CH&PA orders halt to construction of Mae’s School after works were finished – owner

Last Updated on Wednesday, 19 November 2025, 20:54 by Writer

The Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA) has 0rdered the proprietor of Mae’s School to “cease and desist” from all construction activities on Farnum Ground, Subryanville, Georgetown but he said he received no such letter and the erection of the prefabricated structure was already finished before October 6, 2025, the date of the letter.

“By the time that had reached, we would have already done our work. We finished that work in a couple of months,” he told Demerara Waves Online News.

Education minister Sonia Parag recently said that neither the local government minister nor the Ministry of Education had granted permission for the school to built on Farnum Ground.

In the notice of contravention by CH&PA Secretary, Rajesh Ramgolam, Mae’s School owner David Sugrim was informed that he and his agents were “engaged in unauthorised, unlawful and illegal construction activities on the Farnum Ground” in violation of the Town and Country Planning Act.

“The Central Housing and Planning Authority has not granted planning permission for such development and is neither in receipt of an application for such works,” the CH&PA official said in the correspondence.

Consequently, Mr Ramgolam notified Mr Sugrim to “immediately cease and desist from all construction activities at the Farnum Ground.”

He was threatened with legal action “as (it) is necessary to enforce” the law if he failed to comply “without further notice to you.”

But Mr Sugrim said he never received the letter that was addressed to him at Golden Grove, East Coast Demerara.

Further, he said that weeks before October 6, construction works had already ended. “We are not doing anything else there. We don’t have any more work going on,” he told Demerara Waves Online News.

Maintaining that he was “unsure” about any correspondence from the CH&PA concerning the prefabricated structure, he said that Authority had contacted him to modify the plan for the new school to be built on Second Avenue where fire had destroyed the previous wooden building.

The Mae’s School owner said since receiving permission from the Georgetown City Council to remain on the ground until after the new school building is constructed, City Hall had not contacted him again.

Mr Sugrim said he was sticking to the agreement to remove from the playground when the new school building is constructed.