THE Urban Development Corporation (UDC), which has held responsibility for the Hellshire area in Portmore, St Catherine since 1968, appears set to increase development in the area.

The UDC has issued a new invitation for proposals for the licence or lease of parts of lands in that section of Portmore. The offer for Hellshire covers both beach areas and landside acreage.

The government agency indicates that a lease or licence will be granted to the successful bidder for Section A (beach lands) and Section B (development lands), respectively.

Both sections of the land it is targeting are underdeveloped but it was outlined that Section B in its development package would be best suited to be developed, with supporting structures for the Section A (beach lands).

In other words, developers who are considering landside hotel or housing developments would impress the UDC more if they include in their proposal a plan for beach development as well.

The parcels of land under consideration by the UDC are adjacent to each other and can be found by travelling south along the Hellshire main road from Greater Portmore to Hellshire.

This section of the land is the beach lands area and is a regular, narrow strip of land.

The UDC describes it as level, with a gentle downward gradient to meet the shoreline. The ground coverage comprises white sand, patches of grass, other weeds and typical shrubs, and trees that thrive in sandy soil.

Debris such as Sargassum seaweeds, plastics and other materials are on this section of the land. The boundaries are unenclosed apart from the timber and bamboo pickets and timber siding of a building on the Boardwalk Beach to the north east.

Section B, comprising developable lands, is situated behind the beach lands and is a rectangular strip of land. It is a gentle, upward gradient from the beach lands and is fairly level, with gentle undulations throughout sections creating low sand mounds. This section of the land is mainly overgrown with grass, weeds, shrubs and trees that thrive in sandy soil.

The greenfield sites are contiguous to each other and it is expected that the corporation will contract with the same party for the entire property, the UDC stated.

The UDC will provide more detailed information in its development package. Proposals must be deposited by Thursday, November 4, 2021, no later than 2:00 pm, at the UDC’s Kingston office.

Complementing this move, the National Environment and Planning Agency (NEPA) in August issued a procurement notice for a master plan for Hellshire Bay.

Hellshire has been under the portfolio of the Urban Development Corporation since 1968. Much of its land area falls within the Portland Bight Protected Area and is recognised by the Government as a protected area.

The entire area covers 160 square kilometres and includes a large expanse of low hills, white sand beaches, limestone caves, salt ponds, scrub and cactus.

In August 2021, Cabinet approved two contracts totalling $1.34 billion for Surrey Paving and Aggregate Company Limited and West Indies Home Contractors Limited (WIHCON), to undertake work on the Hellshire housing development in St Catherine.

Surrey Paving will undertake civil infrastructure works on Hellshire phase two at a cost of $202,684,450.

Meanwhile, a contract valued at $1.14 billion has been awarded to WIHCON for housing and infrastructure works.

WIHCON has worked with the National Housing Trust (NHT) to deliver homes in Hellshire including Fort Hill Estate, comprising two-bedroom fully detached homes and two-bedroom semi-detached (duplex) town houses. In total the development includes 48 houses and 28 town houses, plus 31 serviced lots.