Western Bureau:

After a protracted period of inactivity, the plan by the Housing Agency of Jamaica (HAJ) to construct 721 housing solutions on 148 acres of former sugar lands at Parnassus in Trelawny appears to be back on the radar.

According to Doreen Prendergast, the managing director of HAJ, one of the important hurdles in getting the project off the ground,the subdivision plan for those 148 acres, is now ready. The section of the land in question is part of a 3,600-acre property, which is being managed by the Sugar Company of Jamaica (SCJ).

“The subdivision plan has now been prepared to build the 721 housing solutions. The target market for these houses are workers in the tourism sector,” explained Prendergast.

Currently, there are five hotels now operating in Trelawny, and another major hotel is now under construction in the Coopers Pen section of Trelawny, which is a short distance away from Parnassus.

While the HAJ is quite happy that progress is now being made in getting the housing project off the ground, persons who were against using the former sugar lands for housing instead of putting it back into agriculture would still be ruing the decision taken to allocate the lands to the HAJ.

At the time of the announcement, Sophia Frazer Binns, the opposition spokesperson on lands, made it quite clear that she was not supportive of the decision.

“These lands should be used to produce crops, which would help to decrease the country’s import bill,” said Frazer Binns in voicing her objection.

However, according to Prendergast, the decision to change the use of the land from agriculture to housing was done through the right channel, and the requisite approval was granted in 2021.

Like Frazier Binns, some of the persons now occupying the Parnassus lands, where they have constructed homes and have been doing subsistent farming, are now concerned about their immediate future as they expect the HAJ to move in at short notice.

“We have been promised that our situation will be regularised, and we will be allowed to pay for the lands, but that appears not to be the case again,” said Kenrick Smith, one of the subsistence farmers.

However, in a recent statement that should be comforting to Smith, Prendergast said the section of the property now being targeted by the HAJ has no houses on it.

“There are no houses on the greenfield area where HAJ plans to construct the 721 housing solutions,” said Prendergast.

Linvern Wright, the principal of William Knibb High School, welcomed the announcement by the HAJ and expressed the hope that the requisite social amenities would be catered for.

“I am hoping that plans for schools, healthcare facilities, and space for children to play are included in the plan,” said Wright, who is hoping that in the future, teachers would be considered for some of the housing solutions.