By Myria Hart – Thursday, January 21st, 2010  (The Daily Observer)

Kelvin Punter, chairman of the Barbuda Council said plans for the Artisanal Fisheries to be built by the Japanese are moving ahead smoothly.

It “is going according to schedule and the groundbreaking will take place in the next two weeks,” Punter informed The Daily OBSERVER yesterday.

He disclosed that three persons including the contractor and the engineer will be arriving in Antigua on Sunday, January 24, and will make courtesy calls on government officials and the Fisheries Department.

They will then journey to Barbuda on Monday 25 for the 18-month duration of the project. Others will arrive as material arrives on island and as the need arises for expertise on the job.

According to the chairman, the Chinese construction of the community centre is also slated to begin this month, but he is not sure when the Chinese will arrive on island.

However, the drawings and all else have been approved by the government of the People’s Republic of China. The centre will be built just off the River Road, near the Nurse’s Hostel.

Meanwhile, he said, the last meeting held on Tuesday night to discuss the regulations to effect the Barbuda Land Act went very well.

“We have completed the regulations. We got the resolution from the village meeting to take to council which we hope will take place some time next week,” Punter said. After discussions with the attorney general, attorney-at-law for the council Leon Chaku Symister, and council members, the resolution will be passed on to Parliament, where he hopes it will be dealt with during the next sitting. “We’re anticipating that everything will go according to plan from here on,” the chairman added.