Vineyard Town Police Station Refurbished by NCB Foundation

Police personnel and residents of Vineyard Town, in South East St. Andrew, are now enjoying the comfort of the renovated police station, as a result of the generosity of the National Commercial Bank (NCB) Foundation.

As part of its Labour Day project on May 23, the Foundation’s volunteers painted the police station, installed air-conditioning units and grills, and did electrical and lighting installation as well as plumbing works.

On Friday, June 16, the Foundation members toured the facility and unveiled a plaque. Also on the tour were political representatives and members of the Jamaica Constabulary Force’s hierarchy.

Group Marketing and Communications Manager at NCB, Nichole Brackett-Walters, told JIS News there was a shift from the Foundation’s usual education focus to national security, because of the transformation that is needed in that area.

“The project is under our community development programme [and] is in keeping with our mandate to help our communities and to build a better Jamaica. It is our intention that this assistance will go towards improving national security. We really hope that this contribution will promote peace and goodwill within the community,” she said.

Inspector of Police and Sub-Officer in Charge of the Vineyard Town Police Station, Mark Harris, expressed gratitude for the project, noting that it will go a far way in improving staff morale and how the community is served.

“We were affected significantly because of the condition of our facility. NCB Foundation came on board to improve the facility on Labour Day and I can tell you from that day until now, the citizens are very happy, my staff is motivated and I am happy to be working in a better environment. I must say a big thank you to NCB Foundation and its volunteers on behalf of the Ministry of National Security and the Jamaica Constabulary Force, and I hope you continue to serve Jamaica in this capacity,” he said.

Woman Corporal, Kaedene Hendricks Williamson, also praised the NCB Foundation.

“There is now more space and we are comfortable. The space is cool and this creates a different environment when you have different types of customers to deal with. We now have an interview room that is ready for persons that have queries or reports of a private nature. We are really glad that this project was done,” she said.

Member of Parliament for South East St. Andrew, Julian Robinson, said the refurbishing will aid police in having a closer relationship with the community.

“The police station has a very close working relationship with the community. The refurbishing of the station allows the police to work in a more comfortable environment and will allow them to better serve the community. As the representative, I want to thank NCB Foundation for doing this, and we look forward to a continued close working relationship [among] the police, the political representatives, the community and the business persons,” he said.

The NCB Foundation spent a total of $4.5 million to refurbish three police stations on Labour Day, including Vineyard Town, Summit in St. James, and Alligator Pond in Manchester. The projects were managed by Kaizen Development Limited.