Source document: https://docs-lawep.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/1697744145109.pdf (Guyana)
12C3 To His Excel�ency Sir Ralph Francis Alnvick Grey, Knight Commander of the Host Dis­ tinguished Order' of Saint Michael Gear ge, Knight Commander in the Royal Vio­ torian Order, Officer Order of the British Einpire, in Chief in and,over Conunander Guiana, Vice Admiral of Dritish of the Most Excellent Governor and the Colony of the same and Saint &c. &c. &c. The following report on the activities of the Central Housing and Planning Authority for the year 19.57 is submitted.

I-EMBERS.
I-EMBERS.

The following persons served as members of the Authority during the period: Commissioner of Housing, Chairman.

Miss Gertie Collins, Mr. C.L.

Kranenburg, , Mr. G .A .R.

Farquharson Mr. E.C.

Hugh, F.R.C.S., Mr. C. McGowan, Mr. CoC.

Bristol Mr. J.H.

Pollydore, Mr. M. Karma.lie, The 1\la yor of Georgetown.

The Mayor of New Amsterdam.

MEETINGS: 12 meetings were held.


STAFF: The staff shown under Head VI Central in the annua1li1 -:-3current estimates Authority that shown under Head IX -Housing, of the Development was supplemented Housing and Planning by Estimates: CENTRAL HOUSING Ii.ND PLANNING AUTHORITY DEVEIDPME:NT ESTIM:.1.TES Accountant Chief Clerk Assistant Senior 5urveyor Draughtsman Senior Assistant Draughtsman Clerical Establishment Building Inspector 2 Housing Supervisors .5 Assistant Messenger Draughtsmen i[.
Accountant Commissioner of Housing Principal Administrative Officer.

Accountant.

Assistant 2 Class I Clerks 1 Class II .Clerk 1 Senior Clerical Assistant 2 Clerical Assistants 2 Architects Chief Draughtsman 2 Senior Assistant Planning Housing Quantity Surveyor .Engineer Self Help Organiser Chief Building 4 Surveyors .5 Community Organiser Estate �ager Assistant Organiser J Rent Collectors 2 Women Housing Officers 20 Comrrn1nity Foremen Officer Officer s Draughtsman Inspector '1 {._ .

DEVEI.
DEVEI.

()PNENT ESTIMATES 2 Messengers .

Clerical and Accounting Staff Technical Staff Field Staff Maintenance Staff Purchasing Section.

GREATER GE0RGETO-vn PUd{ .

it town planning survey of Greater Georgetown is still in progress .

The following additional town planning maps have been completed=- i .

Structural condition of buildings - one map .

ii.

Communications - three maps .

iii.

Engineering services in relation to govern ment housing estates - one map.
This brings the total number of maps in this series to thirteen.

Maps prepared earlier are : i .

ii.

iii.

iv, v. vi , vii .

viii.

Land use .

Crown and colony land.

Schools location.

Communications - unrevised, Hater supply, Sewage disposal.

Electricity supply.

Storm drainage and sea defences .

It is essential that the Greater Geer getown Plan be reviewed in the light of prevailing conditions, as this plan was prepared dur ing 1950 and approved as a statutory scheme since 1951.
Town plans are not altered without P3-rticularly sound reasons, yet it is r:;ood town planning practice to review town development plans every five years to see what changes, if any, are desirable .

Such a review must be based on a scientific survey, which would indicate existing physical ar d sociol ogical characteristics.

An a12alysis of the survey data would then indicate conditions and trends so that decisions could be made whether the policy set out int.he plan needs to be changed.
From the foregoing it can be seen that a review of the Greater Georgetown Plan is a large undertaking and the sur vey, anal ysis and design work would be a complicated and lengthy process .

This is aggravated by the fact that only one member of the staff, - a surveyor, could be spared to do the planning sur vey for Greater Georgetown.

He hae done much work within the urban area, but even so, there still remains to be done a de tailed exanµ.nation of the green belt and of communities located therein.
1t would not be possible tor eview the Greater George town Plan until all surveys are completed and it is hoped that there would be an increase in planning staff to facilitate this.

Barclays Bank appealed against a decision of the Cer.

tral Housing and Planning Authority for disallowing an appli cation for development at N½ lot 140 Regent Street, Lacytown, Georgetown, which had been submitted by them.

The appeal was heard in the supreme court durine; August 1957.
The trial judge in giving his decision ruled that sub section (61 of section 8 of the Town and Country Planning Ordinance had bot been complied with, and in consequence the Greater Georgetown Plan had not the force of law .

He pointed out that although the plan had been approved by the Governor- in-Council, during 1951, yet it had not been published afterwards in the official gazette as re quired by subsection (6) of section 8 of Chapter 181.

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12G7 It became necessary therefore for the Legislative Council to pass an ordinance to amend the Town and Country Planning Ordinance (Chapter 181), and to deem the amendment to have come into operation on the 27th October , 1951 .

