MONTEGO BAY, St James — Known over the years as a volatile no-go community in St James, there is hope that an ongoing futsal tournament will change the image of the area known as ‘Bottom Pen’ in Glendevon, St James.

Organisers of the tournament — which is a modified form of football played with five players per side on a smaller pitch — say since it started three years ago they have seen a change in the community and are expecting that this will improve how outsiders view the community.

“Glendevon [and in particular Bottom Pen] has been enjoying some peace for a while but we want to now change the image of the community,” event organiser Keno Jones told the Jamaica Observer.

“We want to shed those labels of badness and so forth, we want people to feel comfortable whenever they come to Bottom Pen,” added Jones.

He expects to have at least 20 teams take part in the tournament which is slated to get started on February 23 and will offer prize money totalling $900,000.

According to Jones, the organisers are expecting teams from all over St James to participate in the tournament because of the changes that people have seen in the community.

“Teams are mainly from the general area but we also have teams coming from Cambridge and Johns Hall in St James. We also have a team coming from Lucea, Hanover, which is a new development,” said Jones.

He underscored that in the past this was not something that was likely to happen, hinting that outsiders would think twice before entering Bottom Pen to take part in a sporting event.

Jones pointed out that having seen the need for a change in the perception of the community, the organisers of the futsal tournament have been working hard at that.

“Our main aim is to build the togetherness, that’s our main thing. Community togetherness also helps to build the community and let people have confidence to come to the community because a lot of people were scared of Glendevon, Bottom Pen actually,” said Jones.

“I would suggest this is a peaceful thing where people can come in from different areas and have fun,” added Jones.

That view is shared by Derval McKenzie, president of Harmony Community Club located in Bottom Pen.

McKenzie told the Observer that activities such as the futsal tournament are avenues to promote peace, unity, and harmony in the community and will attract more people to the area.

“It serves to bring together people of all ages from various communities into the space to have friendly rivalry and fun,” said McKenzie.

He pointed out that the futsal tournament has been well supported in the past and the expectation is that this year’s event will be bigger and better.

“I look forward to the positive impact that it brings,” declared McKenzie.

He said with the changing perception about the community they are hoping that other entities will look to contribute to the well-being of the residents as they move to improve behaviour in the space.

“I want to invite sponsorship for different activities geared towards educational development, youth engagement, environmental protection and overall community development,” McKenzie stated.

Meanwhile, Jones also wants to see more support for educational initiatives in Bottom Pen to improve the quality of students that emerge from the community.

“We have a school that we would want to see more happening such as having a homework programme or skills training for the youths,” said Jones who is a member of a club in the area.

“We have a community club where we did a lot of work the other day, such as street painting and other things,” Jones highlighted.

“We will probably need a club house and need some other things to keep doing what we are doing,” added Jones.