Town Clerk Royston King yesterday announced that wash bays located in Queenstown will no longer be allowed to function and that proprietors have two weeks within which to cease operations.
The Town Clerk had initially given a 72-hour deadline for all operations to be discontinued, but a request made by a wash bay operator for it to be extended to two weeks was granted.
The announcement for the closure of the businesses came near the end of a meeting held yesterday in City Hall’s Chambers, where as many as 60 persons were in attendance. Of the number, three have wash bays in the Queenstown area. While many were the owners of the businesses, a few were prospective wash bay operators and owners of the properties on which wash bays function.
The meeting was held to address the effects of the growing community of wash bays on their surrounding environment and according to King, “…to ensure that we deliver to all citizens a city that is safe, that is healthy, that is green and to leave a legacy for the next generation of goodness and well-being.”
Foremost among the concerns raised was the fact that many wash bays were being operated in residential areas, within which commercial activity is prohibited. King also noted that the City Council has the authority to “regulate any and all business activity within the city.”
King stated that the council may look into assisting with relocation and that wash bay owners could organise to relocate under a contractual arrangement with the city. He noted that many had taken over “collective city space” and that those operating on parapets would have to pay the city to use same. Additionally, wash bay operations would no longer be allowed in yards or on bridges and operations on any reserves would carry a fee requirement.
When questioned by a Queenstown wash bay operator as to why other businesses were not being “given an ultimatum,” King related that the businesses in Queenstown had been attracting more negative attention than those in other areas, and the municipality had been flooded by complaints by not only residents, but officers of the Police Traffic Department.
King, in addressing the man’s concern that only wash bays were being targeted, said that the council will be re-examining all commercial activity in Queenstown and other residential areas, and such activities will not be permitted to continue.
Lawlessness
“We’re not taking back the city from the people, we’re taking back the city from lawlessness and indiscipline and one more, from poverty,” King announced.
Meanwhile, the other wash bay owners present were asked to return to City Hall on February 15, when they will be given a list of guidelines for operation and be allowed to register their businesses to facilitate inspection of their locations by the City Engineer’s Department and the Department of Public Health. Once inspection is passed, their operations will be certified and any misconduct can result in their badges being revoked. Registration will carry a fee of $2,000.
It was stated that the City Engineer’s Depart-ment has a design for all wash bays and a standard which must be met for operation.
King explained that moving forward, several organisations will be involved in the move to regulate wash bay operations, including the Guyana Fire Service to ensure businesses are in compliance with safety standards, Guyana Water Inc and the Environmental Protection Agency.
“We’re moving to a standard that will allow you to increase the profitability of your business, that will allow other people to come to you, people in high standing in society to come to you to seek your services and therefore you have to be of a certain standard. We’re modernising Georgetown and we’re not going to run makeshift, shack-like, shanty-arrangement wash bays,” King stated.
One Queenstown resident was incensed yesterday. The man, who operates a mechanic shop on Crown Street, Queenstown, in the same location that a car wash is operated, questioned why other businesses in the area were not being held to the same standard. “Nobody else ain’t getting ultimatum… Why aren’t they getting an ultimatum?” he questioned.
“The majority of wash bays are in residential areas. A lot of businesses are in residential areas. What are they going to do with them? What are you trying to do now, create jobless people and less revenue for the country? That’s the only thing that will happen,” Carlyle Roberts, proprietor of the Glow Detail Centre in Oronoque Street, Queens-town commented yesterday. Roberts was not present at the meeting and so was unaware of the outcome.
“…I don’t understand how they does go about doing things. So all these business round here going to close down? That’s trash budday,” he added.
Roberts stated that he has been running his registered business for the past eight years and provides service to several government agencies.
Other points of concern that led to the call for the forum were the need to control the number of car washes in the city, traffic congestion caused by the operations, noise pollution produced by the operation of equipment and loud music from vehicles, buildup of debris in drains and the blocking of the entrances of private citizens by those using the services of the wash bays.
The attendees were made to brief the council on the location of their businesses, whether they owned the land on which they operated and give an overview of their operations, including their water access and how they dealt with the debris that was left over from washing. Following this, they were given an overview of the potential impacts of the use of dangerous chemicals on the environment and those within it and the importance of following recognized guidelines for wash bay operations in order to promote a healthy and safe environment.
Last Thursday, the M&CC announced that it would be meeting with the operators of city wash bays in efforts to address the economic, environmental and public health concerns brought about by their operations.
The announcement came just two days after a letter was published in the Stabroek News detailing how one elderly Queenstown resident was affected daily by a car wash situated across the street from her Crown Street residence. The car wash was said to be the official wash bay for army vehicles.
