Belize City - Location and Geographic Setting

Location and Geographic Setting

Belize City spreads out to Mile 6 on the Western Highway and Mile 5 on the Northern Highway, at the Haulover Bridge. The City proper is usually divided into two areas: Northside, bounded by the Haulover Creek and ending in the east at the Fort George area, and Southside, extending to the outskirts of the City and the Port area and including downtown. Politically, it is divided into ten constituencies, described below.

Freetown, the westernmost constituency on Northside, is home to the Belama, Coral Grove, Buttonwood Bay and Vista Del Mar suburbs. Within the city proper it extends up to around the former Belize Technical College area.

Caribbean Shores includes Kings' Park, a small suburb north and west of Freetown Road, West Landivar, home to two of the University of Belize's three City campuses, and residential University Heights.

Pickstock inhabits the banks of the Haulover Creek extending to Barrack Road. St. John's Cathedral stands attractively upon its well-manicured lawn on the southern end of Albert Street. St. John’s is the oldest Anglican Church in Central America, and one of the oldest buildings in Belize. The orange bricks came to Belize aboard British ships as ballast. Construction began in 1812, and the church was completed in 1820. St. John’s is the only Anglican cathedral in the world outside of England where the crowning of kings took place.

Fort George is perhaps the most colonial area in the City and contains Memorial Park, the Baron Bliss Grave and Bliss Lighthouse and the Museum of Belize.

On the Southside, Lake Independence, Collet and Port Loyola are home to some of the City's poorest residents. "London bridges", rickety wooden pallets linking dwellings, and low-strung poles are not uncommon here. On the east side of Central American Boulevard are Mesopotamia, Queen's Square and Albert, which are slightly better. Albert contains the downtown streets of Albert and Regent Streets.