Gov’t to spend $1.2 b on entertainment zone in MoBay
ST JAMES, Jamaica — Minister of Tourism Edmund Bartlett, says the Government will be spending $1.2 billion to create a public attraction and entertainment zone in the tourist resort city of Montego Bay, St James.
“We have completed the work for the preparation to create the design, and I am waiting on the Urban Development Corporation (UDC) to deliver that design. Hopefully, I will get it before April 10,” he outlined.
Bartlett was speaking at the official renaming ceremony of Gloucester Avenue (Hip Strip) to Jimmy Cliff Boulevard, at the Old Hospital Park yesterday.
The minister explained that in the design are plans for a Government Campus, which will house the first performing arts centre in the city (Montego Bay), and will be built on the grounds of the National Water Commission (NWC), adjacent to Howard Cooke Highway in St James.
Bartlett noted that this impending grand project aims to transform Montego Bay into the most iconic entertainment city in all of the Caribbean.
“When we move the courthouse and put it in the campus, and when we move the library and all that, we are going to create another gastronomic delight right here in the city centre of Montego Bay,” he said.
The renaming ceremony honoured Jamaica’s International Reggae Icon, Dr James ‘Jimmy Cliff’ Chambers, for his contribution towards helping to bring fame to Jamaica’s rich culture and heritage.
The event was a product of the Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, Ministry of Tourism, and the St James Municipal Corporation.
Culture Minister Olivia Grange said that the renaming of the roadway is another element that can be exploited for the commercial, cultural and social advantage of the people of Montego Bay and Jamaica, by extension.
“As we in the ministry continue our policy to strengthen our musical heritage through the retelling of the stories, the celebration of our pioneers and the establishment of centres where our people and visitors to our shores will experience the power of our heritage, it is my pleasure to be part of this renaming of Gloucester Avenue to the Jimmy Cliff Boulevard, reflecting our own history and our own pride,” said Grange.
