The complete renovation of the Lady of Fair Haven Cathedral in Roseau skyrocketted from the initial cost estimate of $2.5 million to about $12 million due to several factors that have been highlighted by Bishop Gabriel Malzaire, Bishop of the Roseau Diocese. With $9 million already spent on the project which was initially estimated to span three years, there remains an estimated $3 million to be spent on the project which has now lasted nine years.
According to Bishop Malzaire, repair works started on the cathedral in 2011 and it was initially expected to be completed in three years. But when two churces in the north were struck by an earthquake, the church leadership decided to test the integrity of the church to withstand natural disasters. Subsequent seismic tests confirmed that the foundation of the church must be reinforced if it must withstand natural events, and so the entire foundation of the church was retrofitted – moving up the initial renovation cost by a very wide margin.
Malzaire also noted that Tropical Storm Erika and Hurricane Maria delayed the progress of work on the church, that the need to procure quality construction materials from abroad caused signficant delays – occasioning the loss of two years in the construction process.
Assistant Diocese Engineer Tarik Rolle explained that renovation started with the removal of structures from the church, which included asbestos and termite-eaten roofing as well as concrete. He said steel frames were erected and concrete flooring were done, and then electrical conduits were laid, and shutters and doors were also fabricated and installed. He said workers are now installing the spire and retrofitting the bell tower.
Rolle identified uncompleted works to include the ceiling, joinery, termite infested partitions, painting of ceiling, tiling, mural painting, new vestry, installation of timber pulpit, as well as other external works on the church building and compound. With the restrictions of COVID-19, Rolle and Malzaire said the costs of completing the church might rise and the completion timeline might be elongated again.
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