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Archive -Seychelles

Renovation work on Victoria market starts |05 August 2017

 

The Sir Selwyn Selwyn Clarke Market will be re-roofed and more space will be created for vendors under the second phase of improvement works on one of Victoria’s most frequented sites.

The first phase was done last year and it included reparation on the butchers’ quarters.

In fact, work to re-roof the market was to start last night, following the signing of an agreement between the Seychelles Agricultural Agency (SAA) and Ascents Projects Engineers & Contractors, the successful tenderer of the project.

SAA chief executive Finley Racombo and Ascents Projects Engineers & Contractors managing director Rajesh Pandya signed the documents in the presence of Agriculture and Fisheries Minister Pamela Charlette, the Mayor of Victoria David André and agriculture principal secretary Antoine-Marie Moustache.

The project will cost R1.62 million and is expected to be completed by December 1, 2017 and the main consultant is Geovannie Molle.

“This is the second phase of the renovation work on the market and it is being done at a total cost of R1.62 million. It will involve a cover system at the main entrance where fish vendors are located. Then the work will move to the back where the curio shops are located. The work will involve extending the stairs and the first floor so that we can have more space for souvenir shops at the top. This will leave vegetable vendors with more space,” said chief executive Racombo.

He added that there will also be reparation works on the floor and drains. And to ensure the health and safety of the vendors and the continuous operation of the market, Mr Racombo said the renovation work will be done after working hours and on weekends.

The contractor will be working weekdays after the market closes from 5pm to 1am. Also on Saturdays from 1pm to 8pm and on Sundays from 8am to 4pm.

“We have to make sure the contractor has safety measures in place to make sure there are no accidents after they have done their construction work the previous evening,” he said.

Regarding the butchers’ quarters, Mr Racombo said there are minor works that need to be done now like repairing the glass door which is not functioning properly, improving the drainage system and the tables on which meat are cut and sliced and maybe propose to the butchers a more modern way of slicing their meat.

“There are certain tables that need to be readjusted so they can function better until we come up with something better. The sewage system needs to be fixed as it is in the old Victoria. With the recent developments that have happened in Victoria, there are always drainage problem and we have to seek help to unblock the drainage,” he said.

Mr Racombo called on the vendors to give their full cooperation by picking up all their vegetables after each day’s work so that the contractors can start work in the evening.

“It is a challenging project. That’s why the architect and engineers have designed a pre-fabricated structure so we do not do much in the inside except the foundation,” said Mr Pandya of Ascents Projects Engineers & Contractors.

He said when the foundation is done everything will be fabricated outside, then brought inside to be installed so as to create a minimum disruption in the market.

Mr Pandya explained that the roofing will be imported from South Africa while the steel structures for the beams will come from China.

 

 

 

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