MoBay mayor gives Sumfest pass mark, wants more events

WESTERN BUREAU:

WHILE THE promoters are yet to release their official assessment of the 2024 staging of Reggae Sumfest, which concluded early Sunday morning in Montego Bay, the city’s mayor, Councillor Richard Vernon, has dubbed the event a success, and is already looking forward to next year’s staging.

In fact, the mayor is so pleased with the festival’s impact on the city, that he told The Gleaner on Monday that he would be only too happy to host an event like Reggae Sumfest every month. Montego Bay was dubbed ‘Sumfest City’ for the duration of the seven-day, eight-event music festival.

“If we can have one (major entertainment event) every month, I would welcome it,” said Vernon. “I know there are other promoters who are stepping up to the plate; if they get the support from the patrons, the surrounding parishes, and from the tourist sector, I know it can happen. In a resort city like Montego Bay, something must be happening at all time.”

The mayor was also full of praise for the overall quality of this year’s production, citing the performers and the performances, the quality of the various sets, which included lighting, sound, stage, and the creative innovations make it a spectacular affair.

“For example, Thursday night’s RumFest, which is now associated with Reggae Sumfest, they came out with a fancy stage made from the rum barrel; the stage was made into a rum barrel, and I found that unique for what we are used to in the space. The setup was a good experience, persons got the chance to do the rum tour and all of that,” said Vernon.

“Overall, I believe it was very good for Montego Bay, and as I always believe, we need more of these events to be happening, especially as a resort city,” added Vernon.

Based on pre-festival projections, the festival was expected to generate more than US$20 million for the local economy, with small operators such as ground transport operators, restaurants, and craft trader expected to get in on the financial windfall.

“We have the hospitality, of course we have the people and the personalities to make it happen, but it is the cherry on top of the pie if we can express ourselves in this way as a resort city to pull more people here and ensure that the local economy benefits immensely from these offerings, from these parties and events,” said Vernon.

According to Vernon, who is the nation’s youngest mayor, his long-term vision is to see entertainment and sports tourism becoming an integral part of Montego Bay’s tourism offerings.

“When I travel and visit other resort cities, something is always happening, not small events, but medium sized to large scale events, and if we want to be competitive and continue to be competitive on the global scale for tourism, we have to offer much more than the sand, sea and sun,” said Vernon. “We have to offer an elevated level of our culture which is expressed in these types of settings, in parties, in entertainment. “

As it related to sports tourism, which is a multimillion-dollar global industry, Vernon said he is ready to partner with private investors to use the Montego Bay Stadium to host major international sporting events.

“We have football that is always going; but in terms of meeting the multipurpose requirements, it’s not just the track and field and the football, but also tennis, footsal and aquatics. There are many ways in which we can further utilise the stadium,” he said.