THE Kingston Restoration Company (KRC) development project in Rose Town, which Britain's Prince Charles is sponsoring, will be among one of the items on his itinerary when he visits Jamaica next month.

Dates and itinerary are yet to be announced from the office of Governor General Kenneth Hall, but it is understood that Prince Charles and his wife Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, will arrive in the second week of March as part of their yacht tour of the Caribbean.

Charles is supporting the work of the KRC's Construction Assistance Skills Transfer & Learning the Environment (CASTLE) project in Rose Town via his Prince's Foundation for the Built Environment, which was profiled in the Sunday Observer last weekend.

KRC Executive Director Morin Seymour said he was unaware of whether Rose Town would be included in the Prince's itinerary, but said that a visit could have "Big! Big!" implications for the project.

"It will boost everything and the stability of the area," he added.

Within the community the visit is "no secret", with residents openly discussing it, said President of the Rose Town Benevolent Society Michael Black.

"For a person like him to come, it's a chance to highlight some of the major issues in the community and we hope that he will bring with him some long-term development - housing is our major problem," said Black.

The initial stage of development has been budgeted at US$4 million, for which US$1 million has been raised in donations and pledges, to include some housing construction and redevelopment. Further plans require additional funding, which is yet to be calculated.

Prince Charles became involved with Rose Town following his previous visit to Jamaica in 2000. On that occasion, he visited another KRC project in the adjacent community of Trench Town, which was being assisted by the United Kingdom Department for International Development (DFID).

He decided to send back a representative from his foundation to Jamaica in 2002, leading to the funding of architectural planning by British philanthropist Leo Noe.

Sting rocks Antigua

Reggae presentation at the inauguration by Coco T, Steel Pulse

Holy Childhood student excels in Caribbean teen talent competition