St. James Municipal Corporation Expediting Approvals for Tourism Recovery

The St. James Municipal Corporation is taking steps to expedite the permits and approvals system to accelerate the restoration of tourism operations in the parish.

Mayor of Montego Bay, Councillor Richard Vernon, said that the measures include streamlining the permitting process, prioritising inspections and facilitating inter-agency collaboration to reduce administrative delays.

He said that the objective is to shorten rebuilding timelines, enable earlier reopening of rooms and facilities, and quickly restore hotel capacity.

“The implications for Montego Bay’s economy are significant. Faster hotel reconstruction supports employment in construction, hospitality and related industries, helping to preserve livelihoods for workers and contractors,” he said.

The Mayor, who was addressing the Corporation’s monthly meeting in Montego Bay on Thursday (January 8), pointed out that increased hotel capacity also boosts demand for local suppliers, including food and beverage providers, maintenance services and transportation operators, thereby strengthening the supply chains that support daily commercial activity.

“Increased occupancy and renewed activity contribute to tourism… which, in turn, boosts municipal revenues and tax collections that fund public services and infrastructure repairs,” he pointed out.

Mayor Vernon said that the tourism sector is rebounding strongly, with data from the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA) indicating that approximately 55 per cent of hotels in Montego Bay are operational, with occupancy rates of between 55 and 60 per cent.

In addition, there have been 16 cruise-ship calls since the hurricane, compared with 27 calls during the same period last year.

“These figures, recorded two months after a category-five hurricane, underscore both ongoing disruption and notable recovery momentum across accommodation and port operations,” Mayor Vernon said.

While noting that overall activity remains below pre-hurricane levels, the Mayor said that the combination of operational hotels, ongoing cruise calls and fast-tracked approvals signals a coordinated effort to revive Montego Bay’s tourism-driven economy.

“The data reflects resilience among operators and communities, and ongoing monitoring of reopenings and visitor patterns will inform stakeholders as recovery processes actively progress over the coming months,” he said.