Temple Yard vendors in Cheapside, The City, are feeling abandoned but authorities are assuring them they have not been forgotten.
A Nation team spoke to members of the Temple Yard Society, president Sherryann “Black Rose” Knight and public relations officer David “Guru” McClean who recently outlined their concerns.
“We want it made clear we are not angry with Government but we are very dismayed. There’s been a lot of misinformation going around and now we are like flotsam. We took down our stalls and have no place to put them,” said McClean.
The issue revolved around the vendors being told in April about plans to renovate the area. The vendors said they were told they were to prepare by dismantling their stalls, which would be removed while the authorities moved forward with their plans. It was initially said renovations would be completed in time for the International Cricket Council Men’s T20 World Cup, which came to an end last month.
Knight said: “We started to take down we shops but nothing happening now. A whole set of people come, people from the Sanitation [Service Authority] (SSA) and the PM’s [Prime Minister’s] Office and now we just here,” she said.
A man, who gave his name as Taylor, the former Temple Yard Society public relations officer speaking about the situation, said talk about renovation went back to last year.
“Last year October, different people saying they represent the Prime Minister’s Office came and told us Temple Yard must be renovated. This year the SSA and more people from the Prime Minister’s Office came and said the same thing again. We agreed to start dismantling our stalls within two weeks and Government would clean up but since then there has been no communication.
“We started doing clean-up ourselves because rodents started moving in. Temple Yard was a garbage site for the entire World Cup. Those who took down their shops had been promised compensation but there has been no further word on that. We are asking the Prime Minister to make things clear,” he said.
Knight said there was a meeting earlier with vendors where there was talk about possibly relocating to Pelican Village, but then that site was deemed inappropriate and they were now waiting to hear about the next step.
“They said we were misinformed and should not have taken down our stalls. Instead, we were supposed to hear from them [the authorities] first,” she said.
A vendor, who requested anonymity, said Temple Yard now looked like a shanty town, saying both the Government and the people of Temple Yard needed to take responsibility. She said her craft had been taken down in anticipation of the proposed renovation so now she would have to set up a tent to sell what she could.
Joy-Ann Haigh, representing the Barbados Tourism Investment Inc. (BTII), sought to clear up any misunderstandings, stating there was some misinformation regarding Temple Yard and it was never the intention to complete the renovations in time for the World Cup. She said meetings were being planned with the vendors.
“There was a meeting [Monday] between the Urban Development Commission, the BTII and other stakeholders and we are about to meet with all the vendors, we were just looking for a proper location to hold it. A representative from the Prime Minister’s Office spoke to the vendors [Tuesday] evening after you went there and we want them to know Temple Yard is very much on the front burner,” she said.
Haigh said there were two meetings scheduled with vendors though the dates were tentative. She said they would be held by next week and early next month, where plans would be outlined.
“Yes, there has been a delay but there will be meetings shortly. It is only fair they hear from us before they read it in the media,” she said.
