By Michael R. Granger

BELVEDERE--Their complaints were mounting. Their hands were tied. They are aware that their district is sometimes called unkempt and "ghetto-like." Some do their best to properly maintain their immediate area. Others can do better.

So it was no surprise that the residents of Belvedere hurled statements like, "It's about time" towards St. Maarten Housing Development Foundation (SMHDF) when it kicked off its first ever general maintenance and repair programme in late 2009.

Although residents cried out for a paint job just before Christmas of 2009, officials of SMHDF, though sympathizing with residents, reiterated that many of the wounds of Belvedere are self-inflicted and more frequent upgrading can be carried out if residents remained disciplined to their monthly obligation of paying rent on time.

SMHDF, for the first time in its 13-year history, is busy executing a general maintenance and repair of five two-bedroom apartment blocks and a one-bedroom apartment building.

The project is the realisation of the vision of SMHDF chairman Hubert Leo Chance who, upon commencing his tenure, immediately sought ways to address the state of the buildings.

As a non-profit foundation, SMHDF is solely dependent on the rental income for its operational activities, as well as for the proper maintenance services. Additionally, the proper maintenance of homes is directly dependent on the good paying behaviour of all tenants.

In other words, when tenants pay rent on time, SMHDF will be in a better position to address the necessary repairs on the houses and to plan a more regular maintenance scheme to prevent the need for bigger restorations.

Chance said with the support of the supervisory board, NAf. 458,000 was approved to carry out the work. "When I became chairman, I was determined to find the money to upgrade the homes. We also used a portion of the money to repair a mobile home, and received a generous gesture from Windward Roads and Yanno Concrete specialists who upgraded two mobile homes - one each - at no cost to the foundation," Chance said.

He added that other building in Belvedere will receive the same type of treatment as these first six buildings once funds are available. "And for that to happen, we need tenants to pay the rent on time. Do that and everybody benefits," he said.

According to Jose "Jos" Zimmerman, head inspector of SMHDF, the work currently being carried out is on five buildings on Delight Estate Road and one on Low Estate Road. It entails repainting the exterior of the buildings to the original colours, all doors have also been painted, windows on the upper floors replaced, cracks were "grinded" open and filled with a compound, rainwater gutters cleaned, and rotten woodwork replaced.

The building on Low Estate Road also received a facelift with a new coat of paint, much more eye-catching in colour, cracks were filled, lighting will be placed on the same timer as the street lights, metal railings were replaced, and other areas that needed repair will also be addressed.

Zimmerman said the building on Low Estate Road will be used as a pilot project when maintenance personnel move to the inside to repair any damage or nagging structural inconveniences.

SMHDF does not usually do work on the interior of the homes, since tenants choose to do that themselves. However, when a tenant opts to leave one of the homes voluntarily, that tenant has to restore the home to its original state.

As far as structural damage to the buildings themselves, after 13 years of wear and tear and tropical storms, Zimmerman was proud to announce that the buildings are still very solid and the structures and the roofing have not been compromised.

Board members of Belvedere Homeowners and Tenants Association (BHOTA) joined the representatives of SMHDF on an informative tour on Friday and left pleased with what they saw.

They said BHOTA has been pushing for this type of work to be executed and although it's a small beginning, it's a beginning nonetheless.

"The communication with Mr. Chance is better than we've had. We have a good relationship with SMHDF," said Benjamin Kelly of BHOTA. "We have a long way to go because all the homes have some sort of defect, but we understand that finances play a major role. So we encourage all tenants to pay their rent on time."

He was joined by board members Jacky Arrindell and Juliana Laveist who urged Belvedere residents to consider their neighbours and show some pride in their surroundings. Tossing of rice and old food in the gutters attract rats, and people full of pride should not be committing such acts.

"You may not be affected by it, but consider your neighbours." Kelly said BHOTA is currently busy with its community vision plan and maintenance is an issue of the utmost priority for the group.