LUANA, St Elizabeth — Residents of the hurricane-ravaged coastal community of Parottee are set to benefit from the choice of relocation to Luana, just 10 kilometres away, north of Black River.

Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness made the announcement of the Government’s plan to facilitate the relocation of Parottee residents to Luana at the ground-breaking ceremony for the $3.7-billion Luana Gardens phase four development on Wednesday.

He said two consultations have already been done with residents and stakeholders about the planned relocation “if they have to move, that it isn’t a contention, and so it is for the people of Parottee”.

“Now we have been very careful, because there have been all kinds of things being said which are absolutely not true. There is no intention to dispossess the people of Parottee of their land, their livelihood and their homes. If it [the circumstances] were as normal, they [could] stay. Parottee is a long-established community, a fishing village, but it was not always connected by road; sometimes the swampy area would overtake it and it recedes — and that is going to happen with even greater frequency,” added Holness.

Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness speaking at the ground-breaking ceremony for the $3.7-billion Luana Gardens phase four development on Wednesday.

He said the National Reconstruction and Resilience Authority (NaRRA) has been tasked with liaising with the Housing Agency of Jamaica (HAJ) to accommodate Parottee residents in Luana.

“We would give them access to a structured community, and we are committed to work with the people of Parottee. There is no force; it is all about dialogue. And we have had at least two engagements with them, and we are working with them, and I want to say to the people of Parottee that I am paying close attention. I will be coming there myself to have a reasoning with you, and we will talk it out and see how best it can be done over time,” he said.

“Your Government is about giving you the knowledge so that you are empowered to make the right decisions. And whatever we do, we believe in equity and fairness and the preservation of your value. No move should make you worse off. Whatever we do, it should make you better off — and that is a commitment I am making to the people of Parottee,” he added.

He explained that the ongoing Luana Gardens phase four project in St Elizabeth will include the relocation effort.

The project is a new housing development that will provide 337 housing solutions, 140 two-bedroom houses, and 197 serviced residential lots.

Holness said he has directed NaRRA’s Chief Executive Officer Antony Anderson to engage the HAJ in securing a certain number of lots that could be made available to the people of Parottee.

“There are other parts of it, [but] I won’t discuss everything here because those negotiations are still in the early stages. I know a letter has been sent to the HAJ from NaRRA… Within a few weeks we should be able to finalise exactly what the offer is and we should be able to begin some movements along that line,” said Holness.

Holness challenged the HAJ and its contractor to fast-track the housing development so as to have it completed before the two-and-a-half-year timeline.