrangement for the financing of that project.”

He continued, “So, there are a number of infrastructural projects which we are undertaking, and they are in the pipeline, either at the design stage or at the procurement stage. And the work is currently being done in terms of the upgrade of the water infrastructure.”

Minister Sears said that he was advised of the arrival of two pumping stations into New Providence on February 10th, and they, upon being cleared was to have been brought to North Eleuthera and Central Eleuthera for installation. These additions, he said would increase the volume of water generated for the distribution and transmission to the customers of the Water and Sewerage Corporation.