But, as they say, "while di grass di grow, di haas di starve…" - and so it is for well known craft creators Naphty and Fahima. They are the owners of a craft store in the shadow of the Commercial Center - and they were pushed out to give way to construction.
As we showed you last week, they grudgingly abandoned their little setup at the bridge foot - which put them on shaky ground.
Today Mayor Bradley shed some more light on the current situation.
Darrell Bradley - Mayor, Belize City Council
"We would have given instructions about a year ago for the Commercial Center to be vacated because when we were doing the plans and designs for the building, the building will be - and has been, actually - turned over to the contractor. So, that building is actually a worksite. So, that building has to actually be empty, empty of city council staff, and empty of all vendors. One of the reasons why that's the case is that there were be an entire gutting of the interior."
"At the time, when we took those steps, we had 2 vendors who occupied spaces outside of the building, and you had 1 lady who I won't mention her name, who sold vegetables in the front areas of the building. And they asked us, because they were not - the works have begun in the interior first, and then, the outside of the building will be towards the end of the project. They had asked us if they can stay those locations closer to the time when we were ready to immediately commence works, so that they could - because they had difficulty moving and that kind of stuff. We gave them that level of reprieve with the understanding that when we needed the building for construction to begin, they would vacate. We worked with the person who sells vegetables, and that person now is at the Michael Finnegan Market. And so, we would have dealt with that individually. There's another individual who've worked with that person being able to sell at another location on Albert St, and I believe the Drums Not Guns person, at some point along the communication, agreed to go into Memorial Park - but don't quote me on that."
We spoke to Jones's wife who said that they are not at Memorial Park. They were not able to get a spot there.
However, she did receive a letter from the council today. The council expressed their appreciation for the business and also informed them that once the couple finds a spot they must bring it to the council so they can confirm if it can be used.
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