Minister of Urban Development to lead consultation on parking in Kingstown

The new Minister of Urban Development, Benarva Browne, is expected to lead a national consultation on urbanization, including associated problems such as parking in capital city, Kingstown.

This was stated by Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves, as he responded to a question in Parliament last Thursday, July 13.

The question was asked by Opposition Member of Parliament for Central Kingstown, St Clair Leacock who wanted to know about the initiatives in place to assist with parking in the city.

In his answer, Prime Minister Gonsalves admitted that “city parking is a major challenge in urban areas in both developed and developing countries.”

He added that the parking problems in Kingstown have to be addressed and that the new Minister of Urban Development will lead a national consultation in this regard.

Prime Minister Gonsalves, who had responsibility for Urban Development after then Minister, Julian Francis fell ill, said 79 additional parking spaces were created in Kingstown with the removal of vendors from the streets.

In response to a part of the question concerning the clamping of vehicles, Dr Gonsalves said police officers use their discretion when clamping.

“Generally speaking, the police give people a break,” he said, while suggesting that clamping of vehicles is not a major problem.