In the beginning, it was always about doing business in the Capital, everyone who traded had a product or any other business ideas and needed office space of any type, for rendering a service, ensured they found some City space to ply their trade.
The city was owned by affluent persons, housing was for the elite and the general populace used the sidewalks or roadsides to eek-out a living, especially those who did farming.
Lo and Behold, the traders and major businesses decided to spread their wings, so other towns and new business sites and areas were sought and soon Castries was a decaying city.
All affluent business prospective persons sought the North (Rodney Bay to be exact) and invested in the beach-fronts and other sites they deemed as affluent to make their daily living.
Years later, after the death of Castries, they now want to reclaim.
It is the ordinary people and the ordinary Service persons and rum shop owner’s and small businesses that kept the city of Castries alive, but now life has become a challenge and everything these days is about making a buck, becoming self-employed or being hired by who can pay, in an effort to help themselves.
Now the city council is obtaining all possible space as a means of acquiring wealth, while the average man and woman hustler is given a small cubical, a mini store room to keep their survival alive without the proper layout or presentation and display advantages.
Some vendors are pleased to be empowered because a small space is better than no place at all, but it has not been fitted into the city revival development plan to give them a better opportunity for ensuring a survival so patrons can see a better survival.
The few open spaces in the city that evolved through demolition, or fires and structural defects, are all car parks for revenue-generating for the state. Soon, all wayside parking will also be used for revenue support.
Some other spaces such as The Gardens (George V Park) remain as cultural and historical sites and also a car park, rather than changing it to accommodate the growth of vending development in the city, have to be revamped
So, as the want-to-be vendor can get a break because one cannot rent because the actual cost of renting in the city is prohibitive and buying a property is out of the picture, and getting space is only granted if regulated by the state.
In the grand scheme of things, the City’s development and expansion prospective does not include the general populace, the Malaway, that grouping is not included in the state’s plan.
Some ministers give token help for political support, but the larger planning and revival of the City is not going to be replaced by genuine planning.
So, I think it is time to redesign the city of Castries to meet the demands and needs of the masses, not the usual selected few who are presumed to be voters.
Our society is diverse and everyone wants a stake, so we all have rights and need privileges, but it’s tomorrow’s planning that needs tweaking.