Grange

OPPOSITION SPOKESPERSON on Social Development and Welfare and Member of Parlia-ment for Central St. Catherine, Olivia 'Babsy' Grange, has called on the Government to establish a Spanish Town Restoration Company (STRC), to undertake the responsibility of transforming the old capital into a heritage site.

Ms. Grange who was making her contribution to the Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives on Tuesday, said: "The country can reap untold wealth from a steady development of the project as ...heritage tourism is a solid earner of foreign exchange."

"The longer the delay, the more lead time and advantage we give to our competitors in Cuba, Puerto Rico, Mexico and the Dominican Republic," Ms Grange said. She added that many valuable commercial opportunities go to waste as we delay the process to revitalise, refurbish and redevelop Spanish Town.

According to her, the project, under the direction of the Urban Development Corporation (UDC), was moving much too slowly and enough was not being done to preserve the structures. She told the House that "a roaring trade was being carried on in bricks and other structures torn from the valuable facades and historic buildings".

"What is needed to fast-track the development is a full-time co-ordinating entity," Ms Grange said. She suggested that the time has come for the setting up of a Spanish Town Restoration Company. She noted that like its counterpart (the Kingston Restoration Company) in the downtown Kingston/Corporate Area, the STRC could jump-start the long-delayed process to remove the malaise from the project.

The STRC, according to Ms Grange, would pull together the many groups of dedicated persons who are ready to contribute positively to the redevelopment of their community.

She disclosed that she had already had discussions with the Member of Parliament for South Central St. Catherine, Sharon Hay-Webster, and both are prepared to donate seed money, along with contributions from the business community, to launch the STRC.

In terms of the spin-offs, the Opposition MP pointed to possible packaged tours between the old capital and the tourist resort of Ocho Rios. This, she said, would give visitors to Jamaica new options to purchase millions of dollars of high-quality souvenirs and a range of service providers would mushroom in and around the town.

Ms. Grange has called on Government to move the project well beyond Emancipation Square, the historic core, and take in the boundaries of the Spanish Town historic district.