St Joseph man gets house for dead mother

ALPHA Cox said it was a bittersweet moment receiving the keys and documents for his house, which his mother applied for but died before getting the approval.

He was one of 19 recipients at the Housing Ministry Housing and Village Improvement Programme (HVIP) north distribution ceremony  at the Mt Hope/Mt Lambert Community Centre in San Juan.

Cox, who is from St Joseph, told Newsday his mother Jennifer Hinds should have been there with him. She died on June 7 at 62.

“It should have both of us taking the picture together. But her spirit is with me.”

Fellow recipient Georgina Arkless, 70, from Valencia, told Newsday she could not afford a home, and the HVIP was a good opportunity not only for her but for her grandchildren.

“If God happen to take me they will benefit.”

She explained that her former home was in a very poor state. “When rain fall I would put my foot in water. It was in a dilapidated condition.”

She thanked Toco/Sangre Grande MP Roger Munroe, who encouraged her to sign up for the programme after visiting her home and seeing the conditions she was living in.

The 19 recipients were from a number of areas including St Joseph, Matura, Valencia, Cumuto and Sangre Grande and environs,

Land Settlement Agency (LSA) CEO Hazar Hosein in his address said the HVIP benefits some of the neediest families. He said the programme also benefits small contractors, and about 48 have been involved with the programme since its launch in April 2018.

Hosein said when the programme started, the projected time to complete a unit was three months, given the self-help nature of the project, but some contractors were able to deliver complete core houses in just 21 days.

He explained the units are 480-square-feet solid structures with roof, windows, toilet and bath, and kitchen sink with space for two bedrooms, living room and kitchen. He stressed it is the responsibility of the home owner to separate the bedrooms and complete the floor and ceiling tiles.

The cost to the LSA is $130,000 per unit and the recipients bear a cost of about $35,000 to complete the units. He said a complete unit could cost $333 per square foot, which was significantly less than the open market cost of $750 per square foot for a modest house.

Housing Minister Pennelope Beckles said the distribution was a momentous occasion and added Government believes in the concept of affordable housing. She reported 199 families, including the 19 from Wednesday, have benefited from the programme.