What’s the Contention With San Ignacio’s Board Walk?  

Later today, San Ignacio will celebrate the inauguration of a brand-new boardwalk and public space. You might remember that the groundbreaking took place just before the March 6th municipal elections. Since then, Area Representative Orlando Habet and the Belize Tourism Board have worked together to complete the project. However, Mayor Earl Trapp has voiced some concerns, noting that Town Hall was left out of the planning and execution process for the boardwalk and the adjoining marketplace.

 

Orlando Habet, Area Representative, Cayo Northeast

“I think it’s very disingenuous coming from the mayor, to say something like that because way back in February, we did inform him and he was against it. Matter of fact he went in the media and said that he was not informed and eventually he went back and said he had a meeting with minister Mahler saying that minister Mahler was supporting him. Something to that effect. Well after that we decided that we wanted to speak to him and he went out there with his architect and we looked at the area, we showed him the design. And he said fine, it looks good. Let’s do it. I think part of the problem that the mayor has is that he wants to be involved in the collection of the monies for the rent of the four little kiosk that we have but the rental of the kiosks will be put into a fund for the maintenance of the kiosks because the boardwalk is made out of lumbar and lumbar needs constant maintenance. Another thing is I think that he was hoping, and many of his followers were hoping that floods would have taken the boardwalk. Well it has now withstood maybe the second of the largest flood events that we have experienced in the last twenty-five or thirty years. And it is still there, it was covered many many feet above the roof. It is still there, it has been washed, it has been prepared, it is ready for inauguration. Again, very disingenuous because yesterday morning at about eight thirty, the mayor called me and told me that he wanted to speak to me about the management if the boardwalk. I said listen, I’m going to a meeting but as soon as I get out of it, in the afternoon or tomorrow, which is today, I will call you to explain to you what we are doing.”