Stakeholders eyeing a new Negril

WESTERN BUREAU:

The resort town of Negril, which is now shared by the Hanover and Westmoreland municipal corporations, could soon be controlling its own destiny as critical stakeholders in the town are now pushing to gain autonomy by being declared a municipality on its own.

While not seeking to pre-empt a major announcement Prime Minister Andrew Holness is expected to make on the matter soon, Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett gave a hint of what is to come when he spoke at the unveiling of the new $12-million Negril welcome sign, which took place last week.

“It’s difficult to manage one space with two (municipal) authorities, and I will say no more,” said Bartlett, in reference to the logistical issues being faced because of Negril being controlled by both the Hanover and Westmoreland municipal corporations.

“We won’t talk of Hanover Negril, or Westmoreland Negril, but in time we will be able to talk about Negril, and I am not going to go any further because I am sure the prime minister and the leaders will have my head if I ever go further,” said Bartlett.

Based on the geography of Negril, the areas surrounding the town centre, which includes the police station and the main commercial centre, falls under the control of the Westmoreland Municipal Corporation, while a substantial section of the seven miles of scenic beaches, where most of the hotels are located, falls under the Hanover Municipal Corporation.

While Bartlett was reluctant to speak in detail about the plans for Negril, in an interview after the unveiling of the sign, Richard Wallace, president of the Negril Chamber of Commerce, spoke to the long-term plan for Negril to become a municipality, severing the current ties to Westmoreland and Hanover.

In fact, Wallace believes that Negril’s real potential as a major economic centre will come through if the town becomes a municipality with the capacity to chart its own course.

“One of the things that we have been asking for is that the planning authority for Negril be strengthened to be able to manage our affairs better, obviously they (the government) have heard our cry and based on discussions with some ministers of government that we met with, that is in the pipeline to come,” explained Wallace.

“We would like to move towards municipality status, where we can actually have a mayor or a town manager, that can do things, and have the legislative authority to make decisions and to get things done,” said Wallace. “It’s an ongoing process, we do not have all the answers now, but that is the direction in which we are going.”