Main Labour Day projects get fulsome attention out west

Western Bureau:

While lacking the intensity of former years, Labour Day 2025 nonetheless saw several projects being undertaken across western Jamaica as political leaders, business entities and community leaders spearheaded several projects along with residents in giving several facilities a facelift in keeping with this year’s theme, ‘Protect the Environment: Our Land, Our Duty, Our Future’.

In St James, where residents of communities such as Cornwall Court, Green Pond and Albion were up early working on projects such as repair work on community centres, filling out potholes on roadways, painting pedestrian crossings and bushing sidewalks, the main project was the general cleaning up of the Charles Gordon Market.

Montego Bay Mayor Richard Vernon, who along Marlene Malahoo Forte, the member of parliament for St James West Central, got their hands dirty, cleaning up bulky waste around the market as well as washing the market and giving it a general facelift.

“We decided to implement within the Charles Gordon Market district a scope of work that will enhance the space, which will include the removal of bulky waste from the area. We are also removing some of the biodegradable waste, we are washing the street, we are doing every crevice and corner in the market district,” said Vernon. “We are going to be doing some infrastructural work as well, we are doing some roads, repairs to the sidewalks to improve walkability in the space, and we are going to be doing some baiting for rodent control.”

In a bid to keep the market in an impeccable state going forward, Malahoo Forte urged vendors and users of the market to strive to always keep it clean and presentable.

“I want to use this opportunity to appeal to all users of the market, those who do business here, those who come to transact business her, to containerise your garbage. This is a place where we buy food to eat. We have to keep the place clean,” said Malahoo Forte. “We have to start doing better… we are doing some excellent work on the ground today at the market, and go forward, we have to keep the place clean.”

PARK FIX-UP

In the Cornwall Court community, Ryan Gray, president of the Cornwall Court Citizen’s Association, was taking the lead in putting the community’s ‘kiddies park’ back into a pristine state. The perimeter fencing was fully restored, the slides were repaired and re-painted and a container, which is used as a library and study area, was cleaned up and put back into shape.

In Hanover, where the Look Out Community Centre in Hopewell was the parish project, there were also numerous other projects, which included the re-construction of a garbage dumpster in Orange Bay housing scheme, the building of a bus shed in Chester Castle, painting and repair work on Riverside Primary and Basic School, the painting of Mountpelier Basic School , among other community projects.

At the parish project, the Look Out Community Centre, which is heavily used by residents for recreation and other community activities, was extensively cleaned up, refurbished and painted, giving it a brand-new look.

In Trelawny, where the cleaning of the dragline in Falmouth was the main parish project, Falmouth Mayor Colin Gager made it clear that with the town close to sea level, it is important to keep the drag line free of garbage so that surface water can flow freely into the sea. Several truck loads of garbage were removed from several locations close to the sea.

“I am very pleased that the dragline is being cleaned because when it is blocked up, it could cause flooding if we are hit by any major weather system,” a resident told The Gleaner. “It is very simple, if we treat the environment well, it will treat us well in return.”

In addition to the parish project, extensive works were also carried out at the Falmouth General Hospital and the Falmouth Police Station. At the hospital, the Falmouth Credit Union and the Riu Palace Aquarelle combined with other entities to clean up the facility, inclusive of landscaping work. At the police station, staff members of the Riu group gave it a refreshing painting job.

Ashley Anguin, Bryan Miller and Leon Jackson contributed to this story.