During an extensive 30-minute interview at the Kremandala compound this morning, Belize City Mayor Darrell Bradley addressed a vast array of matters related to the Council, including updates on current CITCO projects and new initiatives that are planned for the near future.

First on the agenda is a Zumba (dance) fitness program which he says will begin early next month. Bradley told us that the Council is now trying to encourage residents to use the public spaces that they have developed.

To make the initiative possible, CITCO will be partnering with Body 2000 to start a fitness program called “Get Moving, Belize”. It is scheduled to commence on February 4 and will be conducted at four public spaces in Belize City, namely, the Battlefield Park, the Memorial Park, BTL Northside Park, and the Maud Williams Basketball Court beside the Maud Williams High School.

The sessions will be held on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday mornings at 5:30 a.m. The Mayor said, “It will be a series of exercises, aerobics, and zumba. All the instructors will be coming through Body 2000. We are setting up a registration process from now until February 4, when it will start off. There’s a $5 registration fee and a $20 monthly fee.”

Since they will be working with organizations such as the Diabetes Association and medical practitioners to monitor the progress of members over time, Bradley said, “We’re encouraging persons from within the community to just come out – sign up, first of all – and come out February 4 to enjoy yourself and exercise, which is all under the theme of wellness.”

For those who might not be able to afford the program, the Mayor said that there were many previous discussions about the type of program and the cost of registration; however, he stated that instructors from Body 2000 approached the Council with a program that was already set – aerobics and Zumba.

Since there are other costs for the program, he said that the $20 fee is simply to subsidize those costs and to ensure that people don’t back out of the program.

Mayor Bradley also discussed the finishing touches which will be put on the newly renovated BTL Northside Park, which had its soft launch last Tuesday.

“We’re about 95% completed; the only area that’s left is the beach area. We have some additional infrastructures in terms of greenery and things like that, that’s going to come to the park. What we have been doing since last Tuesday is to monitor usage in the park; we’re seeing what areas need to be raised and fixed because we had some problems with the basic infrastructure. We need to raise the play area to avoid flooding, so we’re working on those issues.”

The Mayor said that they intend to install more play equipment in the park, but they are currently assessing to see if the equipment currently in the park will be stolen or tampered with. He concluded that the park will be ready for usage by February 14 when the hard launch – including a free concert – will take place.