Dear Editor,

Based on my observation, entertainment is a growing trend in Jamaica, and in order for people to gain more from various events then a series of changes have to take place in order for the music/entertainment industry to flourish.

After the discontinuance of the staging of East Fest, hosted by the Morgan Heritage, entertainment revenue in the parish of St Thomas has diminished. Although other events were kept, nothing major has occurred until 2018 when St Thomas native and recording artiste Andre Sutherland aka “Popcaan” decided to host Unruly Fest at the Lyssons Pavilion with international artiste on the list of performers.

Because the turnout was impressive, and the venue appears as if it will not contain a crowd of great magnitude in the future, the location was changed to Goodyear Factory Oval — a location that is manageable, unlike Lyssons Pavilion. But the 2019 staging was not without its trials, and I applaud the security forces for dealing with the number of issues that arose from the event. I believe that many, to include the police, have learned several lessons from the happenings and should correct the deficiencies.

In spite of the fact that the parish is undeveloped and the Goodyear Factory Oval is not designed or equipped as an entertainment venue to accommodate the vast amount of incoming traffic from other parishes, parking for some event-goers was a nightmare because the ‘city of White Horses’, which is approximately a mile from the event became a parking lot for several hours, despite the fact that the Social Development Commission (SDC) complex and the Goodyear Cricket Oval were adjacent to the venue and could be used to accommodate the sell-out crowd.

Although the police was clearly visible in many areas, some motorists parked their vehicles on the Bustamante Bridge that links the town of Morant Bay to Kingston, which is a safety concern. And the police should have been in place, or placed warning signs in visible areas, in order to deter the practice. Nonetheless, there were no impediment to the free flow of traffic.

People capitalised on the staging of the event in a number of ways as they look towards it becoming a yearly occurrence. But the traffic problem can be corrected with the corporation of the sponsors, promoters, Government, and the people of the community working on one accord in order increase the flow of revenue in the parish.

Charlie Brown

charliebrown1004@gmail.com