More economically viable communities needed - PM

PRIME Minister P. J. Patterson said the Government has recognised the linkages that exist between properly-planned, well-managed, economically viable communities and a reduction in crime and violence, and hence the development of inner-city areas was part of a deliberate design aimed at transforming those communities.

However, noting that the strategy employed must be multi-dimensional, he said it must include the primary elements of integrated area planning - a social infrastructure which fosters a proper work ethic based on a stable family unit, adequate physical infrastructure, and an economic infrastructure that attracts and retains capital investments to provide continuous employment.

Speaking at the recent official opening of Phase One of Riverton Meadows, the former city dump at Riverton City which has been transformed into an inhabitable settlement, Mr. Patterson said, however, that "we must first begin by eliminating the vast backlog of environmental decay and squalor besetting the human condition in these areas."

According to the Prime Minister, "that is why Riverton Meadows, Callaloo Mews, Oak Glades and Carnival Court at Spanish Town Road and North Street are being developed along a corridor, as part of a deliberate design aimed at transforming our inner-city communities."

However, he said the physical transformation could not stand alone. "Our social and economic planners must work together to achieve meaningful changes," said Mr. Patterson. "This approach will be replicated elsewhere until our work is done and criminals are isolated everywhere."

Mr. Patterson, having briefly toured a section of Phase One of Riverton Meadows, told scores of residents and government officials who assembled in the community to participate in the opening ceremony, that the establishment of Riverton Meadows was addressing an injustice that happened more than 35 years ago when residents living elsewhere in Kingston were bulldozed, uprooted and forced to relocate in the inhospitable surroundings of Riverton City.

"What happened here is a blot and a shame on the Jamaican nation," said Mr. Patterson, referring to the squalor of the city dump, and the derelict and inhumane conditions in which people were living.

The Prime Minister, noting that Riverton Meadows was located in the capital city's major industrial belt, said businesses there owe it to themselves "to invest something in this community and to help in the social upliftment of this community." He said businesses could assist by providing educational facilities such as basic schools, health care facilities, as well as jobs for the people who live in Riverton Meadows and adjoining areas.

Managing director of the National Housing Development Corporation (NHDC), Christopher Honeywell, who chaired the ceremony, said Riverton Meadows was one of the flagship projects of Operation PRIDE, the Programme for Resettlement and Integrated Development Enterprise, that was conceived by Mr. Patterson in 1994.

Riverton Meadows Phase One is a small section of the 250-acre Riverton City lands slated for development. Phase One, the first of five phases, consists of 254 lots sized to accommodate a mix of townhouses and detached housing units, and 52 houses have so far been completed.

Beneficiaries need to make a minimum deposit of $100,000 to qualify for an NHDC mortgage payable between 20 and 40 years at an interest rate of four per cent per year. Mortgage payments will range from about $4,800 to about $6,200 per month.

At the opening ceremony, keys were handed over to some purchasers who met the qualifying requirements, and over the next few weeks, the NHDC is expected to put other beneficiaries in possession of their units.

The NHDC said Phase One has been developed to a very high standard and was now fully completed. Roads, kerb walls, sidewalks and drains are all in place and all the lots have been sewered. Beneficiaries need only to apply to the National Water Commission (NWC) for water and sewer connection, and to the Jamaica Public Service Company (JPSCo) for electrical connection.

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