By Fred Sturrup | GB News Editor | [email protected]
Recent months of ongoing road works have indicated that the Grand Bahama Port Authority (GBPA) is on the ball in Freeport.
Paving of roundabout sectors and residential areas have given rise to a new and refreshing feeling about Freeport. Residents of those communities which have been on the front line of the infrastructural upgrade are appreciative. Drivers throughout Freeport are enjoying the smooth approaches to roundabouts and recognizing a look that was once commonplace in the city which the GBPA, through the Hawksbill Creek Agreement, has municipal authority over.
GBPA Chairman Sarah St. George and President Ian Rolle are leading an initiative which coincides with the encouraging outlook the Government of The Bahamas has for the entire island of Grand Bahama, and the investment prospects.
For years, roadways in need of repair had added to the dismal economic cloud over Freeport and the rest of the island. Now, the millions of dollars the GBPA has invested in road restoration demonstrates, I think, a great recovery interest and a desire to begin the process of recapturing the glow of the Magic City. It is, for sure, a tall order to make Freeport magical again; but the approach of the GBPA, presently, is fostering enthusiasm among many, such as Bahamasair’s Airport Assistant Manager Harold Williams.
“Hurricane Dorian caused a lot of damage to the roadways and I think what the Port is doing is necessary. It falls right in line with potential developments we have heard of. I certainly give the Port Authority kudos for what is being done,” said Williams. The airport executive echoes the sentiments of a lot of Grand Bahamians.
So much is on the plate of the GBPA. There are still quite a number of derelict buildings in Freeport. The old International Bazaar is a huge eyesore. In some residential areas, individuals are still piling old, discarded furniture along the streets where they actually live.
It’s time for a culture change indeed.
Hopefully, residents will read appropriately into what the GBPA is doing and begin thinking accordingly.
The view here is that St. George, Rolle and their GBPA associates are up to the task.
Let’s see what the future holds.
For now, though, congratulations to the GBPA!