Bartlett stands by $17m MoBay welcome sign
TOURISM MINISTER Edmund Bartlett has hit back at critics who continue to voice disapproval of the price tag for the ‘Welcome to Montego Bay’ sign near the Sangster International Airport in the western city.
The sign, which was built to replace the previous sign that was extensively damaged in a motor vehicle crash last March, came under public criticism due to its $17-million construction cost.
Complaints were also voiced about the sign’s height, with some motorists saying that the sign was blocking their view of traffic from the airport leading towards Queens Drive.
But during his keynote address at Saturday’s Tourism Service Excellence Awards 2018, held at the Montego Bay Convention Centre, Bartlett said that locals and visitors have been hailing the sign for its aesthetic contribution to Montego Bay.
“When we sought to create an experience at the point of arrival in our destination at the Montego Bay airport, less aesthetically appreciative individuals made a comment in relation to just how much is required to create something that is iconic. But the community of Montego Bay said, ‘Look, we want to be part of that,’ so they provided $5 million to join in preparing that experience that some people call a sign,” said Bartlett.
“The sign is now the centrepiece, and I got a message from a number of visitors saying, ‘They beat you up, but it’s the nicest place that we have seen’. We have completed an iconic attraction that everybody loves as they pass by,” Bartlett added.
“The essence of Jamaica is not about our marketing, per se. It’s about the value of the promise that we make to the visitors when they come and the fact that when they do arrive, they see that the integrity of that promise is visualised on their arrival.”
Following the initial outcry about the sign, an audit was ordered by the tourism ministry and conducted by quantity surveying firm Davidson & Hanna. The review concluded that the overall rates for the sign’s construction reflected market conditions.