Some of the completed units at the Lodi sheltered-housing project.
ST. EUSTATIUS--The first phase of the sheltered-housing project at the Lodi complex adjacent to the former Antillean View Hotel, which was launched in March 2019, has been completed.
The contract was awarded to Merkies Construction under direction of Directorate of Society and Welfare head Carol Jack-Roosberg, jointly financed by the Ministry of Home Affairs and Kingdom Relations, the Ministry of Social Affairs and Employment and the Ministry of Public Health, Welfare and Sport.
The first phase of the project started under former Government Commissioner Marcolino “Mike” Franco and former Deputy Government Commissioner Mervyn Stegers.
An excavator demolishing the former Antillean View Hotel in 2019. (File photo)
Five units were built in the first phase. Overall, the project is expected to provide 20 units in a sheltered environment to accommodate senior citizens and persons with a disability who live alone. More single- and double-bedroom units are expected to be constructed during the expansion of the project
The units will be self-contained and easy to manage, ranging from a simple bed-sit to a large apartment or a small house. The project will be aligned with the Home Care Department of St. Eustatius Healthcare Foundation and the Department of Social Affairs.
The housing will give tenants the ability to have some form of independent life. The elderly tenants in the units will have access to a panic button, while a registered nurse is expected to be on call.
The Directorate of Economy and Infrastructure and the Reconstruction Programme St. Eustatius 2017-2019 supervised the sheltered-housing project.
