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On Monday, Belize City Mayor Darrell Bradley, along with representatives from Belize Telemedia Limited (BTL) and the Caribbean Local Economic Development Program (CARILED) broke ground for the final two phase of the BTL Park upgrade.

The upgraded BTL Park is scheduled to be completed this November. The first phase of the works, which was done by RJB Construction at a cost of $800,000 saw the construction of a sea wall and the expansion of the park by about 40 percent.

In the final two phases, the work, which will cost $1.2 million, will be done by International Enviornment, and will feature infrastructural works, such as the raising of the park grounds by six inches, along with the construction of an amphitheater, volleyball courts, and business kiosks. In addition, a 100-foot pier that will extend out to the sea will be constructed.

According to BTL's Customer Service General Manager, Dr. Dionne Miranda, over the past 10 years, BTL has spent almost $1 million on the upkeep of the park.

Dr. Miranda said that BTL has changed the furniture in the park from wood to concrete.

"So having partners means a lot more to us, because it is not only a BTL interest anymore. It's more a city-wide interest."

Dr. Miranda added that the BTL team loves to have its name on the park , but it's also more exciting that we're actually going to see it turn into something that is amazing.

Mayor Bradley said that apart from the rising of the park by six inches, the putting of spaces for people to walk, spaces for people to enjoy.

"We are going to put in a fountain for kids. We are going to put in greenery and we are going to build an amphitheater that can accommodate large concerts," the mayor said.

We are going to overlay the entire park with kiosks so that we will have a space that is teaming with economic opportunity - opportunity for social enjoyment and meaningful interactions. We're actually going to put a beach area to the park and we will fill that area with beach sand.

The Reporter


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BTL Park, The Big Countdown

It's been almost 3 months since the ground breaking ceremony for the Belize City Council's renovation of BTL Park. During that time, City Hall has been challenged by critics who say that the project had stalled. So today, Mayor Darrell Bradley pre-empted further criticism by updating residents the progress that the contractors have made.

According to Bradley, if the weather permits, it will be opened in 41 days:

Mayor Darrell Bradley
"The project is a transformative initiative to BTL Park. The project is being done in 3 phases; the first phase has been totally completed, this includes adding 40% more park space. We did a massive land reclamation and we constructed a sea wall. The second phase is the adding of the park features; we will raise the park by 6 inches. We will put sidewalks all around the park, there is going to be an area for skating. There is an ample theatre, there is a pier, there is greenery, there are park benches, and there are garbage bins - so that phase 2 involves the making of this facility look like a park."

"Phase 3 is an innovative aspect of the park and this is the economic development portion and what phase 3 entails is the construction of 23 kiosks for vending purposes because the total plan for BTL Park is to ensure that the park is a commercial plaza for this area. You will know that this area of Belize City is an entertainment and tourism zone and our vision for BTL Park is that the park will be a place that's steaming with economic activity every single weekend from Thursday to Sunday."

"What we will do this morning is that we will unveil a sign which is right behind me and this sign will be a countdown; it's going to be 41 days to the opening of BTL Park and I say 41 days, God willing and with the weather cooperating with us."

Channel 7


Entertainment and Tourism Zone Coming For Belize City

darrell bradley

Mayor of Belize City, Darrel Bradley invited the media to BTL Park, Newtown Barracks this morning to provide an update on the ongoing refurbishment to the park.

MAYOR DARELL BRADLEY

"The project is being done in three phases; the first phase has been totally completed, this includes adding forty percent more park space.� We did a massive land reclamation and we constructed a sea wall.� The second phase is the adding of the park features; we will raise the park by six inches; we will put side walk all around the park; there is going to be an area for skating, there is an amphitheater; there is a pier; there is greenery; there is park benches; there are garbage bins and so phase two involves the making of this facility look like a park.� Phase three is an innovative aspect of the park and this is the economic development portion and what this entails is the construction of 23 kiosks for vending purposes.� The total plan for BTL Park is to ensure that the park is a commercial plaza for this area; you will know that this are of Belize City is an entertainment and tourism zone and our vision for BTL Park is that the park will be a place that is steaming with economic activity every single weekend from Thursday to Sunday."

In addition, the Mayor updated the media about the continued absence of Councilor Eric Chang from his duties in the Council as rumors had been circulating that Chang would be back in the country over the weekend.

MAYOR DARRELL BRADLEY

"Well he has still not come into Belize City; the difficulty that we have is that since removing him from Deputy Mayor and his works portfolio, the City Administrator and I communicated with him via email, we tried to get him by phone but could not get him; he has since not responded and so, our situation is that we really have not had any contact with him.� There are provisions in the City Council Act in terms of being disqualified from your office based on the extent of your absence, the amount of meetings that you have missed and things like that and we are monitoring those things clearly but that the situation with that is that since he has been removed, we have had no communication with him.� If he missed four or more unexcused meetings then he would be considered as disqualified from holding office."

According to Mayor Bradley, Chang has missed one meeting so far. The Mayor also responded to allegations that a dispute is brewing between the Belize City Council and Belize Waste Control Limited over several weeks of arrears owed to them. He says that this has been an ongoing issue over the years and the Council has been looking at ways to alleviate the expense of sanitation services.

