Holness Tours Bound Brook Urban Centre as Government Advances Post-Melissa Recovery Plans

Prime Minister Andrew Holness says the Bound Brook Urban Centre in Port Antonio, Portland, remains on course for completion in February 2027, with construction now roughly 58 per cent complete. He toured the $4.2 billion project on Friday as the Factories Corporation of Jamaica advances the development through a public-private partnership.

Holness said the centre forms part of a government strategy to establish modern urban spaces that combine public services with private commercial and professional activity. "What we are doing here is to build spaces that can make your lives better," he said, noting that government services will be offered in one accessible location. The project sits beside a new bypass for Port Antonio and is expected to ease congestion, attract investment and generate an estimated 2,000 to 3,000 jobs during construction and operations.

The government is also mobilising the National Social Housing Programme to deliver 2,500 modular semi-permanent housing solutions for Jamaicans affected by Hurricane Melissa. Speaking at a handover ceremony in Canewood, Portland, Holness said the imported units require concrete platforms before installation, with the programme working alongside the National Housing Trust and the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management. He said the rollout will be monitored to assess how the units perform under local conditions.

The Ministry of Local Government and Community Development has received US$1 million in cash and relief supplies from the JN Foundation and Lutheran World Relief for hurricane recovery and humanitarian efforts. The package includes US$416,000 and 545 disaster relief kits with quilts, educational materials, baby care items and personal care supplies, benefiting about 30,000 people. Funds will also support equipment for the Trilani Infirmary, where rebuilding work is nearly 85 per cent complete.

Education Minister Dana Morris Dixon said more than $310 million has been earmarked to upgrade St. Elizabeth Technical High School, among more than 400 institutions damaged by Hurricane Melissa. Works include reinforced dormitories, campus strengthening and upgrades to staff housing. The school is also set to receive Jamaica's first high school mechatronics and robotics laboratory when students return in September.

Local Government Minister Desmond McKenzie said 200 young people will be employed under this year's Youth Summer Employment Programme from July through December, with roughly 10 to 15 workers assigned to each municipal corporation to support disaster coordinators, identify vulnerable residents and assess roads and street lighting.

For the 2026–2027 fiscal year, the ministry is pursuing a strengthened building code requiring structures to withstand Category 5 hurricanes, purpose-built emergency shelters in Westmoreland, Clarendon, St. Ann and St. Thomas, and additional funding for drain cleaning, road patching, infirmary restoration and market rehabilitation. Holness also rejected claims that Jamaica would accept criminals under a third-country nationals agreement with the United States and paid tribute to track and field coach Vincent Steven Francis, who died on 4 July at age 64.