Four weeks after he agreed to hold his hand on the further demolition of the Greyfriars Church of Scotland at Frederick Street, Port-of-Spain, owner Alfred Galy says discussions are continuing with the Ministry of National Diversity and Social Integration.In a telephone interview yesterday, Galy confirmed he was "happy with the way the talks are going."
Following a meeting with Minister Rodger Samuel last Friday, Galy said discussions would resume as soon as the holiday period was over. However, he revealed that negotiations held thus far "seemed to be heading in a positive direction."
Following the purchase of the historical property adjacent to Galy's business at the corner of Prince and Frederick Streets, Government, along with the non-governmental group Citizens for Conservation and the Council of the National Trust, became concerned after it was revealed Galy intended to demolish the property to construct a modern business in its place.
Citizens for Conservation had planned to list the property as part of the Woodford Square Historical District.But on November 30, Galy ordered workmen to begin demolishing the church and church hall.Following an intervention by Samuel and other conservationists, Galy agreed to halt demolition work and discuss the matter with officials.Contacted yesterday, Samuel said during Friday's meeting, Galy shared some of his designs for the property with him.
Asked to reveal the details arising out of the meeting, both Samuel and Galy declined as a "sign of good faith."However, Samuel did say, "Yes, discussions are going very good," whilst Galy said he was hoping for a resolution soon.The demolition work began around 5 am on November 30 and was only stopped after Samuel's adviser, Dr Nurah-Rosalie Cordner, jumped atop an excavator which was tearing down the church hall and the northern wall.
A day after Galy agreed to halt demolition work, a structural engineer visited the site and determined the integrity of the remaining structure was "sound."Discussions between Samuel and Galy were then convened, with Planning and Sustainable Development Minister Dr Bhoe Tewarie also participating. Tewarie was instrumental in taking a proposal to Cabinet with a view to salvaging the structure.
Efforts to contact Tewarie yesterday were unsuccessful as calls to his cellphone went unanswered.
Church History
The first minister of Greyfriars Secession Church, Glasgow, the Rev Alexander Kennedy, arrived in Trinidad on January 25, 1836, to begin a mission to the newly emancipated slaves.At this time, apart from the Catholic church (Immaculate Conception), the town of Port-of-Spain had a single Church of England (Trinity) and a Wesleyan chapel (now Hanover Methodist Church).
From the outset, the Wesleyans were very helpful and allowed their church to be used by Kennedy until he was able to rent a building, formerly used as a theatre. This, the first place of worship, opened for service on September 25, 1836.This building, soon discarded, was in Cambridge Street (formerly the section of present day St Vincent Street from Park Street to Oxford Street).
The first moves to build a church in Port-of-Spain were in 1837.The governor offered land, and perhaps would also have given funds for a church, as he had done for the Trinity Cathedral.He was surprised to learn that the new "Greyfriars" congregation would not accept this and insisted on purchasing the land and paying for its construction on their own.
The building commenced on April 10, 1837, with the first service being held on January 10, 1838. It then opened under the historical name of Greyfriars on January 25, 1838.