Chic-Paris International is probably an unlikely name for a hotel situated in the small, predominantly working class village of Dartmouth on the Essequibo Coast. The Hotel exists, nonetheless, large as life, and the proprietors and the residents alike are decidedly proud of Dartmouth’s accomplishment. Chic-Paris is attractive in its architectural modesty, not equipped, perhaps, with the Eurocentric refinements which its name conjures up. It is, however, a symbol of the determination of a son of Dartmouth’s soil to make a mark in the village of his birth.
Twenty years as a gold miner have provided Rickford Smith with the capital to sink $55m into the 10-room facility, a structure that has transformed that stretch of the Essequibo public road that runs parallel to Dartmouth itself. On July 31, Rickford and his wife Pamela began a new business journey, this time in the unlikely profession of hoteliers.
Sometimes you have to brave the odds, to nail your colours to the mast, to – as it were, take the plunge. That is what Rickford and Pamela Smith have done. When you ask Rickford his reason for locating a hotel in a village that has no visitor arrival track record he responds by saying that he believes that the venture has done much to “uplift the village” of his birth. The other reason he gives is a desire, nurtured from boyhood to make his 85-year old mother, Mary Little proud. Those he feels are good reasons as any to build a hotel there.
Rickford and Pam appear set on making the Chic-Paris the centrepiece of Dartmouth. Its attractive exterior encases ten self-contained single and double rooms, a conference area, bar, formal and semi-formal dining space and a snackette. The hotel is incomplete, its earlier than expected opening effected to facilitate a family reunion by a family from the village some members of which have migrated from Guyana. Just over a week ago nine rooms had been booked by overseas guests and the bar was busy. It is, Rickford says, an “excellent” beginning. He is completely bowled over by the fact that the Chic-Paris‘ first major assignment is an event of special significance to Dartmouth.
The rooms at the Chic-Paris all contain television sets and central air conditioning. Telephone service is to be installed shortly and further improvement plans envisage the addition of five rooms and the creation of a Dance Studio.
Seven employees have already been recruited to serve the hotel and a further eight are to be recruited. The hotel will facilitate a range of public functions including weddings, and receptions. Additionally, the facility will operate a snackette which will be open to the public. The proprietor’s plans for the facility include the cultivation of vegetables to meet the hotel’s needs.
So high is the unemployment rate at Dartmouth that the Smiths received more than 50 applications for the positions advertised. The Smiths are hoping that their own investment will pave the way for the creation of new opportunities for the community.
