Concrete jungle - More Jamaicans building concrete houses

Nedburn Thaffe, Gleaner Writer

Board houses are steadily becoming a thing of the past as more and more Jamaicans seem to be moving towards concrete houses, data from the Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN), conducted over a period of two decades, have revealed.

Although there is no evidence pointing to the reason for the steady increase, it has been suggested that the upward trend in crime, and increase in natural disasters over the past decades might be the engine that has jolted the population into seeking out safer havens.

"People tend to have a greater sense of security in concrete houses than they do in board houses," one source said.

The census on housing identified housing units, dwellings, and households. Housing units represent the physical structure (building) used for living purposes; dwellings represent the entire building or part of the building in which a person or group of persons live; while the household represents the group of persons, related or unrelated, who share common arrangements for living

decline in wooden units

According to the survey, in 2001, there were 599,800 housing units, 723,000 private dwellings, and 748,000 households. The data show that in 2001, a total of 137,000 units were added to the housing stock from the time of the last survey conducted in 1991.

When examining the material of outer walls, surveyors found that nearly two-thirds of the housing units in 2001 were made of concrete and blocks, while an additional 21 per cent was made of wood. Other materials which made up the balance include stone and brick, wattle/adobe, nog (type of unit where the walls are of concrete, but without steel reinforcement), wood, and concrete. A comparison between the 2001 and 1991 survey shows a decline in the proportion of wooden units as the proportion then was 24.5 per cent

Units made of concrete and blocks increased in proportion from 59 per cent to 66.6 per cent between the two decades.

When the type of roofing came up for scrutiny, it was found that the dominant type used is metal sheeting or zinc, which is utilised in approximately 82 per cent of all cases.

As the main type in 1991 also, zinc roofs accounted for 88.5 per cent, of the total then. The proportion using concrete doubled in the 10 years from seven to 14 per cent, with St James having the lowest proportion of zinc roofs, 58.6 per cent, followed by St Catherine and St Andrew, with 70.5 per cent and 73.3 per cent, respectively.