Residents blast Mae’s for occupying community ground

City Hall CoI

A number of residents of the Subryanville, Georgetown area, showed up at the Commission of Inquiry (CoI) into City Hall’s operation on Friday to highlight the issues they have been facing after Mae’s Schools invaded the residential community.
Mae’s Schools has been operating in Third Avenue, Subryanville, for a number of years and the building which initially started the school has now turned into four.
While operating in the area has caused major traffic disturbances and sewage issues, one problem which many are concerned about, is the Farnum Community

Ground which has been cordoned off for private use by the educational facility.
A resident of the community, Damian Fernandes, told the Commission that one-third of the public football field was cordoned off with a 12-foot fence by the school’s administration and is being used for the students only.
Additionally, all of the waste materials which were generated from construction on the school building were dumped on the ground. This includes wooden boards, large chunks of cement and steel rods. “If you check, you will see that the metal rods are still sticking out of the ground. The form boards that were used to cast the base were thrown with nails and you can see the nails sticking up and that’s how it is left for many months. The construction crew from the school is dumping builders waste on the ground,” Fernandes argued.
On many occasions, the residents would have tried to engage senior officials from the Mayor and City Council (M&CC) but it was a no-show on the Council’s part.
Furthermore, the Administrator of the school, Stacy French, indicated to the residents that she obtained a lease for the property. However, they were told by

Town Clerk Royston King that it was just a letter of permission.
Contradicting that, Mayor Patricia Chase Green stated that she was unaware of any such activities. French would have banned persons from utilising the public amenity by padlocking the gates to keep out certain “elements”.
“It’s very upsetting to see a private business now carving out a piece of our green space, fence it and padlock it for the use of private school students.”
Fernandes, along with other members of the community, are concerned since they feel it is a full-time job to handle these issues.
While the Mayor is insinuating that the ground was not maintained, residents presented evidence that it was maintained and footballers would utilise the facilities for the practice sessions. Fernandes explained that prior to this, the community ground was regularly maintained and $2.7 million was spent for its resurfacing.
At present, it is very difficult to weed the vegetation since machinery is being damaged by the concrete that was dumped in the area.
Another problem that is being faced by residents is the fact that parents are parking in front of their properties while waiting on their children and in the process; they are littering the environment on a daily basis.
The Commission also heard that the school’s administration is in the process of constructing another school in the area of which the residents are opposing. They vocalised that the area is a residential community and businesses should not operate in the vicinity.