Boulevard battle for hearts

Residents of New Haven and other business interests along Washington Boulevard have expressed fears of displacement in the proposed roadway redevelopment, which their parliamentary representative has dubbed “suspicious”.

But the Government’s chief spokesman has sought to temper those anxieties, saying the project is at an embryonic stage and that all stakeholders will participate in consultations before the final plan is forged.

Prime Minister Andrew Holness had last week lamented the state of the sometimes traffic-choked boulevard, which is a key entry corridor into Greater Kingston.

Holness also said that mechanic shops and other operations that lined the boulevard and interfered with the free flow of traffic should be “back-office” operations.

While some residents have welcomed the prospect of improved roads and drainage that will come to a community long plagued by flooding, others are sceptical of the future.

Among the critics is Trevor Henry, who has lived there for 45 years. He believes Washington Boulevard needs no major infrastructural improvement.

“People a build them house and trying to live their lives and now the Government come with this!” snapped Henry.

“We suffer so much over the years, flood out for two years, and nobody look at us. Two months straight we have flooding, and nobody even look at us,” he emphasised.

Henry said that he and other residents have made much sacrifice cleaning gullies to prevent flooding as well as helping other householders who have been victim to inundation.

His sentiments were shared by Nicholas Hennie, who believes that the Government has a hidden agenda.

“They did some work on the Boulevard some years ago. There is no need for further road improvement. Traffic a flow smooth since they work on the road, so all I can say this is a grand excuse to evict us,” Hennie told The Gleaner.

“I can only hope that in executing their plans, that they take into account the need to do proper relocation of us, bearing in mind that a long time we doing business in this area,” he said.

But Robert Morgan, the de facto information minister, said Sunday that the Government does not plan to disenfranchise citizens. He said that the Washington Boulevard redesign is part of the general development focus of the Government, which spans the Montego Bay perimeter bypass, the South Coast Highway Improvement Project, and realignment works on Hagley Park and Constant Spring roads.

Morgan, who said that property values were being undermined by flooding and informal activities, said that the administration intended to complete the vision of works on the boulevard that had started years ago but had not been completed. He believes the majority of residents agree that there are long-standing, unresolved problems.

“Part of the consultative process is for the Government to articulate an idea that we plan to execute and then listen to feedback from residents and consumers and persons who use the thoroughfare to hear their views on the possible development,” he said, adding that “we are in the infant stages of this process”.

But Member of Parliament Anthony Hylton, who represents St Andrew Western, which includes New Haven, said that his constituents have legitimate concerns.

“The residents have received information on the ground that certain of them are down for relocation. My question is, why now?” Hylton asked in a Gleaner interview.

“There is a major flooding issue in the area of priority that they have failed to address. That could be done by cleaning the Duhaney River,” he further stated.

Acknowledging that sections of New Haven were unsightly, Hylton said he has communicated with the Office of the Prime Minister that he is seeking dialogue on the parameters and scope of the proposed developmental plan. He said he wants details on any plans for the relocation of residents.

“It is quite suspicious that the Government would suddenly see that the area is unsightly and needs to be redeveloped,” the MP said.

However, Ralston Robinson, a resident of New Haven for more than 50 years, is far more optimistic about the future of the community if the improvement works get into gear.

He agrees that New Haven has suffered years of neglect from state authorities in maintenance of roads and drains but said there is consensus that the area is needful of development.

“We are legitimate property owners on this side of New Haven, so anything that is done along Washington Boulevard can only complement our community and raise our property value,” said Robinson.

He continued: “Furthermore, fixing the boulevard would be the largest infrastructural development in the community over the years, and this should welcome, but we don’t want to displace nobody in the process.”

But one Washington Boulevard garage owner, who said he was drawn to the area by lucrative business prospects more than 30 years ago, theorises that the Holness administration has a sinister plan to displace property owners and to woo deep-pocketed investors.

“We don’t trust the Government to protect our business interest. They are going to displace us, and they are using the pitch of infrastructural development as a means of carrying out their plans,” he told The Gleaner.