Monnot to be dug up for the third time
This time it’s for electricity Hussain Abdul-Hussain
Daily Star staff
Monnot Street is to be dug for the third time in four
months, after Electricite du Liban (EDL) requested the installation of electricity cables
from the firm assigned to upgrade the street’s infrastructure.
“The initial project was for the improvement of Monnot’s sewage and draining
networks. After we completed our work, the Beirut Water Authority asked the Council of
Development and Reconstruction (CDR) to upgrade the water network,” said Marwan
Baasiri, from Al-Janoub lil- Imar, the company in charge of the project.
“We dug Monnot again and finished the underground water network. Then EDL asked the
CDR to install electricity cables. This will be the third time and will take us some three
weeks,” Baasiri told The Daily Star.
The project, funded by the Arab Fund for Economic
Development, covers four other main streets: Barbour, Hamra, Corniche al-Nahr and Karm
al-Zeitoun.
Funds for the project cover upgrading sewage and drainage networks only, said Baasiri.
“Additional costs for water and electricity works would be funded by CDR,” he
added.
Baasiri said that a proposal for turning Monnot into a pedestrian zone had been turned
down.
“But the street will be covered with block tiling instead of asphalt. Perhaps this is
the first step toward turning it into a street for pedestrians only,”
he said.
Baasiri argued against the rumors that the delay in construction was a conspiracy to
promote downtown pubs and restaurants in favor of Monnot’s pubs.
“It took us more time because of lack of coordination. This is the state’s
offices fault and not our own. Prior to the project we sent memos to all infrastructure
authorities informing them of our plans, asking them to provide us with maps. Their reply
to our request and their new demand that we upgrade their networks came late, which
greatly delayed the works,” Baasiri said.
As for the other construction sites, Baasiri said that Barbour Street is almost completed.
“We are about to finalize our work there. Like Monnot, block tiles instead of asphalt
will be used in Barbour.”
In all five streets, the company will install “decorative lamp posts” in
addition to renovating the sidewalks.
Baasiri also added that bad weather had hindered work for the past week.
“In Hamra and Corniche al-Nahr, we are preparing ourselves to resume construction and
so far we are on schedule. According to the contract, we still have a year to finish the
whole project.”
Baasiri told The Daily Star that the firm was aware of the importance of finishing
quickly.
“We worked day and night in Monnot. In Hamra we have five working sites and in
Corniche al-Nahr we have two. This should help us conclude construction as soon as
possible.”
Local proprietors have complained that the project has slowed business, with customers
forced to trudge through mud to reach the area’s popular nightclubs and restaurants.
A bartender at one Monnot restaurant told The Daily Star that the work has resulted in a
40 percent drop in business, with many customers heading downtown to spend their nights.
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