Sagicor VP gives update on Estates project

SAGICOR has already received commitments for 60 of the units which will be constructed at its sprawling Estates project at Boarded Hall in St. George.

This latest update on the project, which is a retirement village, was given to The Barbados Advocate recently by Edward Clarke, a Vice President of Sagicor Financial Corporation.

He said that things are indeed looking up for the Bds$200 million project, which will see at least 120 units being constructed at the site.

He also revealed that right now, they are trying to get detailed plans in place for the tendering process.

The project will be put to tender this month and once everything is in place, Clarke said, construction work on the villas is estimated to commence between the end of March and early April this year. They are hopeful to get tenders back in March.

Some preliminary work has been taking place on the site, which is land owned by the Barbados Farms Limited, overlooking the St. George’s Valley.

“So things are looking up and we are hopeful weather conditions will be good,” he pointed out.

“We need to get the construction going, so that people will be able to get access to the units,” the Sagicor official remarked.

Construction of the project is expected to last at least three years, Clarke pointed out.

It will also provide a much-needed boost to the construction sector and more so the local economy, which is anticipated to register growth of under one per cent this year.

The construction industry has been somewhat slow in 2019 as Government promised a new thrust to bolster activity in the sector.

That growth forecast was given by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which last month gave its report on the 2019 Article IV Consultation.

However, the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) projects a 1.3 per cent growth.