7 News Belize

Another Expensive New Toy For City Hall
posted (January 11, 2017)

And also in the fancy new truck business is the Belize City Council.  Today, that municipal body received the last of five pieces of heavy equipment under the flood mitigation project. This time it’s a new asphalt truck and Councillor Phillip Willoughby showed us how it works. He says it will be helpful in paving the City's streets...

Phillip Willoughby - Belize City Councillor
"Well this is one of 5 new equipment that came through the flood mitigation infrastructure project; again gentrac was the contract bidder for procuring the equipment and this is the last one that came into the country and this the city's new asphalt truck, this is the game changer and this will be the equipment that will be impacting the lives or changing, transforming people's lives whereby their streets will be paved by this said equipment right here. So like I said this is the game changer and you could see a positive impact on people's lives once their street has been paved and the city now has that capacity to deal with its own street paving."

Alex Courtenay
"Sir you said this will be paving the streets but it will also be paving them in a much faster pace than we've ever seen before correct?"

Phillip Willoughby - Belize City Councillor
"Yes the council now has again its own asphalt truck so we can determine the deputy mayor, Dean Samuels who has the portfolio for works will now be coordinating along with his department and team along with us which streets that will be paved but I presume emphasis has to be had with the streets that are urgent at this current moment and those are predominantly in Pickstock - Mr. Elrington, Lake I, I think councillor Edwards is looking at those streets along with Dean Samuels the deputy mayor. We have the Collet division and the Port Loyola constituency of which Dean Samuel is vying for in the next elections."

Alex Courtenay
"As you mentioned these are world class piece of equipment. How much has this actually set the city down?"

Phillip Willoughby - Belize City Councillor
"I can give you the entire package but by line item this is a pretty expensive asset that the city is acquiring. I am saying also that for every penny spent on it, priceless invaluable for the residence of Belize City because again like I said it is the game changer for us, it will become that, it will be impacting people's lives positively and that is our hope and dream to pave as much street if not all the street in the shortest possible time once the weather permits and we can coordinate it with our works personnel."

Alex Courtenay
"So you don't have a monetary value?"

Phillip Willoughby - Belize City Councillor
"You can check the details but I believe it cost well over 100,000 plus dollars that much I can say."

Several City Council personnel are being trained by experts to properly operate the asphalt truck. Willoughby told us that he hopes that these new operators can eventually be sent abroad to improve their skills and knowledge of the expensive piece of equipment.

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