MANDEVILLE, Manchester — Mayor of Mandeville and chairman of the Manchester Municipal Corporation Donovan Mitchell says the influence and funding of central government is needed to expand Mandeville and realise its vision of becoming a city.

“There is a model that is there as to what is to be done, but politics is politics and all politics is local and except [if] you have central government backing you into this situation, because the council in and of itself can’t do [it]. These are heavy large capital expenditure that have to be done, but I still do believe that Mandeville should be the third city, because it has the potential,” he told the Jamaica Observer on Tuesday.

Mitchell was responding to Prime Minister Andrew Holness’ comment that before congested Mandeville can contemplate becoming a city, good order and a proper development plan needs to be in place.

“… The town is going to go through a rapid phase of construction and change,” said Holness.

“You need to set the foundation for a rational plan of development that will include your traffic flow, proper parking, proper markets and so forth and then put it to the private sector to say build according to this plan,” he added.

Mitchell agreed with the prime minister that Mandeville was developed without proper planning.

“One would understand the prime minister and one would have to understand that the outlay of Mandeville — you can say — was developed ad hoc,” he said.

Mitchell said that the municipality is now in dialogue with the National Environment and Planning Agency (NEPA) to expand the boundaries of Mandeville.

“Now you cannot have a town centre where in less than quarter mile from the centre of the town, that’s where the commercial district ends,” he said.

“The proposal is to expand the town to Winston Jones Highway. So travel along Winston Jones Highway on the right hand side going into Kingston down to Williamsfield, back up through Royal Flat and taking a section [of] Knockpatrick and come around, so you want to look at probably a six mile circumference,” he added.

Mitchell said work on the US$188-million May Pen to Williamsfield leg of Highway 2000, which is fast advancing and is expected to be completed ahead of the March 2023 deadline, will make Manchester more attractive.

The project — which will reduce travel time between Kingston, Mandeville and points west — was originally scheduled for completion in October 2022.

“People will be able to travel quicker and the whole production and productivity of the parish will be different,” he said.

He continues to push for a “new Mandeville” to be built on 50 acres of land at Kingsland (west of the town centre).

“It would have been better, because the former Custos Dr Gilbert Allen and a team…fought and we got some lands in Kingsland,” he said.

The late former custos of Manchester Dr Allen was instrumental in getting Alpart (Aluminum Partners of Jamaica) to donate the land, as it was his desire to see the Mandeville courthouse moved out of the congested town to Kingsland.

The historic Mandeville courthouse, which is said to be the oldest building in the town centre, was affected by fire on November 7, 2019. The fire, which caused damage estimated at $35 million, forced judicial authorities to switch court trials to rented premises at James Warehouse Plaza, about 100 metres away from the centre of Mandeville.

In 2020 lands were acquired for the construction of a new courthouse on Brumalia Road, off Caledonia Road, a few hundred metres north of the old courthouse. Soil testing was done at the location, adjacent to the Southern Regional Health Authority’s office in 2020.

Further, Mitchell said it is going to be difficult to reposition the existing Mandeville town centre.