The Tribune

By YOURI KEMP

and NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Reporters

ykemp@tribunemedia.net

Village Road businesses are seeking VAT credits, plus Business Licence and real property tax waivers, to compensate for the damage inflicted by roadworks that have caused consumers to avoid the area “like the plague”.

Some 15 companies, all impacted by the now-ten month project that seems likely to extend into the New Year, set out their cry for help via tax breaks and other concessions in a December 9, 2022, letter to Alfred Sears KC, minister of works and utilities, whose ministry has oversight responsibility for the project.

Authored by Michael Fields, president of Four Walls Squash and Social Club, it also suggested that the Government provide “refurbishment grants” for residents and business owners to repair damaged premises, vehicles and other facilities impacted by the project. It also called for Bahamas Power & Light (BPL) bill discounts, and “full sponsorship” of a collaborative marketing campaign to entice consumers back to the Village Road area.

It is not unheard of for the Government to provide tax breaks and other concessions for businesses impacted by long-running roadworks projects. The last Christie administration did so for the New Providence Road Improvement Project, and Michael Halkitis, minister of economic affairs, yesterday said he would assess their plight - and requests - if submitted to him.

Acknowledging the roadworks’ importance, Mr Fields nevertheless said “an economic stimulus package” will be a vital tool in helping the area’s businesses to rebound in the New Year. “The sprawling construction and protracted delays have placed a crippling strain on local businesses, which employ hundreds of Bahamians,” he wrote. 

“The Government has recognised the importance of business relief in the past, and the risks of unwieldy roadworks literally putting Bahamians out of business completely. The current losses come at a time when the ordinary cost of doing business continues to rise, on top of the fact that we have all just barely emerged from the full impact of the pandemic.

“Small businesses have recently faced increases in electricity costs, property taxes, wages and inflation. When the work is complete, businesses will also incur high costs to clean up our properties, repair damages, and re-engage customers.”

Mr Fields continued: “Between the open trenches, unpaved roads, detours, strained traffic management and dust, customers are avoiding Village Road like a plague. The original target for completion, which was September 2022, and even the revised date of November, would have allowed local businesses to benefit from the holiday bump that most rely upon.

“Each missed deadline has serious implications for businesses, and there is little belief that the latest end-of-month forecast for completion will be met given the lack of clear communication and the conditions on the ground. With no clear end in sight, our reserves are depleted, our business planning efforts have become futile, and we continue to experience tremendous losses.

Mr Fields yesterday told Tribune Business that some businesses on Village Road have already closed down after access to their companies was choked off. “We received a letter in February that the road improvement project would commence, and the target date for completion was September, but then they switched it to December. But we heard that the completion date is now in January,” he said.

There have also been disruptions to electricity, telecommunications and water supplies. One shopping plaza has been without telecommunications for over a month to the point where its provider has had to issue cellular phones to tenants. 

Mr Fields said: “The businesses are struggling, and what we submitted to the Government - and this goes for future projects as well - is that if they are going to do any substantial road improvement projects, if they plan tax incentives for the businesses that would keep them alive and stimulate them to get them back in their feet.

“There is no paving being done now. None. Right now I think they are working on the water and sewerage side and doing connections, so they are still trenching and they are still working. All of us were in shock when we heard the new date for completion, because it was bad enough as it is for the December completion because we would have missed Christmas. There’s no end in sight.”