Home The Big Stories $50 Million Booby Alley Housing Project to be completed in 2026

$50 Million Booby Alley Housing Project to be completed in 2026

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turning of sod by ambassador pf the prc to antigua and barbuda zhang yanling & prime minister gastone browne
Turning of Sod by Ambassador of the PRC to Antigua and Barbuda Zhang Yanling & Prime Minister Gastone Browne (photo by Elesha George)

By Elesha George 

[email protected] 

In the next 18 months, hundreds of people who once lived in subpar conditions in Booby Alley, Point will be moved to 150 condominium-style units on an approximately 1-acre lot in the capital city.

Grant funding from the People’s Republic of China (PRC) will lend to the construction of the EC$50 million urban renewal project that will replace130 dilapidated wooden structures, some of which were over 40 years old. The Booby Alley Social Housing Development Project, beating delays of COVID-19, legal challenges and inclement weather, finally saw its groundbreaking ceremony on Monday evening.

Clarence Pilgrim, chairperson for the Booby Alley Housing Project said 92 houses which collectively housed 302 residents were assessed as part of the development process. The new units are expected to be climate resilient and are expected to lend to one of its most pressing needs in that area – housing. Pilgrim said the project is “designed to bring hope and opportunity” for Booby Alley residents and fully aligns with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly the eradication of poverty and creating a safe and inclusive environment. 

Prime Minister Gaston Browne, who initially announced the multi-million-dollar housing project in 2018, described it as “the most significant social housing project” in one of the poorest communities in Antigua and Barbuda. His hope is that residents, who like himself grew up in squalor, will see this as a new beginning.  He warned however that rules may have to be adopted to ensure that the development does not revert to what now exists. “We have to make a commitment to ourselves and to each other to become more disciplined people because it’s one thing to build beautiful condominiums but if what took place in the past continues in which people are going to come here and peddle marijuana and other drugs, then it’s self-defeating.”

The EC$50 million Booby Alley project is the first stage of a much larger EC$100 million urban renewal initiative. Additional homes are planned for other communities where the poorer class reside.

Wei Shiquan, Vice President of ZhongAn HuaLi Construction Group said construction will be completed by the second quarter of 2026. And rest assured, according to Song Jianhui, General Manager at China Northeast Architectural Design & Research Institute, the homes will be built to international standards.

Once completed, the Booby Alley development will stand as the newest addition in the area next to the new cruise and cargo ports built in Point.

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