Published: Saturday | August 10, 2013 9 Comments
Medians lining the Norman Manley Boulevard in Negril are not being properly maintained.-Photo by Karrie Williams
Karrie Williams, Gleaner Writer
WESTERN BUREAU:Bushy, unkempt medians along Norman Manley Boulevard, Negril's major thoroughfare, left many Dream Weekend visitors to the resort town unhappy with their unsightly appeal and the dangers posed to motorists.
First-time visitor from London, Rhyan Frankin, said though he totally enjoyed the experience of the Dream Weekend party series, he was expecting more from Negril.
"The beaches are lovely, but why do the roads have to be so bad, mate?" he questioned. "Do the tourism authorities not know that this is the sort of thing that will turn visitors off? Yea, the beaches are wonderful, but I have been to other Caribbean countries where the beaches are equally as great and the roads are well kept, so those guys need to do better, man," he stated.
When contacted, Lenbert Williams, chairman of the Negril Enhancement Foundation, told Western Focus that the medians were an oversight on the part of the responsible authority.
"I must say that they are fairly new, and I think that someone will come up with a plan eventually to maintain them. Whoever these guys are with the whacker, I don't know why they don't just trim them as they are doing the embankments. I will take it up with the National Works Agency (NWA) at the next resort board meeting as they are the agency that built them.
I am sure they have a plan; however, it needs to be expedited," Williams asserted.
HOTELIERS ANNOYED
But Dream Weekend visitors were not the only ones expressing concern about the medians. According to proprietor for Charela Inn Resort, Daniel Grizzle, hoteliers are also miffed.
"Most of us are very unhappy with them. They are not finished or maintained, and they are a risk to life and limb more than anything else because at nights, especially for people who are not familiar with the area, by the time you see them, it's really too late," said Grizzle.
"We had agreed that there should be some warning, and that there should be stud lights coming down to them. We are not at all happy, and we wish they would come and finish their job. They are an unfinished job - not a pleasant sight either - and they do not really protect the strip," he said.
In response to these concerns, manager for the NWA parish office in Savanna-la-Mar, David Clarke, said Tuesday that although he was not aware of the extent to which the medians were unkempt, work on them was indeed incomplete.
"There was a problem with the contractor who started the works, and he was subsequently dismissed. Within the coming week, we will employ a new contractor to finish the remainder of the works and any deficiencies which may exist," said Clarke.