British High Commissioner Tours Morant Bay Urban Centre

In her first official visit to St. Thomas, British High Commissioner to Jamaica, Her Excellency Judith Slater, toured the $6-billion Morant Bay Urban Centre project on Thursday (January 30).

“It’s really exciting to be here in St. Thomas. I’m very pleased to see how much progress has been made,” she told journalists, following the extensive tour.

“Whilst we don’t currently have any involvement in this specific site, we’re very interested in what this site means for the future of St Thomas, which, I think it means more business [and] more opportunity for exporters. This site will grow. I’m very keen to look and see what involvement the United Kingdom (UK) might be able to have. I think the opportunities for St Thomas are pretty limitless with this fantastic development,” High Commissioner Slater added.

The tour was led by Factories Corporation of Jamaica (FCJ) Chairman, Lyttleton Shirley, and also included Deputy British High Commissioner to Jamaica, Jonathan Cook; Custos Rotulorum for St. Thomas, Hon. Marcia Bennett; Mayor of Morant Bay, Councillor Louis Chin, and Member of Parliament for St. Thomas Western, James Robertson.

Mr. Shirley, in his remarks, told High Commissioner Slater, “Your visit here is very significant, [as] it solidifies what we intend to do for the parish of St. Thomas.”

He said the Morant Bay Urban Centre project could be categorised as the blueprint for a new Jamaica.

“The Prime Minister has articulated his plan to transform St. Thomas from a parish that was perceived as being left behind for many years, with one of the lowest economic outputs, to bring it now to be the pearl of Jamaica. It is significant that we understand that, if that transformation can take place in St. Thomas, it means it can take place anywhere else,” the Chairman said.

He cited, as examples of the transformation prospects, the Boundbrook Urban Centre in Portland, for which ground was broken last year, as well as plans to build Urban Centres in Negril and Old Harbour, pointing out that these form part of a “massive development plan for urban redevelopment”.

Meanwhile, Mayor Chin thanked the High Commissioner for visiting the project, while proclaiming that, “St. Thomas is going to be one of the best parishes in Jamaica”.

The Morant Bay Urban Centre is being developed by the FCJ, with China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC) as the contractors.

The project is slated for completion by March this year and will feature a main commercial building with almost 70 clients offering a wide range of services, including fast food, fine dining, shops and a gym, and eight warehouses for distribution and manufacturing.

Additionally, the Urban Centre will comprise six stand-alone buildings, including the University College of the Caribbean (UCC), St. Thomas Municipal Corporation, Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC), Hi-Lo Supermarket, a modern courthouse and a government services building.