MAYOR DARRELL BRADLEY

"One of the things that we had tried to do is putting in the residential garbage fee so that the cost for the city could be absorbed, in part, by residents taking up that responsibility.� One of the things that will help us in relation to that is the one of the sanitation contracts, the BML contract which cost us seventy eight thousand dollars per week, that will expire in January 2015 and what we had envisioned there is that we are not going to renew that contract and we are going to put in a law that will require members of the public to maintain two feet in front of their property line.� That is going to help us tremendously, in terms of ensuring that there is alleviation and that the tax burden and the expense go down substantially.� If the BML contract is discharged by time, that is going to be a savings of four million dollars from the City's revenues that we could put in streets, drains, public spaces and we could ensure that we don't have much of a problem with the waste control contract.� I have maintained that the collection of garbage is a necessity for the city; we need somebody to pick up the garbage, it is a public health concern; we are in discussions with the sanitation contractors; I understand Waste Control's position, I am a businessman and it would be unnerving and it would be unnerving for me to have to wait for payment for ten weeks; the reality is, though, that the regime, in terms of sanitation in the City is unsustainable and every year we get the same comments and we can't continue along the lines.� We have maintained that what happens is that every year for the month of September, October, November, December, we usually fall in arrears with them and what happens is that by January, February, March - we usually pick up."

The Mayor says that he and the sanitation company are presently in discussions to resolve the issue.

LOVEFM


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Marty Offline OP
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City Hall Training Service Providers For New Park

The Belize City Council is little more than a month away from their grand re-opening of the BTL Park. Part of the plan for the renovated public space is that it will be an area of increased business activity where 21 food venders will be set up with kiosks to house their operations.

In an effort to assist the vendors to optimize, the Council is conducting a 5 day training workshop.

It started this morning, and 7News stopped by to see the opening. We asked the Mayor about why City Hall felt it necessary to facilitate the vendors. Here's how he explained it:

The training comes under the CARILED program.

Channel 7


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I was invited to visit the park this last week to choose colors for the Kiosk. It is going to be beautiful. What seems special about this project is it is geared for Belizeans and their families, not a tourist geared project. It will be a place for children to fly a kite or do their homework. Schools can put on performances on stage or a major concert can be held. There is even a volleyball area in the project, think I heard a skateboard area as well. It will be great. Also very bright colored kiosk.


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BTL Park Will Be Done By the Christmas

Exactly three weeks ago Belize City Mayor Darrell Bradley updated the media that the renovation of BTL Park would be completed in 41 days and that the newly refurbished park would be officially opened on December 7th. Well the rains have been almost constant since then so we took the opportunity to ask Bradley if this has affected the scheduled re-launch of the park.

DARRELL BRADLEY

"In relation to BTL Park, we have noticed that there has been a setback. The date that we have set, 7th December to launch the park has been forecasted, all things being even, including the weather. The three weeks have really held us back. One of the things that we are looking at is that the contractors are really working well, they worked on the weekends; they worked this weekend, I did an inspection out there and so we are going to make a final decision as it relates to the launch but even if there is to be a delay, I don't expect that it will be more than a week or so and we are expecting that the park will be opened before the Christmas holidays. We are still having our countdown, that hasn't changed; we are finalizing bringing in an international artist for the launching of the park; we are working with all the vendors, we finished the training of all the vendors last week. It was a very exciting process; the City Council is giving each vendor a grant of $1500.00 to assist them with the launch of their business; we have provided them with a contractor to help them outfit outside of their business; we are working with BTL and with other stake holders to ensure that the launch is a huge success and if it is that we have to delay that process, it won't be too long of a delay and we are marshalling along in terms of having a very spectacular launch; we have already arranged twenty minutes of fireworks to open the park with a huge bang for the benefit of residents of Belize City."

According to Mayor Bradley the Belize City Council's vision for BTL Park is that it will be a place that's steaming with economic activity every single weekend from Thursday to Sunday.

LOVE TV


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BTL Park Opening Pushed Back By Rains

At a projected cost of 1.4 million dollars, the BTL park is projected to be the most expensive public space in Belize City's history. It was supposed to be opened this coming weekend, but, time's up on the project and the much-hyped countdown is off, for the time being at least. That's because of the rains which put back work significantly. The contractor tells us that 150 workers on and off site are going at it 7 days a week to make a new opening date, which the mayor says is December 20th. We'll keep following the progress...

Channel 7


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Launch of newly renovated B.T.L. Park delayed, but park 90% done

The newly-renovated, quite spiffy looking B.T.L. Park was to have launched on Friday, and the first event to greet that launch would have been City Hall's annual Christmas event. But the rain which shows no signs of stopping anytime soon has put paid to that idea. Because the works were slowed down, the Park will not be ready this Friday. Mayor Bradley is disappointed, but insistent that rain can't stop City Hall's Christmas bash. So he's moving the whole shebang over to the Memorial Park. Today he told News Five that the park will be finished soon, as it is close to ninety percent done.

