The Kingston and St Andrew Municipal Corporation (KSAMC) has concluded that development company Estatebridge committed a number of breaches during construction of a residential complex at 2 Weycliffe Close, Beverly Hills, St Andrew.

At the same time, the local government authority said it found serious lapses in its monitoring processes and has begun to implement reforms.

The KSAMC made the disclosures in a news release on Wednesday after its chairman, Mayor of Kingston Andrew Swaby, demanded a detailed report from the chief engineering officer on the matter in the wake of an Integrity Commission (IC) investigation report last week citing Estatebridge for construction breaches.

Estatebridge Holdings Limited has as its directors Prime Minister Andrew Holness’s son, Adam; Norman Brown, a business partner of the prime minister who is also chairman of the Urban Development Corporation; and Sydjea Anderson.

In its report, the IC said its investigation found that the residential development is being constructed contrary to the terms of the planning approval and building permit issued by the KSAMC on July 12, 2021.

According to the commission, its director of investigation found that, at the time of his first inspection of the development, it consisted of four four-bedroom town houses instead of four two-bedroom town houses, as approved by the KSAMC.

However, the directors of Estatebridge categorically rejected the finding, saying that at no time did the KSAMC observe a breach in the room count.

In its release on Wednesday, the KSAMC said that when it inspected the development on October 31, 2024, the partition walls referenced in the IC’s findings, which were accompanied by photographs from its site visits, were not present.

“This suggests that modifications had been made to the structure before KSAMC’s site visit on October 31, 2024. The chief engineering officer’s report, therefore, could not refute the Integrity Commission’s claim that four-bedroom units were being constructed at an earlier stage,” the KSAMC said.

At the same time, the municipal corporation said the breaches it identified during its October 31, 2024 inspection included a slight increase in the basement floor area and a reconfiguration of the laundry area to accommodate bathrooms and storage.

It also said that on the ground floor the dining room/living room was extended, a bathroom was constructed and the powder room was converted to a storage area. However, the floor area appears to remain unchanged.

Also, on the first floor, two bedrooms with supporting bathrooms, storage area, and a foyer were observed. “The size of the master bedroom was increased by virtue of utilising the balcony space. The other bedroom, with its associated bathroom, was relocated and the space converted to a foyer with a storage area. The floor area appears unchanged,” the KSAMC said.

The municipal corporation also said that its internal assessment revealed that the building permit issued to the developer expired on July 6, 2023, and that it conducted three site visits prior to August 2022, well before the permit’s expiration.

It noted that a final inspection required before the expiration of the permit was not requested by the applicant nor was it carried out by the KSAMC.

“The corporation failed to take action to halt construction after the permit expired, allowing work to continue without authorisation or oversight. This lack of monitoring persisted until the KSAMC’s site visit on October 31, 2024 when the breaches… were identified,” the local government authority said.

“Mayor Swaby acknowledges these serious lapses in the KSAMC’s monitoring processes, which compromise the corporation’s ability to effectively enforce compliance. This is unacceptable,” the KSAMC said, adding that it recognises the need for immediate corrective measures and is committed to addressing these deficiencies.

“To that end, the corporation has already begun to identify reforms for implementation to strengthen its compliance processes. As part of these efforts, the KSAMC is conducting a comprehensive review of its procedures to ensure thorough inspections at all stages of construction. This review includes implementing more detailed and consistent checks to detect deviations from approved plans earlier,” the city managers said.

The corporation also said that in January next year it will engage an independent external specialist with expertise in building regulations and compliance to guide the reform process.

“This specialist will provide independent advice, helping the corporation adopt best practices and strengthen accountability measures.”