A NEW car park could be built for a major health centre that covers 48 residential blocks and serves around 50,000 people in the Northern Governorate.
A proposal in this regard was tabled by Northern Municipal Council member Dr Sayed Shubbar Al Wedaie who said visitors to Shaikh Jaber Al Ahmed Al Sabah Health Centre in Barbar often had difficulty finding parking spaces and had to park a fair distance away.
Some parked on Al Nakheel Street causing traffic congestion, he added.
“There are currently only 50 parking spots at the centre. If we imagine the centre has 100 employees, then the parking is not enough for even half the staff,” said Dr Al Wedaie.
“There is a 2,500sqm plot of land adjacent to the centre belonging to the Jaffari Waqf (Endowment) Directorate.
Approved
“It can accommodate around 130 parking spaces.”
Council chairman Ahmed Al Kooheji said parking had become a major problem for any project, be it a mosque, commercial property or shops.
The council unanimously approved the proposal which will be referred to Works, Municipalities Affairs and Urban Planning Minister Essam Khalaf.
The council also unanimously approved the allocation of a 1,889sqm plot of land in Demistan block 1022 for the Demistan Charity Society headquarters.
Meanwhile, at the council’s weekly meeting, technical committee chairman Abdulla Al Qubaisi accused the Northern Municipality inspectors of favouritism.
This came as he raised a query about clearing waste in his constituency nine (Hamad Town – western part from roundabout four to 13).
“The inspectors take arbitrary decisions; one person is fined BD80 for construction waste in front of his house while another on the same block has the same waste removed without being fined.
“A particular inspector himself told the citizen to place the construction waste on the corner and then fined him; that’s inappropriate.
“I’m going to file a complaint against this inspector alleging favouritism; the law has to apply to every person equally.”
However, Northern Municipality director general Lamya Al Fadhala said there was a difference between clearing garbage daily in neighbourhoods and the illegal dumping of construction waste.
She also pointed out that there are seven inspectors covering 158 blocks in the governorate and each one of them is performing his duties with integrity.
“The cleaning company is also doing an excellent job and the case referred to may have been received through the Tawasul app leading to the inspector removing the waste immediately,” she said.
Council’s financial, administrative and legislative committee chairwoman Zaina Jassim said it was not the responsibility of the municipality’s cleaning company to dispose of construction waste.
The law clearly states that a dumpster has to be placed outside properties undergoing construction.
“This is cleared either by the municipality or a bin is placed by the municipality and owners are then charged for the disposal.
“Clearing construction waste is not part of the contract between the municipality and the cleaning company as they are in charge of removing the regular daily waste,” she said.
reem@gdn.com.bh
© Copyright 2019 www.gdnonline.com
Copyright 2020 Al Hilal Publishing and Marketing Group Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (Syndigate.info).
