A planned security upgrade aimed at curbing community crime has run into an unexpected snag at the Eddie Hart Recreational Grounds in Tacarigua, Trinidad and Tobago, where safety concerns over a dormant natural gas pipeline have paused construction and sparked a debate over procedural transparency.
The project is part of a sweeping national security initiative announced last week by Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar, which calls for 30 joint police-army mobile posts across the country. The goal of the program is to boost the visibility of law enforcement, push back against criminal activity, and reclaim public spaces that have become hotspots for illegal activity. Eddie Hart Grounds, a popular community recreational space that has seen repeated criminal incidents, was selected as one of the 30 strategic locations. Construction crews arrived at the site last Thursday to begin laying the surface foundation for the new post.
Days after work kicked off, Josiah Austin, chairman of the Tunapuna/Piarco Regional Corporation, raised formal alarms: a natural gas pipeline owned by the National Gas Company (NGC) runs directly through the construction area, and the regional body was never consulted about the project before ground was broken. Austin emphasized that while the corporation fully supports the goal of increasing security at the grounds, the project must follow transparent, legal, and properly coordinated processes. Following the delivery of a formal concern letter from the corporation’s technical team to the contractor, work on the site was paused. Austin confirmed the contractor has a five-day window to respond to the concerns, meet with the corporation’s engineering team to submit required documentation and resolve the standoff, or face continued suspension until all regulatory requirements are met.
In an official response to the raised concerns, NGC chairman Gerald Ramdeen moved quickly to reassure the public that the pipeline poses no danger to workers or community members. Ramdeen confirmed the pipeline does exist in the vicinity of the construction site, but detailed that it is a 2-inch line that has been decommissioned and non-operational for multiple years, buried four feet below the ground surface. He noted that the foundation work planned for the mobile post only involves work on the land’s surface, which poses no risk to the dormant pipeline. Ramdeen added that NGC’s operations team has already implemented all recommended precautionary measures to eliminate public risk, even for the non-operational line. To verify his team’s assessments, Ramdeen shared that NGC personnel conducted an on-site inspection Friday, and he personally visited the site at 9 p.m. that same day to review the work firsthand. After reviewing both his team’s report and his own on-site observation, Ramdeen said he is fully satisfied that no public danger exists. He also confirmed that Homeland Security Minister Roger Alexander had proactively consulted NGC early in the process to assess any risks to the company’s infrastructure at all selected post sites.
Local reactions to the project remain split, with most residents supporting the need for increased security but many agreeing that proper procedural consultation was missed. Jerry Richards, a former groundskeeper who worked at Eddie Hart Grounds for more than 20 years and was present when the NGC pipeline was installed 15 years ago, confirmed the pipeline’s location matches Austin’s description. Like many other local vendors and residents, Richards welcomes the added security presence, recalling a high-profile armed robbery of a vendor at the grounds that highlighted the area’s ongoing crime issues. He noted that even a permanent post cannot eliminate all crime, he believes it will act as a strong deterrent to illegal activity.
Not all local stakeholders share the same level of support. Derek Baptiste, a local resident, questioned whether the post would actually reduce overall crime, arguing that criminal groups would simply shift their activities to other nearby areas. He also echoed Austin’s concerns about process, raising unresolved questions about the project’s procurement process, the selected contractor, and total public cost. Kenneth Adolphus, a regular visitor to the grounds who visits twice a week, said he has only heard anecdotal reports of petty theft and has not witnessed serious violent crime. He noted that officers already conduct foot patrols on Fridays, but agreed that a permanent mobile post would offer more consistent security coverage. Even so, Adolphus said he understands Austin’s concerns, adding that formal consultation with the regional corporation would have been a basic show of respect and could have prevented the current construction delay entirely.
As of Sunday when local media visited the site, no construction activity was ongoing, and the project remains in limbo as the contractor prepares to respond to the regional corporation’s concerns.