Both Sides of The Coin: The Story of The Central Bank of Barbados 1972-2017

84 Higgs and Hill was given possession of the site on February 17, 1983, and work on the office block started on April 25, 1983, as planned. Preliminary works, which were concluded in June, included cutting and bending steel, construction of storage areas and concrete mixing plants as well as the erection of the crane and site offices. After excavation and pouring of the concrete foundation, much of the early work was carried out through a process called ‘slip-forming’ 48 . Using this technique, towers, silos and other structures were raised by continuous pouring of concrete so that no construction joints would result. Prime Minister Adams laid the corner stone on October 12 and all the towers were raised by October 31. By year-end, progress was being made on the building’s steel skeleton, a product of Structural Systems Limited, a local firm. In addition, some floor slabs were installed and work started within the towers. 49 In October 1983, the final contract for construction was agreed with Higgs and Hill 50 and a loan secured fromMorgan Grenfell of London to finance part of the foreign costs of construction. The loan of £6.4 million had a maturity of eight years, an interest rate of 10.35 per cent and was guaranteed by the UK Government’s Export Credit and Guarantees Department. The statutory instrument, which granted tax exemption for imports of materials and equipment for use on the site, was issued on November 10, 1983. Towards the end of 1983, the architect and other building consultants presented a case for a 500-seat auditorium at a cost of $5 million. However, the Bank was not convinced that, with the required parking space and other ancillary items, it would cost less than $6 million. In March 1984, this recommendation was approved by Cabinet and work on the auditorium started soon after, with an estimated completion date of November 1985. By the end of February 1984, with the underground drainage system largely in place, the project was about 31 per cent complete. 51 This being the case, it was not surprising that soon after the Bank turned down an offer to purchase an additional piece of land on the other side of Polgreen Alley. In April, the Bank became the first major customer of the