MANDEVILLE, Manchester — Two years after Prime Minister Andrew Holness told the Manchester Municipal Corporation that it needs a proper development plan before Mandeville can contemplate becoming a city, he has hinted that this south-central town might eventually get city status.

“There are plans to have other developments in the town and eventually who knows, Mandeville might be the third or fourth town in Jamaica to get city status,” Holness said on Wednesday during the handing-over ceremony for housing development Perth Estate Phase 2. “It is a serious reality. Mandeville is urbanising at a very rapid pace and with the infrastructure development that we are doing, it is quite possible,” added Holness as he pointed to the Greater Mandeville Water project which is being implemented to remedy supply issues of the commodity to residents of the town.“That infrastructure development includes the water supply project which I toured recently granted, it is pushing water from St Elizabeth up the hill into Mandeville. The truth is, we have to provide Mandeville, this growing town, with the water it needs to support its development,” added Holness.

The greater Mandeville area has water shortfall to the tune of millions of gallons, with most of the water being expensively pumped from wells on the plains of neighbouring St Elizabeth.

The Pepper Well, downs lope at low altitude in St Elizabeth, is the main source of water for Mandeville, which is more than 2,000 feet above sea level.

Mandeville, and surrounding communities, have struggled with water shortages for decades, with town elders insisting that the problem has hindered growth.

Many households in Manchester, and the wider south-central Jamaica, have had to rely on rainwater harvesting.

The long-standing issue of water supply has not only affected households, but commerce, with businesses suffering from the inconsistency in supply.

Holness said the National Housing Trust (NHT) is building housing solutions to provide residential units for the increasing population in Manchester.“We position Perth within this context of a growing urban space just five kilometres from Mandeville. Perth is therefore a critical offering to the persons who are doing business, who are going to school in Mandeville. We need the other component now, which is where do we live,” he said. “Mandeville is growing. Mandeville is developing, but you have to complement that with proper communities and housing solutions and Perth is a critical development of fulfilling that,” said Holness. Just under 150 housing units and 301 serviced lots were handed over during the ceremony at Perth on Wednesday. The NHT said it is developing 1,231 housing solutions at Perth Phase 2, Manchester, with 458 two-bedroom units and 773 serviced lots. In the meantime Holness said Manchester remains a symbol of progress. “However, the population in 1814 and now are two different things [and] you can’t compare them. The population has grown significantly. Manchester is a hustling bustling parish.

“Not to mention how the town of Mandeville is just growing rapidly. Mandeville and the suburbs of Mandeville require significant housing solutions. In recent years, your Government has made strategic investments to transform Manchester into what it is today…Mandeville has developed its own energy outside of bauxite, it is developing new industries. We are seeing BPOs coming in [and] significant other developments. We are support that,” added Holness as he reiterated plans to extend Highway 2000 into St Elizabeth.“We have one more major investment to go, which is to extend that to a bypass of Spur Tree and when that is done it will be significant for the development of the parish. We are already in the planning stage and you will see that role out in the next few years,” declared Holness.