Darrell Bradley, Belize City Mayor

Darrell Bradley

"We had to announce this morning and I had a discussion with our Planning Committee and our architects and engineers doing B.T.L. Park and we had to put off the launch of B.T.L. Park. I was very, very disappointed. We were planning this launch on the twentieth which is Friday. The City Council does a Christmas program anyway so what we will do is we will move our Christmas program to Memorial Park. All the activities have already been contracted so we will still have a massive party. We've already engaged fireworks�that's going to take place at six o'clock. We've already engaged Demarco�he's going to perform at eleven. As you can see in the City Council room here we're wrapping fifteen hundred gifts that we usually give out at Christmas time. We have goody bags. We're encouraging all the vendors who were supposed to sell at B.T.L. Park to occupy temporary facilities at memorial park on this twentieth night, which is Friday�and to still sell whatever they were going to sell so that we are going to move the entire party from one location to the next. We also have engaged the rides�a Mexican company will set up the Ferris Wheel, roller-coaster and different things like that and the celebrations are going to kick off at four thirty in the evening and will go to midnight. We are still anxiously awaiting the completion of B.T.L. Park. The architects are continuing to work even in the rain. They have indicated to us that they will work as fast as possible. The park is about ninety percent completed. The superstructure in terms of the pier, the seawall, the land reclamation, the stage, everything, the kiosks, the walkway, everything is finished but the Park is really muck. We have to allow the soil to set, the landscaping, the electrical work, all of those things, the plumbing work�all of those things still need to be finished. And while its ninety percent complete that last ten percent has to do with the aesthetics and the look of it, and we didn't want to have the launch and not have the park be in the pristine condition that the architects say it will be when it launches."

Mayor Bradley says that City Hall will be closed on Christmas Eve and on the twenty-seventh, so while he wished residents Season's Greetings, he also sends wishes that they'll come in early to pay taxes which are due by the first of January 2014.�

Channel 5


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B.T.L. Park to be officially opened

B.T.L. Park remains under construction after several months of diligent restorative work.� The relentless rains, however, have caused major delays in the reopening of the recreational space.� Despite an initial launch date being set in early December, the Belize City Council has had to postpone grand event.� Mayor Darrell Bradley, in an interview with the media, gave an update on the progress of the park.

Darrell Bradley, Belize City Mayor

"If you recall, we had planned the launch of B.T.L. Park for the twentieth of December of 2013. Because of the continuous rains, we were forced to push that date backwards. We transferred all the launch activities including the free concert with Demarco and the fireworks display and many of the vendors and we transferred that to Memorial Park and we had a massive concert there which was very successful. I did a tour of B.T.L. Park with the on-the-ground foreman and he has advised me that the park will be ready by the first week in January. We are looking at January tenth. The park is about ninety-five percent completed; there is only one booth that is left to be finished. We have a lot of vendors who are already in the park. For example, Mister Ferguson, who does the photography, he is already opened. He opened at Christmas Eve and he is already taking business. We have several other vendors that are already in there. The City Council gave each of the vendors a fifteen hundred dollar grant to assist them with the transition into the park. And we are having a soft launch which is a ribbon cutting ceremony in early January just to launch the park and make it available for the public. And we will have a larger concert type activity on Valentine's Day which will be a bigger activity, similar to what we did at Memorial Park on December twentieth. But members of the public can already use B.T.L. Park and I expect that by January tenth, the park will be one hundred percent complete and open and available to members of the public."

Channel 5


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B.T.L. Park soon to be opened

The launch of the B.T.L. Park was initially scheduled for December twentieth, but the rains interrupted the opening. Residents will now wait a few more days because the park will be accessible to the public as of next Tuesday. Belize City Mayor, Darrell Bradley, invited the media to tour the facilities saying that the ceremonial opening will be followed by a grand concert on Valentine's Day.

Darrell Bradley, Belize City Mayor

"We are about ninety five percent complete. Of course you now that because of the rains we had to delay the launch of the project. We wanted to open the park on December and it was not possible. As it is right now we are just doing the final touches which are the cleanup work and the landscaping and the contractor has assured us that we will be ready for the soft launch on next week Tuesday. What we mean by the soft launch; it's going to be a ribbon cutting ceremony and we are going to have all the vendors who will be opening their kiosk to members of the public. What we will be doing is that we are going to be having a launch concert on Valentine's Day. The park is supposed to be done in three phases, we did the land reclamation and sea wall first and that of course we added forty percent park space to the park, that's of course long been completed. Now what they are doing which is phase two is making the park look like a park. The big volume of this part is of course the stage, it's the kiosk and it the pier and all of those works are fully operational, fully complete and they will be doing their final works. B.T.L. and the water company was here over the weekend just to make sure that everybody was hooked up to electricity and plumbing and all of that is right on schedule now.� One of the most important things that I want to mention about the park is phase three, it is really the economic development component, and we have really been working closely with the vendors; twenty-eight of them. To make sure that their business is a huge success."

The value of the project is two million dollars.�

Channel 5



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