Nine hundred and twelve new homes were distributed to their owners by the Ministry of Housing, through the Housing Development Corporation, on October 16, at a ceremony at Corinth Hills, one of six developments which were hand over. Keys were also distributed for Ridgewood Gardens, Golconda; Riverdale, Harmony Hall; and Infill homes in Union Hall, Harmony Hall and Debe, South Trinidad.

Feature speaker, the Honourable Prime Minister Mr. Patrick Manning indicated to the audience that the homes were the results of Government’s Housing Policy which was intended to de-shift the population from a culture of rental to a culture of ownership, thereby creating wealth for its citizens. Using Tarodale Gardens, Tarouba as an example, the Prime Minister said this flag-ship project sought to promote home ownership among former squatters of the Marabella area. As a result of the programme, Prime Minister  Manning said the new residents of Tarodale are now enjoying improved standards of living and a more comfortable way of life, “People can now flush a toilet, shower inside, wash their hair and sit on the front porch to dry it.” This was received with appreciative laughter and applause. He said that Government’s Housing Policy is all embracing and it will continue to provide safe and affordable homes to all citizens.

 Housing Minister Dr. Keith Rowley, who also spoke about wealth creation and distribution, said that at the start of the housing programme in fiscal 2003-2004, the Ministry of Housing spent approximately $4million dollars in infrastructural upgrades to various sites in preparation for the commencement of Government’s Accelerated Housing Programme. This figure rose to $8.15 million in 2005, $1.1 billion in 2006 and for fiscal year 2006-2007 stood at $5.548 billion dollars. This expenditure, he stated, has resulted in approximately $10 Billion dollars worth of real estate which has been made available to the citizen’s of Trinidad and Tobago. Saying that a house belongs to a family, Minister Rowley explained that this asset, which continues to increase in value, will be passed on to future generations, thereby creating wealth for citizens, for years to come.

Outlining project details, Acting Chairman of the Housing Development Corporation (HDC) Faris Al Rawi indicated that the Corporation is engaged in a policy of implementation, in keeping with Vision 2020. He further stated that the HDC was established two years ago to follow through where the NHA was unable to. In this regard, the Board of the HDC has sought steadfastly to improve the human and physical capacity of the Corporation.

Mr. Al Rawi said that Corinth Hills is expected to yield approximately 736 homes- 187 in the first phase were distributed at the ceremony- comprising single family units, townhouses and apartments.  The community will also have with three nursery schools, open/green spaces, community recreational facilities, schools, a library and infrastructure for flood control.

Similarly, Ridgewood Gardens, Golconda and Riverdale, Harmony Hall will also have community recreational facilities, open/green spaces, access to schools and commerce and underground utilities. The first phases of these two developments were distributed on Tuesday but on final completion they are expected to yield 200 and 136 homes respectively.

Combined, the six sites provide a variety of housing options, with single family units, townhouses and apartments.