The amending ordinance now ensures that 11a scheme when approvod by the Governor- in-6ouncil shall have full force and effect as from the date of publication of the notice of approval aforesaid".
The Honourable iLttorney General when speaking dur ing the debate in the Legislature, made it clear that there had been an error in drafting the principal ordinance, as there was no intention that the detailed town planning scheme should be published in the official gazette after it had been approved by the Governor- in-Council, the scheme being already available for inspection by_ the public as an independent publication.
T O W N P L A N N I N G C O N T R O L. GREATER GEORGETOWN I.REA : Fifteen hundred and sizty- nine appl ications were examined -for planning control under the Greater Georgetown Plan.

These appl ications were considered at twenty- five meetings of the Building Applications Committee of the Central Housing and Planning Authority.
Details are as follows :- i.PPLIC : ... TI ONS RECEIVED /1.PPROV-SD PERMISSIONS REFUSED Residential Buildings Residential and Commercial Buildings Commercial Buildings Residential and Industrial Buildings Industrial Buildings Public and Institutional Buildings Subdivision of lots Trade Licences, l ermission for use of premises and outline appl ications •• •• •• •• •• •• .. 1139 72 22 16 12 20 1281 61 128 1470 29 7 3 1 1 1 42 19 38 99 Total 1569 On the 16th August, 1957, the Mayor and Town Council of Georgetown, informed the Central Housing and Planning Authority that the council had been advised by its l egal ad viser that the council was the proper body to deal with appli cations for the subdivision of lots in the city.
In consequence, no further applications for subdivision of lots within the city had been received from the council.

• ... .. 4.

Subdivisi on of land is a fundamental aspect of urban in fact, undue fragmentation of land in Georgetown has planning and is a basic principle in the Greater Georgetown Plan; been one of the Chief factors in the creation of slums .
The Central Authority has written the law Officers asking that definition of the word 11development11 in Chapter 181 be ex tended to include subdivision of land.

RURAL Ji.REAS • The Central Housing and Planning Authority has passed resolutions, and town planning schemes are under preparation for, Lot 79 Courantyne Coast - Section c. Charity, Pomeroon River .

:1e1ville and Sans Souci, Wakenaam.


Pending the design and subsequent approval of a scheme, it is important that development is not retarded; at the same time it is undesirable that development should be encouraged which would be inimical to the implementation of future planning proposals .
In order to meet both conditions the Town and Country Planning Ordinance, allows for normal development of land in the area, but provides for the Central Authority to examine applications and to attach conditionsmere it thinks fit.

During the year three such applications were examined and all were approved.

They were:- Residential applications : One at Lot 79, Section 11CH, Courantyne, One at Charity, Pomeroon River.

Subdivision of Lands One at Melville and Sans Soud, Wakenaam.

NEW AMSTERDAM.
NEW AMSTERDAM.

The Mayor and Town Council of New Amsterdam passed a resolution asking for the preparation of a town planning scheme.

Later, Dr .

L. C. Hill, Local Government Re-organisation Officer, felt that such a scheme should embrace communities located out side the boundaries of the town of New J.JT1Sterdam, but forming part of the built up area .
Considerable discussion and field visits were carried out by officers of the Local Government Department, the Municipality of Nev: Amsterdam and the Planning Team, as a result of which a report was prepared by Dr. Hill with proposals for a Greater New Amsterdam plan.

lit the same time, a land use and sociological survey of New Amsterdam and its envir.ons was commenced in order to make preliminary decisions with reeard to urban boundaries, local government areas and a green belt.
The survey was designed and executed in such a manner that the information would be useful when a future town plan is being prepared; analysis of the survey is now in progress .

/, preliminary plan and a description of the possible urban extension for Ne-w Amsterdam wer e prepared for the Local Government Department .

• 5.

PL h N NIN G SURVEYS.

Detailed planning surveys were completed for the following places = i .
Kitty Railway Land in connection with the disposal of land owned by the Transport '"ind Harbours Department to occupants .

It is desirable before disposing of this land to retain such areas as ·would be raquired for street widening and public open space • .

,I .. l .

ii.

Lodge Vill~-e for the purpose of designing projections of Bent Street and Norton Street across the village and for locating additional access roads across the village.
The proposed street reserves would be designed to improve existing storm drainage facilities.

iii.

Charity, Pomeroon River in connection with a town plan for guiding future growth of this !7!Z-rk et -cown.

iv.

Cane Grove with regard to an extension of resi dential development for the land Settlement Department.

v .

Crabwood Creek.

Portions of Grants Numbers 1780 and 2767 for the purpose of self help residential construction.

vi.
vi.

Bush Lot, in order to desien a site plan for a new school, community centre, sports play ing field and residences for teachers .

REP OR T S .

Reports and memoranda were prepared dealing with the following subjects i- i.

A portion of Thomas Lands .

