The much-touted 'Christmas in the City, Downtown Comes Alive' in downtown Kingston has inspired at least two other parish councils, whose chairmen have indicated that come next year, they will do the same thing in their respective areas.

"I guess it could be done here (Port Maria) but when I heard about it, it was too late," St Mary Parish Council chairman and mayor of Port Maria, Richard Creary, told The Gleaner. "However, it is something that makes sense and we could do it for next year."

Creary said the effort would not have to cost a lot and the council could therefore seek to undertake a similar effort next year.

He also expressed confidence that support would be forthcoming for such a venture in St Mary.

"I don't see why we shouldn't get the support," Creary argued.

Meanwhile, chairman for the St Ann council, St Ann's Bay Mayor Ivan Anderson, said he, too, liked the idea and his council would be looking at a similar venture next year that could include either St Ann's Bay or Brown's Town.

"We can arrange something like that. We can certainly think about it for next year," Anderson told The Gleaner.

Massive discounts

Downtown Comes Alive brought out thousands of shoppers on Wednesday who came out to take advantage of massive discounts offered during the shopping frenzy.

The event was sponsored by The Gleaner, Scotiabank, the Kingston and St Andrew Corporation, Jamaica Chamber of Commerce and the Kingston City Centre Improvement Company.

Meanwhile, vendors in St Ann's Bay and Brown's Town will be allowed to sell on designated streets on Christmas Eve, according to Anderson.

There have also been traffic changes in both towns, as is customary during the Christmas season.

Both mayors have also reported satisfaction with the Christmas work programme for their respective parishes, despite the scaling down of the programme.

"There was slightly less funds this year," Creary said, while disclosing that approximately $11 million was allocated for the programme.

In St Ann, Anderson said his council allocated $670,000 to each of the 16 council divisions for a total of $10.7 million.

"The funding was basically the same but there were more people to employ this time around," Anderson explained.