Students at Sabina Park, one of Jamaica's possible hosting venues for the Cricket World Cup in 2007.
Robert Stephens, Contributor
ALL JAMAICANS have a fantastic opportunity to buy into a vision of Kingston in 2007 and if we begin implementation now, we can build a sustainable future for the take-off of the country as a whole.
The relevance of the year 2007 is that this is the year of the staging of the Cricket World Cup in the Caribbean and we therefore have three years and a few months to realise our vision in preparation for the staging of the most fabulous experience for all Jamaicans and our visitors.
Picture the situation the evening before the start of the first match to be played in Jamaica.
There are five cruise ships in Kingston Harbour with over 10,000 guests from all over the world. Early in the discussions of options it was recognised that Kingston Harbour would be the safest and the only one that could accommodate the five ships necessary to accommodate all the guests.
It is early evening and the passengers are arriving by ferries from Port Royal at piers one and two downtown as two of the ships are docked at Port Royal. Two others are at the wharf and one is docked at the 'cement' pier, which has been transformed for the occasion.
PULSATING
The evening is already pulsating with night life as the numerous entertainment spots including the clubs, bars, theatres and special events have all been booked solid and the city is teeming with activity.
The economic spin-offs for the transport providers, vendors, tour guides, artisans and craftsmen have all reached a peak in the build up to the games and the excitement is tremendous.
Crime is no longer a major issue on the agenda as the economic activity has provided so many opportunities for all those who have shown an interest and security is so tight that there is no longer any incentive to encourage the criminals.
In order to accommodate the World Cup, the private sector, community-based organisations, non-governmental organisations including the unions as well as the Government have collaborated to have the following in place:
Sabina Park has been upgraded to be the finest cricket ground in the Caribbean with a seating capacity of 30,000 and is the pride and joy of every Jamaican who has been allowed to own a piece of this magnificent historical showpiece (that is, the Kingston Club and all other interests formed a new company to own and develop the property and shares were sold via the stock market. The shares were over-subscribed as the project was based on 2007 as the beginning of the use of the facility for major sporting events thereafter. Hence it will be a viable investment);
The National Stadium has been prepared to be used for viewing the World cup games for those who cannot be accommodated at Sabina Park with giant screens to show the live action;
Kingston Harbour, the most magnificent harbour in the region and seventh largest in the world no longer has raw sewage being discharged daily into it and it has been cleaned to a condition where water sports spectaculars such as ski jumping competitions are planned for the days when there is no cricket;
Port Royal has been developed as the premier Caribbean Heritage Tourism Attraction and Entertainment Hub for Jamaicans and our visitors building on its 17th century recognition as the "richest and wickedest city in the world" and the only sunken city in the western hemisphere;
Downtown Kingston has truly been developed as the heartbeat of Jamaica in terms of being the cultural, business, entertainment, sports, shopping and dining capital of Jamaica. Developments completed include Chinatown, Rae Town, the cultural Mecca with shows at Ward Theatre and exhibitions at the National Gallery, the Institute of Jamaica, the National Library; the Bank of Jamaica Coin Museum and The African Caribbean Museum at Mico College have all been planned in addition to entertainment at regular shows in Trench Town, Tivoli 'Passa Passa' and other culture yards;
The craft market has been transformed into an Entertainment and Shopping Village with an open air amphitheatre surrounded by shops and a food court with a bright and lively environment which is itself an attraction and a centre for meeting and greeting friends, family and visitors;
Piers I and II have been restored and are now the main receiving and loading piers for the ferry service between downtown Kingston, Portmore, Port Royal and the Norman Manley International Airport;
The Norman Manley International Airport has been spruced up and expanded to accommodate the increased traffic traversing this gateway to the Historic Triangle;
Uptown Kingston is really rocking with the Bob Marley Museum, Devon House, The University of the West Indies and University of Technology and the wide array of nightclubs such as Asylum, Quad, Weekenz, Chasers, Friends on the Deck, Peppers, Village Café etc. all humming with rhythms of Jamaican Reggae and Dancehall music and restaurants galore serving Jamaican, Chinese, Japanese, Indian, Mexican and various European-style food;
Spanish Town has been restored as the magnificent Georgian Capital of Jamaica with a heritage village atmosphere developed around the square and several of the other historical sites in the town including the Iron Bridge being preserved as historical sites;
Hellshire Beach has been upgraded and expanded as the fish, festival and beach playground for Kingston and St. Catherine mainly;
The Blue and John Crow Mountain National Park has been linked to Hope Gardens via a 100-person sightseeing cable car and the attractions leading up to the mountains including Strawberry Hill, Newcastle, The Gap Café and Holywell Park have all become more accessible.
ORGANISATIONS
Some key organisations and individuals came together from the private, public and civic sectors of the Jamaican society to make this all happen, including the following:
The KSAC led by the Mayor and all the councillors;
The Kingston City Centre Improvement Company;
The Kingston Cricket Club and all the other cricketing organisations;
The Jamaica Chamber of Commerce;
The Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association and the Kingston Chapter in particular;
The Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica;
The Government of Jamaica and all the statutory organisations such as the Urban Development Corporation (UDC), Port Authority, the Airports Authority, and National Works Agency;
The Shipping Association of Jamaica and all the shipping agents and ground tour operators;
The airlines, the travel agents and tour operators;
Kingston Restoration Company;
The trade unions;
The Professional Societies Association in Jamaica and all the critical professional associations such as engineers, architects, surveyors etc.;
In the final analysis, we all as Jamaicans came together and made this vision come true and we designed it in such a way that all Jamaicans in Jamaica and the wider Diaspora were given the opportunity to participate and own a piece of the vision.
We did not wait for the Government to lead this development. The private sector through the PSOJ and all the other organisations led the charge and set up small sub-committees that took on the design and development of each component.
Each component was prepared and presented as a viable project recognising that 2007 was just the major take-off point and all the projects were developed recognising that they would be long-term sustainable projects in which every Jamaican would wish to participate and own a piece of the action.
If we have confidence in ourselves and believe we can do it and we come together as one to achieve the vision, it will be done. This should be one of the first project-related activities of the Kingston chapter of the Partners for Progress Initiative.
Robert Stephens is the
president of Pragma Consultants Ltd.
