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$11M For Road Repairs In Manchester Central

By: , March 30, 2022
$11M For Road Repairs In Manchester Central
Photo: Yhomo Hutchinson
Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, Hon Desmond McKenzie (centre), speaks with vendors in Mandeville Market on Thursday (March 24) during a tour of several sections of Central Manchester. Second right (foreground) is Member of Parliament, Hon. Rhoda Crawford, and at right (foreground) is Mayor of Mandeville, His Worship Councilor Donovan Mitchell.

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Local Government and Rural Development Minister, Hon. Desmond McKenzie, has announced that some $11 million will be spent to repair a section of the May Day Main Road in the Knockpatrick Division of the Manchester Central constituency.

The road has been severely damaged by water runoff from an adjoining hillside. Some temporary measures to ease the flooding had been put in place, but the funds will be used to effect a more permanent solution.

The Minister, who was invited to the constituency by Member of Parliament, Hon. Rhoda Moy Crawford, made the announcement when he stopped at the Mandeville Market in the parish capital on Thursday (March 24).

“I must commend the mayor and the MP that the overall conditions of the road network in the constituency was not that bad. We have just provided some $11 million to undertake repairs to May Day Road. We visited the Melrose Cemetery, which I was very impressed with, and there are some needs there, which we will be providing some infrastructure for,” McKenzie said.

At the Mandeville Market, Minister McKenzie listened to the vendors who ply their wares in the more than 100-year-old facility.

He said it was clear that the size of the facility was no longer compatible with the number of vendors who use it daily.

“The market needs extensive repairs and I have asked the mayor and the technical team at the Ministry to undertake a comprehensive assessment of the needs and come up with a plan, so that we can start to address the genuine issues that the vendors and also shoppers… are facing,” McKenzie noted.

He also addressed the issue of the Metropolitan police, with whom the vendors say, they have differences.

The Minister told the vendors, “On Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays, there are specific areas in the market that vehicular traffic use; for those three days, those areas will now be closed to vehicular traffic and become ‘pedestrian only’, and you will be allowed to operate in these locations”.

At the adjoining vending arcade, where clothing and footwear are sold, McKenzie said urgent attention is needed.

“I am not making any promises, because funding is going to be difficult and it’s not just Mandeville Market alone that has issues. I have them at all markets across the country,” McKenzie said.

He said he would further address the Government’s plans for markets in his sectorial presentation, and thanked the vendors for their understanding, in light of how difficult it is to earn a living.

The Minister and his team also toured Melrose Yam Park, Bellefield Hill Main Road and Davyton Square.

 

Last Updated: March 30, 2022

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