Dear Editor,

When I was here last year, with great patriotic pride I took a European friend to see some of our quaint historic buildings in the city.

I also showed him the nice work done on the Camp street avenue and the fruit stand at Church and East streets. He took Video footage and I know these have been shown overseas. My friend was very impressed.

The huge problem I face, is the possible embarrassment when he and his family return later this year. First, I notice that Trent House on Main street has been demolished and no one can say if plans include retaining the original frontage at least.

Second, information is that the fruit operation was brutally removed by orders of the Mayor and Town Clerk.

His Worship I know boasts a beautiful art collection, and on TV I heard him appeal for us to help the M&CC beautify the city. Could His Worship explain his actions, while all around the city and quite nearby we see ugliness and dirt. A situation that the Mayor and his officers seem blind to.

Third, Camp street avenue is now occupied by strange lodgers, the benches are being destroyed, and there is poor maintenance. Imagine the rehabilitation was the work of dedicated and concerned Guyanese, what a nice way to encourage my friend from Europe who expressed a desire to help.

I suggest that City Hall put away the guns, pick up spades and clean up. When it has removed all of the ugly and illegal operations around, only then will they have the moral right to move things that look nice and attract favourable comments from tourists.

Yours faithfully,

Gerald Bacchus

Editor's note

Plans are afoot by the Camp street 2000 millennium project committee to replace the existing benches on the Camp street avenue with concrete benches that are less vulnerable to vandalism.