Portmore: Parish or model municipality?

THE EDITOR, Madam:

WHAT WILL Portmore provide for its citizens as a parish that it cannot provide as a functional, well-governed municipality?

The Gleaner editorial of September 10,‘No frothy report for Portmore’, contends that “there is very little that Portmore would be able to do as a stand-alone parish that it can’t now do as a city.” This is strongly supported by the Charter of the Municipality of Portmore 2015, which allows for the relevant governance mechanism to be put in place for the municipality’s development. For the residents of Portmore, this means direct involvement in decisions made by the Municipal Authority.

Portmore’s development started in the late 1960s as a response to increasing housing demand that arose primarily from exhausting ideal land for low density residential development in Kingston. It has since sprawled into one of Jamaica’s largest urban spaces with approximately 300,000 residents and, in addition to defined boundary disputes (yet to be resolved), is challenged by inadequate social, economic and institutional development to meet population demand. Should the municipality function according to the objects of the 2015 Charter, the residents would benefit from public participation in matters pertaining to economic development, job opportunities, improvements in service delivery such as the much-promised hospital, development of recreational spaces and transparency in how the municipality is governed – benefits that would be significantly impacted, in a negative way, should parish status be granted.

At a 2021 town hall meeting, Mayor of Portmore Leon Thomas noted the potential fallout in revenue towards the Parochial Revenue Fund (funds raised from property taxes and motor vehicles licences), which may result in Portmore being at a disadvantage in comparison to St Catherine. Given its smaller size, Portmore will have to compete with larger parishes for resources and development that it could have otherwise provided for itself as a municipal body with autonomy and authority.

PAVED THE WAY

Both the Charter of the Municipality of Portmore 2015 and the 2016 Local Governance Act pave the way for aligning Portmore’s development with Sustainable Development Goal 11, which seeks to “make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable”. The charter affords a structure of governance that ensures accountability, the promotion of rule of law and the socio-economic framework that allows citizens to participate in the act of governance. In addition, the municipality is allowed to, among other key objects, “vigorously pursue developmental opportunities … so as to enhance the quality of life of the inhabitants of Portmore,” whereas the act speaks to spearheading sustainable development, urban renewal, and disaster management, which are critical areas of concern for climate change adaptation.

All things considered, the questions that beg to be asked are: Will it be of more benefit to the residents of Portmore for the municipality to be converted to a parish considering the kind of governance that the Municipal Act and Charter allows for? And, should the residents have a say in the direction taken by the Government?

URBAN GOVERNANCE GROUP MSc Built Environment Faculty of the Built Environment University of Technology, Jamaica utechurbangov@googlegroups.com