Groundbreaking for New Westmoreland Police Divisional Headquarters Expected by Year End
By: , October 8, 2023
Photo: Contributed
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Security, Hon. Dr. Horace Chang (second left), holds discussions with (from left), Police Commissioner, Major General Antony Anderson; Member of Parliament, Westmoreland Western, Morland Wilson; Manager,Marlon Turner Construction, Marlon Turner; and Senior Project Manager in the National Housing Trust’s (NHT) Special Projects Unit , Jacqueline Johnson. The occasion was a recent tour of the Frome and Little London Police stations’ construction sites in Westmoreland.The Full Story
Ground is expected to be broken for the construction of the new Westmoreland Police Divisional Headquarters by year end.
This was announced by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Security, Hon. Dr. Horace Chang.
He was addressing journalists following a recent tour of the Frome and Little London police stations which are under construction, and the site for the new divisional headquarters in Llandilo in the parish.
Dr. Chang indicated that the process to relocate the headquarters, which is to be moved from Great George Street in Westmoreland’s capital, Savanna-la-Mar, has experienced some delays.
He informed that these resulted from “a tedious procurement process, and we won’t break ground until, maybe, December of this year.”
Some $465 million has been allocated for the project’s execution.
Dr. Chang also told journalists that the building now housing the divisional headquarters is set to be refurbished and used as the Savanna-la-Mar Police Station.
Construction of the Frome and Little London police stations, which started last year, is being done at a cost of some $175 million each, with funding support from the National Housing Trust (NHT).
Both stations are set to be completed by July and November of next year, respectively.
Dr. Chang underscored the importance of completing the stations, noting that Westmoreland has experienced increased criminal activities, resulting in the need to bolster the complement of police personnel.
“The quality of the stations that existed there for many years was extremely poor and way below standard for police officers. We are investing in building appropriate infrastructure for the police in Westmoreland and across Jamaica,” he pointed out.
Dr. Chang was accompanied on the tour by Police Commissioner, Major General Antony Anderson; Westmoreland Police Division Commanding Officer, Senior Superintendent Wayne Josephs; and Member of Parliament for Westmoreland Western, Morland Wilson.