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Management Plan for the Ward Theatre

By: , May 21, 2017

The Key Point:

The Kingston and St. Andrew Municipal Corporation will be preparing a long term management plan for the maintenance of the Ward Theatre in downtown, Kingston.
Management Plan for the Ward Theatre
Photo: Mayor of Kingston and St. Andrew Corporation, Senator Delroy Williams
Mayor of Kingston and St. Andrew Corporation, Senator Delroy Williams

The Facts

  • Mayor of Kingston Senator Delroy Williams told JIS News that there are plans to put a management team in place.
  • “Of course, we have started that planning already. I don’t want to say much about it, but we have to put in a management team responsible for managing the Ward Theatre,” Senator Williams said.

The Full Story

The Kingston and St. Andrew Municipal Corporation will be preparing a long-term management plan for the maintenance of the Ward Theatre in downtown Kingston.

Mayor of Kingston, Senator Delroy Williams, told JIS News that there are plans to put a management team in place.

“Of course, we have started that planning already. I don’t want to say much about it, but we have to put in a management team responsible for managing the Ward Theatre,” he said.

The Ward Theatre, a historical landmark situated on North Parade, Kingston, is one of two major Labour Day projects that will receive national attention on Tuesday, May 23. The other project is the Central Police Station in downtown Kingston.

The Municipal Corporation is collaborating with the Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, the Ministry responsible for organising Workers’ Week and Labour Day, to carry out maintenance work on the Ward Theatre. It is part of the ongoing rehabilitation of the building.

Mayor Williams said that some $40 million will be spent on renovation works at the Theatre, with part of the funds provided by the Ward Theatre Foundation.

He said that work on Labour Day will involve repairs to the changing rooms and 13 bathrooms at the facility. Activities will also include painting, plumbing and the installation of electrical fittings.

“We will be tiling, taking out the countertops, putting in new countertops, installing mirrors, lighting and we will also be doing electrical work in the Theatre,” he added. He noted that the roof and seats of the building will be renovated after Labour Day.

Mayor Williams said that workers on the site have been receiving advice from the Jamaica National Heritage Trust “in keeping with the renovation of a heritage site.”

“They have been supportive, they give technical advice and we are working closely together. It’s a team effort,” he said.

The Mayor said that he is hoping to have the Theatre operational by August this year.

“I am still working towards that commitment. I know that by December we should be very comfortable with the building,” he added.

The Ward Theatre, which was donated to the city of Kingston by Colonel C.J. Ward in 1912, was declared a national monument in January 2000.

Last Updated: May 30, 2017

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