PORT ANTONIO, Portland — With notices served on owners of 313 properties that will be impacted by a planned bypass road, residents of Port Antonio are calling for more information on the acquisition of their land.

They are also concerned about the impact the project will have on the community and their quality of life.

“The project is going to start in two months and last for 18 months… That is less than two years… We need time to negotiate, validate, and appraise our properties to come to an agreement. Nothing has been said about relocation of persons,” argued resident Audley Lindo during a recent community meeting.

“Every one of us living here knows what it takes in Jamaica to buy land and to transfer land and all of that. You buy a piece of land and after five years you can’t get the title. How is it that the authorities are going to come to you now to talk to you about your house or your land? The project is starting in two months. We were told that three weeks ago,” he chided.

Communities expected to be affected by work on the Port Antonio Bypass Road, which is part of the Southern Coastal Highway, include sections of Red Hassle Road, Mellard Road and Clement Lane.

Lindo expressed concern that the proposed route appears to be changing.

“As time goes by, the road is coming closer to us and everybody has a different opinion as to which direction the road is going…. The only sure thing is that the road is going to be seven kilometres. [When work begins we may hear that] they meet a soft spot and it turn my way or it turn your way. When… everything sign off and that happens you are left with yourself and the man with the tractor,” he warned his neighbours.

“No one is here looking for trouble but we all need to understand what is happening. Be careful! And we all have to stand up for ourselves as well as each other,” Lindo urged.

Also among residents’ concerns are the dust nuisance that typically accompanies major works, the impact on the three schools in the area, and possible damage to existing structures.

“When they’re finished we are going to have serious health concerns; I said serious, serious health concerns. We are going to have serious… structural damage because of the equipment and the stuff they are planning to use,” said Kephian Perry, another resident.

“When they are done we are going to see some big cracks in walls. We have to stand up as a group! There’s strength in unity, unity is strength and we want to prove that now. If we are going to protest, we are going to do it peacefully. We’re not going to block roads, we are going to do it peacefully because we want our voice and… our concerns… heard,” she added.

Philip Henry, who lives in Red Hassle, indicated that work has already started in that area and it is impacting a river that was the original water supply source for Port Antonio.

“Further up the hill towards the original dam has been accessed. The dam hasn’t been damaged just yet but the overflow from the dam, that has been cut across, and with the rainfall… a portion of the dirt washed down the river,” he shared.

Stressing that they are not opposed to the bypass road, residents are calling for a meeting with the authorities to explore whether the planned route can be altered. They are of the view that if the bypass road is moved further south of their town, fewer people will be affected and it may cost less.

— Everard Owen

Some of the concerned residents of Port Antonio who attended the March 15 meeting (Photo: Everard Owen)

Philip Henry, who lives in Red Hassle, says work has already started in that area and it is impacting a river that was the original water supply source for Port Antonio. (Photo: Everard Owen)

Kephian Perry is worried about structural damage. (Photo: Everard Owen)