This report in cluded drawi!'

gs, dealing with topography load- bearing capacity of the soil, foreshore gradients, and other data required by f~ssrs .
Gurtis and Davis, .1.rchi tacts-Engineers of the United States, in connection with~ proposed tourist hotel.

ii .

'Ihe re-development of that portion of central Georgetown destroyed by fire during November 1951.

This report with i ts recommendations was approved by the Central Housing and Planning 1.uthori ty.

iii.

.

:spects of planning control having regard to the 1947 Town Planning Act in England, and similar legislation in B:itish Guiana.

iv .
iv .

The separation of the functions of Town and Country Planning from those of Housing, This was submitted to the Working Party examining ... --r,equireroonts for establishing a separate Town and Country Pumning Depari:aellt .

.. ... 6. v. The value to the Caribbean region of t:1e to-1n and country pl aming development conference held in Trinidad during 1956.

Prepared at the request of the Secr etary General of the Carib bean Conmission.

vi.

Sitinr a cottage hospital at Leguan.

vii.


The use of land zoned for car per ks in t he cen tral area of Georgetown.

viii.

Siting of cinemas on certain lots in George town.

ix.

Siti ng of petrol filling stations and motor service stations o~ oortain lots in Goorg()a town.

RESIDENTIAL SITE IilY0UT PLANS .

The following layout plans were complrted for resi dential development: Housing and Planning Department : Crabwood Creek (Grant No.

1180) Crabwood Creek (Grant No.


2767) Wismar (hill)(Redesign) Wisrnar (Finnl scheme) Beterverwagting- Triumph (Redesign) Golden Grove Sparendaam 29 dwelling units II II " JI II II 12 51 It If 38& JI 212 286 91 II 11 II 1,070 Land Settlement Department : Bagotelle-Strathavon 82 dwelling units 1,152 dwelling units Private developers : Ji.

scheme for Blair Devel op ment Compaey at Bel Air Park- Middle ~ncome Development A plan for •'1r .

G. B. Patter son at Pln.


Bel 1.ir - Upper I ncome Development 101 lots 21 l ots h plan for Mr .

Ganesh of Pln.

Blenheim Leguan - Rural dwellings 7 lots 12, lots ~- -- .. .. .... .,, 1211 PLANNI NG DES I G NS .

The following planning designs were completed: i .

A study for cycle parks along paved side walks in central areas .

ii.

Zoning of Sparendaam and Plaisance Market.

iii.

1. layout plan for a schooL-master ~~ res~ dance, community centre and sports field at Bush Lot, He'st Coe.st, Berbice.

iv.
iv.

A planning desir-n for a new neighbourhood at Wis:na:r, Demerara River .

The scheme pr0- vides for residential and commercial develop ment, and includes facilities for public open space, cultural facilities, and government offices .

v .

Studies in connection with siting a new ad.

ministration building for New i~sterdam.

vi.

A redesign for the proposed re-development of the 1951 fire area in central Georgetown • vii.
Studies for the widening and improving of Vlissongcn rtoad from the sea wall to Prin ces Street.

viii.

Preliminary studies of slum clearance pr0- posals at lot 79 Courantyne Coast.

LI.ING :.VENU: FL.:.TS.

These ap~.rtments were tenanted throughout the year except for the short periods involved in ro-allocating them after ter mination of tenancies or trznsfers .

During this period there were 17 transfers to higher or lower rental accommodation.
Seven tenancies were termincted 2nd 15 new tenants moved into the apartments .

The tenar.ts were allocated hire-purch.

!se houses .

co:•r UNITY ·,roRK .

Band concerts by the B. G. Militia Band were arranged by the courtesy of the Commissioner of Police .

Cinema shows were discontinur:d because of the lack of a building in which 11> have them.

The bonds which Here formerly used were temporary structures and were dismantled.
Membership of the Co-operative Thrift and Credit Society increased to well over 200.

Various religious bodies organised activities in the area for the benefit of residents and at Xmas ona tenant by her own efforts, held a Xm~s p~rty for children in the area.

!

'L' .. IllTEP .NCE .

It was after the inauguration of a bus service with a terminus on the avenue it was decided to widen the avenue and .. • f , ' 8. construct a footpath to allow for easy flow of traffic .
Con sequently, work wns started on shortening the concrete pathways from the avenue to the apartments .

WORT~LNVILLZ.

Dur~ng the yeur there were four transfers of tennnts f r om this estat e, two tenancies were terminated and su new tenants were given accolllf.'lodation.

COI-1:lUNITY WORK .

1 .. s this estate is within the city limits th e tenants benGf'ited from the social and community services provided.

MhINTE~JI.

:NCE .

General r epairs were effected during the year .


ST .. TISTICS: Statistics showing the number of buildings constructed in both urban and rural areas are shown in the appendix.

The report of the Director of --udi t is attached, along with the balance sheet and statement of revenue and expenditure as required by section 49 of the Housing Ordinance, Chepter 182.

--- PriB(P)Re-1: ~:.rru Uill .

/ MEMBER January 1960 .

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