Sidewalks coming for West End, Negril
NEGRIL, Westmoreland – Chairman of the business group Negril Cluster, Lenbert Williams has disclosed that his organisation has secured funding from the Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF) to begin upgrading sidewalks for pedestrians’ safety in West End, Negril.
“The world must know that the Negril Cluster has secured funding from the Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF) to start the process of upgrading the community with sidewalks for pedestrians’ safety, making the community more visitor friendly, induce prosperity for the area and better position the One Love Drive for village tourism,” read a section of an e-mail sent by Williams which to the Observer West.
Last week the Observer West highlighted the absence of sidewalks in West End in the wake of a motor vehicle accident which claimed the life of American tourist 58 year-old Anthony Stout and seriously injured his spouse, along One Love Drive, West End Negril.
In a telephone interview with Observer West, Williams said “a small portion” of an estimated cost of $150 million to do “all four miles” of sidewalks in West End was in hand and preparatory work in terms of quantity surveys “and so forth” had already started.
According to Williams, the TEF has plans to provide for the sidewalks in the 2011/2012 Budget. “Once we get started on the actual construction of the sidewalks, we expect it to be finished in four months,” said Williams.
He claimed that three weeks before the tragedy, Executive Director of The Tourism Product Development Company (TPDCO) Earl Patrick and Ian Neita, the executive director of the TEF toured One Love Drive, West End and were ” explicit and fully resolved in their commitment to recommend to their board (the funding of) sidewalk construction as a matter of urgency”.
Meanwhile, Maurice James, 39 of Savanna-la-Mar, Westmoreland who was charged with causing death by dangerous driving, stemming from the fatal accident was granted bail on Tuesday when he appeared in the Savanna-la-Mar Resident Magistrates Court.
James was granted bail worth $300,000. He is set to return to court on Friday, June 24, when the matter will again be mentioned.
James was arrested and charged after the car he was driving got out of control and mowed down the American couple two Friday nights ago.
