CHEC, WIHCON among bidders for Parliament project

At least two major construction companies and developers have signalled that they intend to throw their hat in the ring as they jostle to win the multibillion-dollar contract to construct Jamaica’s new state-of-the-art Parliament edifice at Heroes Park in Kingston.

Kerrymoure O’Connor, general manager of the project planning division at West Indies Home Contractors Limited (WIHCON), said that the new Parliament building is one of the biggest projects of its kind in the Caribbean over the last 20 years.

The WIHCON executive spoke with The Gleaner during a site visit at National Heroes Park where Jamaica’s new Houses of Parliament will be constructed. A team from the Urban Development Corporation (UDC), the agency that will oversee the project’s implementation, was on hand to provide details to prospective bidders.

O’Connor told The Gleaner that the size of the 300,000-square-foot building is not a regular construction project, outside of apartments or residential schemes.

“And if you look at apartment buildings, the finishes will not be as high-end as a building of this stature.

“With WIHCON being a significant contractor/developer in the Jamaican landscape, there is no way we would not want to have some form of existential foothold on this project, so we are aiming to win,” he said.

WIHCON’s portfolio includes not just housing solutions but commercial space and other infrastructure works.

China Harbour Engineering Company Limited (CHEC) has secured some major local projects and has indicated its interest in bidding for the massive government contract.

Frank Wang, business manager at CHEC, said that the company wants to contribute to the development of Jamaica.

“We believe it will be a good project for the people of Jamaica,” said Wang.

He said that CHEC is registered as a local company and has employed hundreds of workers.

Some of the major projects that China Harbour is currently working on are the Southern Coastal Highway, the Montego Bay Bypass, and the Morant Bay Urban Centre.

Officials from the United States Embassy were also on hand to collect information to share with prospective bidders in America.

Loy Malcolm, deputy general manager of the UDC, said the bids, which have been out since April 4, this year, will come to a close on June 28, 2022.

The UDC said it is aiming to complete the bidding process and award a contract within this calendar year.

Jason Scott, an architect at Design Collaborative International (Jamaica), who provided details about the proposed Parliament building, said that the size of the main structure will be approximately 331,000 square feet.

He said the entire height of the building, from the lowest level, will be 74 feet.

Scott explained that Jamaica Defence Force barracks and a plant nursery will be constructed to the south of Heroes Park.

To the east, in the direction of the Ministry of Finance, there will be two entrances – one for parliamentarians and the other for emergency purposes. On the west side, there will be visitors’ entrances, as well as another for emergencies. There will be a walk-in entrance for visitors to the north of the park.

Scott said that sections of the existing perimeter fence will be demolished to facilitate pedestrian and vehicular access.

In 2020, a senior UDC official said it would cost US$50 million (J$7.5 billion) to construct the new Parliament building.

Asked about the proposed Government Campus comprising ministries and departments at Heroes Circle, Malcolm said that a feasibility study is being done on that phase of the project.