Port of Spain: An urban city

I recently went on an Urban Geography field trip to Port-of-Spain (P.O.S.) and it was quite interesting. The first area I visited was the Central Business District (CBD) in P.O.S. which was Independence Square/Brian Lara Promenade/ Charlotte-Henry-Frederick/ Woodford Square. The police presence and convenience of shopping was quite commendable, however the landscape (trees) needed better protection. There was also a lack of facilities for street vendors leading to the congestion of the streets. Due to this there was the presence of garbage on the streets and this is a problem that seems to be getting worse. Facilities such as street crossings and bathrooms needs to be improved in the CBD for shoppers as this is an area of concern.
Belmont was another area in P.O.S. that was visited. This is an area rich in both culture and heritage which needs to be preserved. The fact that Belmont is close in proximity to the CBD is an interesting fact as many people who work in the CBD reside in this community. More protection should be given to the rich and diverse background of the community making it a site for cultural tourism. One particular problem is the severity of floods that the community faces. Due to the poor drainage system whenever rain falls the roadways, as well as person's homes become flooded, and this is one area that needs immediate improvement.



The above is a photo taken in Port of Spain showing an area within the central business district. The photo shows a multi-story car park that is owned by the Hyatt Regency Hotel and is available for their customers. The car park is extremely large and due to the limited space available in urban cities the car park could be only built to go up in order to maximize the efficiency of the land. This type of car park is common to urban cities worldwide due to a growing urban population. Urban economics is the main goal in cities instead of urban development according to Rees (1992). This CBD of the city does not "sleep" as there is a continuous 'hustle and bustle'. In the CBD there is a high inflow and outflow of persons on a regular basis as P.O.S. is seen as the place where everything is available.




Photo 1 of a building in Belmont.



Photo 2 of a building in Belmont.



Photo 3 of a building in Belmont.

This was a photo of the Trinidad Theatre Workshop in Belmont where we visited on our urban fieldtrip to P.O.S. This photo along with photos 1 and 2 showed the common type of infrastructure that was present in Belmont. Majority of the buildings in the area had a traditional look which owners tried to upkeep in order to ensure that the culture of the area is maintained. One particular problem that i observed in the Belmont community was the width of streets. The streets were extremely narrow and some were even unable to allow the passage of two vehicles side by side at the same time. There was also a lack of public facilities present such as bathrooms and garbage cans. One person was also observed urinating on the street walls due to the lack of public facilities.