Summerfest Productions director, Johnny Gourzong, has mixed feelings about this year’s staging of Reggae Sumfest. While he was upbeat about the production, the performances, the music and the input from sponsors, he lamented the challenges of staging the festival inside the muddy, rain-soaked, Catherine Hall venue in Montego Bay.

“The music was fantastic; the performances were great, the production was excellent and the sponsors all came together to make the festival possible,” he told the Observer yesterday. “The turnout was not as good as we had anticipated, but we know that the rain played a huge role in that. But it could have been a lot worse,” he said philosophically.

Gourzong, however, has made it clear that he is not pleased with the conditions at the Catherine Hall complex which is owned and operated by the Urban Development Corporation (UDC). The rain which has been fallin for the past two weeks in Mo Bay and on the days of the festival turned the venue into a mud bowl, which made it uncomfortable for patrons.

“That area which houses the complex is actually reclaimed swamp land and apparently the moats which should serve as drains are not functioning as they should. So with water apparently coming from below mixed with the constant rain, it was a challenge to get the venue up to an acceptable state. I want to apologise to patrons and thank them for supporting the festival,” Gourzong stated.

He made a call for a state-of-the-art complex for western Jamaica which can house not just Reggae Sumfest, but other concerts and entertainment events.