$2b K2 project has neighbours on edge

Despite the expectation that their properties will increase in value once the 10-storey Kingston 2 (K2) Downtown Reimagined high-rise apartment building is completed in two years, some residents of Fairbourne Road have expressed disgust at the developments.

According to the residents, in addition to the noise and dust they now have to endure until the completion of the project, they will lose their magnificent view of the eastern hills, mountains, and the sunsets they have come to enjoy in their seaside community.

Among the residents complaining to The Gleaner on Sunday was Sheareel Dixon, one of several persons living directly across from the development.

“I guess it’s a good thing when your property increases in the future, but for the moment, because of the non-intent to sell, it’s neither here nor there. We are not overly enthusiastic about any increase in property value ... . Our concerns, those are the issues: the height of the building, the environmental impact, the sewage issue, that can be a problem, impact on our water supply which we have enjoyed more or less consistently [over] many years,” Dixon said.

Dixon, like two other residents on Fairbourne Road, said no one from the development company had approached her and was courteous enough to state what would take place. They claimed they only learnt about it after the official launch on December 19, at which Prime Minister Andrew Holness was present.

She is also worried about the potential noise and safety hazards that may come up in the future with 119 apartment units directly across from her home.

Dixon’s mother is a nurse who retired from the National Chest Hospital in 1998. She bought the house in 1974, which they both now enjoy.

Dixon’s elderly mother told The Gleaner that she was very frustrated last week when cement trucks repeatedly arrived to dump on the lot as part of the construction activities.

“It was disgusting! I was so fed up of the noise! Fed up!” the 82-year-old woman told The Gleaner before pointing to dust settled on chairs on her veranda, which she said comes from the construction site daily.

“It makes no sense. I clean because dust from the site comes soon after,” she said.

K2, as the development is called, is being constructed on approximately two acres overlooking the Kingston Harbour by Sherbourne Limited, a development company owned by Richard Lake and family.

The total building area will be 109,318 square feet on a 1.62-acre lot.