From left: Carletta Gordon-Raby, Marjorie Michelle Hinds, Juliet Forrester-Nugent, Fay Davis and Ann-Marie Bishop Hearne have a group hug after participating in Flair's Portmore women's forum at The Gleaner on Friday, October 30. - Ricardo Makyn/Staff Photographer.

Times have no doubt become increasingly harder for many people. This is so especially because of the economic crisis resulting in, among other things, a higher cost of living, as well as numerous job redundancies. Because of this, persons have been forced to find alternative ways of earning an income within the confines of their homes. But this hasn't gone well with some neighbours.

In a recently held women's forum hosted by the Flair team, professional women residing in Portmore, St Catherine were invited to speak on issues affecting them in their communities. One of the more pressing was the issue of commercialisation in their residential communities.

For accountant Fay Davis, who has been living in Greater Portmore since 1998, persons using parts of their homes as shops is a concern. According to Davis, the shops that are organised within these communities can pose risks to neighbours as it can potentially harbour individuals of questionable character. For this she strongly recommends their removal by the municipal council.

Just by walking through many communities in what is considered the dormitory town of Jamaica, one will see shops selling a variety of items and supplies. Various parts of the houses are used to accommodate stocks as well as customers.

The concern over commercialisation, though, does not stop at the practice of selling food items. For Carletta Gordon-Raby, operator of a floral design school and resident of Portmore since 1973, transforming the houses in bigger establishments has been done in many areas. "You have people who set up hair salons and even bars using their houses," she said with concern.

To earn income

There is no doubt that most of these operations are done out of the need to earn an income, but the general consensus was that it needed to be done on a structured basis outside of the residential community, and that work needs to be done to put a stop to the growing trend.

Marjorie Michelle Hinds, wife of Portmore Mayor Keith Hinds, says that residents, to some extent, are to take some blame for the growth in this practice. According to Hinds, the support of these establishments comes from the neighbours and residents in proximity.

When Flair contacted Mayor Hinds on the matter of commercialisation in homes, he noted that the municipal council has been working to address the issue. "Certainly, in the past couple of months, committees including the planning committee have been busy enforcing the law. They have moved into areas, have served notices, and persons have even ended up in the courts."

He also says persons have, in fact, been fined up to $300,000, and in some cases can be charged up to $1,000,000. Actions by the council, he says are normally taken after reports are made by residents or patrol officers, including the police.

However, while the mayor says the council has been clamping down on commercial activities in residential areas, he plans to address the needs of communities individually. "We want to have a consultation with the different communities to deal with the issue. We have to recognise that some areas like Waterford have a lot of shops and some have been there for 10 years. Some communities can accommodate shops and so the persons in the different communities can voice their concerns as it relates to them; the council will also take action based on the concerns."

While the mayor has intentions of trying to facilitate some shop owners, he still emphasises that the act is illegal. Among the documents, which outlines this are the titles that home owners receive.

latoya.grindley@gleanerjm.com

Marjorie Michelle Hinds, wife of the mayor of Portmore, makes her point. - Ricardo Makyn/Staff Photographer